Lead Programmer and Technical Manager

Nuffield College, University of Oxford
Oxford - United Kingdom
S: £39,970 per annum

The Nuffield College Centre for Experimental Social Sciences (CESS) seeks to appoint a skilled programmer who will undertake and oversee programming and manage the operations of the CESS behavioural labs and its online virtual experiments. CESS runs social science experiments with human subjects in four labs (with networked computers where participants play behavioural games) and using online and mobile interfaces. The labs are located at Nuffield College in Oxford, England; Santiago, Chile; Pune, India; and Tianjin, China. Some travel to other CESS facilities may be required, but the Lead Programmer and Technical Manager will be based at Nuffield College in Oxford.

The Lead Programmer and Technical Manager will program experimental games and surveys for behavioural experiments using software applications designed for interface and game programming (e.g. Javascript/jQuery, Python, Django). She or he will assist researchers by identifying their programming needs, facilitating the coding of interactive decision-making experiments, and providing corrective action for programming choices where needed. Other duties include maintaining and supporting software applications used for interface and game programming; advising other CESS facilities on the setup and configuration of their lab software and hardware; maintaining and developing the Nuffield CESS Lab and Online subject pool databases of experiment participants; and assisting with the implementation of CESS online experiments.

Applicants should hold a Master's degree in a relevant social science or computing discipline (e.g. computer science, economics, geography). The successful applicant will possess strong demonstrated experience in programming web applications, together with knowledge of and experience in interface and game programming (e.g. Javascript/jQuery, Python, Django). She or he will have experience of working with SQL databases and complex web technologies such as JavaScript, Python, and PhP, and will possess a good knowledge of networks, servers, and clients. The successful applicant will be willing to acquire skills in oTree, z-tree and Qualtrics (training will be provided), and will be able to work effectively in a small team and with a diverse range of people. Experience with social science lab experiments, and of working with Windows Domains or with Apache HTTP Server would be an advantage.

The post is full-time and fixed-term for two years in the first instance. There will be an initial probationary period of six months. The salary is £39,970 per annum.

Further Particulars including information about how to apply are available from our website at:
https://www.nuffield.ox.ac.uk/media/3934/jd-cessleadprogrammer_dec19.pdf

The deadline for applications is Thursday 30 January 2020.

Applications will be reviewed as they are received and candidates may be invited for interview in advance of the closing date.

Nuffield College exists to promote excellence in education and research, and is an equal opportunities employer committed to equality and valuing diversity. Applications are particularly welcome from women, from disabled people, and from black and minority ethnic candidates, who are currently under-represented in posts in the College.

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