Social Research Apprentice

IFF is a social and market research agency, we design research to understand more about the issues that are affecting the UK, so that better decisions can be made about what to do, and how to solve problems.

We work in several different areas, including education, the environment, health and wellbeing, housing, and finance. Many of our clients are Government departments, but we also conduct research for charities, universities, housing providers, and some businesses like banks.

Each research project that we do is very different, so working with us means you will always be learning something new.

Here are some examples of the sorts of research we’ve done:

· Research to understand whether disabled people feel their local sports centres are accessible for them.

· Research to understand whether people who are coming up to retirement age, know how to apply for their pension.

· Research to understand whether new schemes to help parents engage with their babies, are working.

· Research to understand what skills people have within businesses, and what ‘skills gaps’ there are in the UK.

· Research to understand what it’s like for women to seek support for a gambling addiction, and how we can help create better support in future.

Our work covers the whole research process – we design each research project from scratch, then we design questionnaires, interview people, analyse the data and write reports and presentations to explain our findings.

We’re proud that time and time again we hear that the best thing about working here is our people – we know we have some of the most talented, friendly and interesting people in the research industry. We have different ways of thinking and working, but we all have a shared goal of discovering what is going on in the world and making a positive difference.

About the opportunity

This is an exciting opportunity to gain a BSc degree in applied Social Research, studying over 4 years with the University of Kent, while kickstarting your Social Research career.

During the 4 years, you’ll be part of our friendly research team in London, working on real projects while building your skills, experience and responsibility through your studies. The end goal being successful completion of your degree and a continuation of your career as a researcher within our team.

The work you’ll do with us will ensure you’re developing the core research skills necessary to become a successful Social Researcher. You’ll learn technical skills such as survey design, qualitative and quantitative analysis, report writing and statistics, as well as building your skills in teamwork, communication, time management and problem solving.

As you move through your studies and your experience grows, so will your knowledge and responsibilities, starting from quality checking key outputs, providing adhoc support to the team moving to conducting your own analysis and running small projects on your own. You’ll learn about all aspects of the research process, the sectors we work in, the work we produce and deliver, our clients and the processes we follow that enable us to generate industry leading research.

Who are we looking for?

As this is a degree level apprenticeship, you must have the following qualifications:

· A minimum of 5 GCSEs (including Maths and English at grade 4 or above (or equivalent)

• Minimum of 96 UCAS points under the 2017 tariff point system (e.g., CCC at A Level or equivalent qualification, not including General Studies) or expected to achieve by August 2024.

This is an opportunity for someone who’s interested in people, society and social action. You should be excited to begin your career in Social Research and will be looking forward to joining a team, learning from our experienced researchers while also being dedicated to developing your knowledge through your studies and applying that learning to your work with support from us.

Having good written and verbal communication skills is important, and being confident with numbers will be helpful. You should have good organisation and time management skills as well as having attention to detail.
You’ll be happy to work on your own and manage your work and studies as well as working flexibly and positively with others.
You may have some experience with Microsoft Office but will be willing to learn and use new tech and systems as your expertise grows.

You’ll be joining a company that values input from its team, and you’ll have the opportunity to join our committees and take part in our regular social events.

We offer 28 days holiday plus bank holidays, private healthcare options, flexible working, wellbeing support and social events among other benefits to cater to all of our team.

Job Types: Full-time, Permanent, Apprenticeship

Salary: £25,000.00-£27,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Casual dress
• Company pension
• Cycle to work scheme
• Employee discount
• Enhanced maternity leave
• Enhanced paternity leave
• Health & wellbeing programme
• Life insurance
• Referral programme

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday

Supplemental pay types:

• Bonus scheme

Education:

• A-Level or equivalent (preferred)

Work Location: Hybrid remote in London, EC3R 6HD

Application deadline: 30/04/2024
Reference ID: SRAppren
Expected start date: 02/09/2024