They are advertising.
Some of their program officers have been around for a long time but all of them start on short term contracts.
You could focus on the short-term part, and the lack of security, or you could see it as a good opportunity to try out a job that is related to your academic training but not an academic job. That’s what I did back in 2003 when I was transitioning out of academe.
So, here’s the link for the job ad.
And if you have questions about what the job is like, feel free to put them in the comments or send me an e-mail. I may reply on the blog so everyone can benefit but I won’t tell everyone who asked.
Just as a reminder, I have not worked for SSHRC for 5 years. I was a program officer in 2003-04, and then a policy analyst 2004-05. I’m pretty sure the basics have not changed that much. I have absolutely no influence with whoever is actually doing the hiring.
Hi Jo,
Thanks for this message about the SSHRC job posting. I didn’t know they are hiring right now. Do you know what they mean in their job ad. when they say all applicants must be bilingual (BBB/BBB)? Just wondering.
Best,
Tonya
Good question, Tonya.
This is a standard for the Federal Government. There are 3 levels of language proficience A, B, C (and then E for Exempt from further testing). Bizarrely, A is the lowest and C is the best.
You are tested in 3 areas: Oral, Comprehension, Writing
There are 2 languages.
So BBB/BBB means reasonably good on all 3 aspects of both languages. (there are actual test scores that will correlate to a B)
Basically, to work as a program officer at SSHRC you will need to be able to read and understand applications submitted in French, and understand what is going on in an adjudication meeting if one of the committee members is speaking French. You should also be able to carry on a basic conversation with a researcher who asks questions in French. (Or English if your first language is French.)
Did you have to take a written exam? Can you talk about how the exams were?
No. there was no written exam. I did have to do an exam for another federal civil service job but the only ones I did for SSHRC were language exams.