Lecturer in Politics - Teaching and Research

Lecturer in Politics  - Teaching & Research
School of Law and Politics

The School of Law and Politics is seeking to appoint an outstanding candidate to join our internationally renowned Department of Politics and International Relations as a Lecturer in Politics at Grade 7 with expertise in UK governance and the pedagogy of Politics (the latter potentially to include areas such as problem-based learning, partnership pedagogies, community engaged learning pedagogies, simulations, and authentic assessment).  The candidate will also have the ability to support teaching in the areas of UK politics, comparative politics, and research methods. 

We anticipate that the candidate will play a central role in the development, delivery and evaluation of modules that involve community engaged learning pedagogies, simulations and other such approaches.  We are particularly interested in candidates whose expertise extends and complements existing capability in the department.

The successful candidate will have a burgeoning research profile commensurate to their career stage. They will be expected to contribute to activities that contribute towards the research community of the School. 

The Department of Politics and International Relations is a dynamic and growing part of the inter-disciplinary School of Law and Politics. We are an intellectually pluralist and diverse community, with internationally recognised and long-established strengths in political theory; Welsh politics and devolution; British political history; and UK and European politics and public policy. In the past decade the department has invested heavily in enhancing its strength in international relations and global politics, and now has a strong research profile in areas including cold war history; nuclear politics; critical international theory; colonialism and postcolonialism; gender studies; environmental politics; critical military and intelligence studies; and international law. Research and teaching across the department embraces a variety of intellectual and methodological approaches. Moreover, being situated in a School of Law and Politics presents opportunities to innovate across disciplinary boundaries in both teaching and research.

Sub-disciplines across Politics and International Relations are actively engaged in five interdisciplinary research ‘nexuses’ across the School of Law and Politics, namely Global Governance: Wales, Europe and Beyond; Conflict, Security and Society; Law and Politics of Technology; Social Justice and Alternative Futures; and Future Generations and Sustainability. These areas are developing a dynamic research environment through a variety of activities, including the development of reading groups and collaborative publications, mentorship, work-in-progress support sessions, the development of joint funding bids, and workshops. Scholarship activities within the School are supported by the newly founded Centre for the Pedagogy of Political and Legal Education.  Scholarship activities within the School are supported by the Centre for the Pedagogy of Political and Legal Education (PeoPLE), designed to promote and support scholarship of learning and teaching and pedagogical research within the fields of law, politics and international relations. The Centre is dedicated to a reflective and pedagogically-informed approach to learning and teaching and to the vital importance this plays in our practice as an academic community. 

As part of the revalidation of our undergraduate degree programme we will be developing innovative 40 credit capstone projects as part of our final year programme of study for 2027-28. In politics this will involve the development and delivery of modules which centre on problem-based learning, partnership pedagogies, community engaged learning pedagogies, simulations, and authentic assessment. The successful candidate will be expected to play a key role in the development and implementation of these modules.

Applicants are expected to amplify expertise in these broad areas and further shape the Department’s profile.

For further information about the Department and its work, please contact Dr Jon Kirkup, Head of the Department of Politics and International Relations, at [email protected] 

Website: https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/law-politics

This post is full time and open-ended, to start in the first or second semester of the 2026-2027 academic year.

Interviews are planned for 13 August. We kindly ask applicants to keep this date available, as alternative interview dates may not be possible.

Salary: £51,753 - £56,535 per annum (Grade 7)
Appointments to roles at Cardiff University are usually made at bottom of scale, unless in exceptional circumstances.

Date advert posted: Friday, 24 July 2026

Closing date: Friday, 7 August 2026

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds. We therefore welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, or age. We especially welcome and encourage applications from those from under-represented groups within the University workforce, such as those who identify as LGBT +, BAME or those with disabilities. In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.