Call for Applications: Research Positions at Center for Communication Governance (CCG) at NLU, Delhi

We’re pleased to inform you that the Centre for Communication Governance at the National Law University Delhi is inviting applications for various research positions. For further details, please see the announcement below.

Call for Applications: Research Positions at CCG

The logo of NLU, Delhi alongside the logo of CCG

The National Law University Delhi (‘University’), through its Centre for Communication Governance (‘CCG’/’Centre’) is inviting applications for various research positions across both its teams on a (i) full time basis as a CCG researcher and/or managerial role, and (ii) part time (specific duration) consultant.

About the Centre for Communication Governance

The Centre for Communication Governance at National Law University Delhi (CCG) was established in 2013 to ensure that Indian legal education establishments engage more meaningfully with information law and policy, and to contribute to improved governance and policy making. CCG is the only academic research centre dedicated to working on information law and policy in India, and in a short span of time has become a leading institution in the region.

Through its Technology and Society team, CCG seeks to embed human rights, constitutional rights and good governance within information policy and examine the evolution of existing rights frameworks to accommodate new media and emerging technology. It seeks to protect and expand the right to freedom of speech, right to dignity and equality, right to assembly and association, and the right to privacy in the digital age, through rigorous academic research, policy intervention, and capacity building. The team’s ongoing work includes privacy and data governance/protection, surveillance, freedom of speech and expression, misinformation, regulation of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, 5G and IoT, platform regulation, and intermediary liability.

This complements the work of the Technology and National Security team at CCG that focuses on issues that arise at the intersection of technology and national security law, including surveillance, cyber security, information warfare, and the interplay of international legal norms with domestic regulation. The team’s work aims to build a better understanding of national security issues in a manner that identifies legal and policy solutions that balance the legitimate security interests and national security choices with constitutional liberties and the rule of law, in the context of technology law and policy. The team undertakes analysis of international law as well as domestic laws and policies that have implications for national security. Our goal is to develop detail-oriented, principled and pragmatic recommendations for policy makers on national security issues faced by India, with an emphasis on cyber security and cyber conflict.

The work at CCG is designed to build competence and raise the quality of discourse in research and policy around issues concerning human rights and constitutional rights in the digital age, cybersecurity and global Internet governance. The academic research and policy output is intended to catalyze effective research-led policy making and informed public debate around issues in technology, Internet governance and information law and policy.

Role

CCG is a young, continuously evolving organization and the members of the Centre are expected to be active participants in building a collaborative, merit-led institution and a lasting community of highly motivated young researchers. If selected, you will contribute to the institution’s growth and development. You will be part of a dynamic team of young researchers, policy analysts and lawyers. Based on experience, domain understanding and qualifications, successful applicants will be placed in the following positions. Please note that our interview panel has the discretion to determine which profile would be most suitable for each applicant based on their experience, domain understanding and qualifications and this is an indicative amount of experience.

 (i) Analyst(s) (0-2 year’s experience)

(ii) Project Officer(s) (2+ year’s experience)

(iii) Programme Officer(s) (3+ year’s experience)

(iv) Project/Programme/Team Lead/Manager (4+ year’s experience)

A Master’s degree from a highly regarded programme might count towards work experience.

Besides this, we will be considering relevant candidates for part time consultant roles to work on various ongoing research projects at CCG for a certain period of time. Depending on the project(s) the consultant is hired to be involved in, the contract period will vary. The Consultant will research, author/ co-author, edit and review research papers, reports, policy responses, and any other publication and related work of the Centre.

Responsibilities

• Working independently and collaboratively with other members of the team to undertake academic and policy research and writing.

• Conducting in-depth legal, regulatory, policy and legislative analysis and developing policy recommendations.

• Undertaking high impact academic and policy-centric research and write briefs, reports, responses, blogs, articles and other documents

• Researching and writing policy papers, op-eds, blog posts, press releases and memoranda.

• Representing CCG in the media and at events, roundtables, and conferences and before relevant governmental, and other bodies.

• Applicants applying for Programme/Project Officer/Manager should also show initiative in managing both their own work, as well as the work of the team. They will play a significant leadership role which ranges from proactive agenda-setting to institutional, and team-building responsibilities.

1. Analyst and Project Officer

Selected applicants will ordinarily be expected to design and produce units of publishable policy and academic research (reports, papers, essays, case analysis, etc.) with Senior Staff members. You will also be recommending and assisting with designing and executing policy positions, drafting analytical policy input to government institutions and external actions on a broad range of information policy issues.

Equally, you will also be expected to participate in other work, including writing opinion pieces, blog posts, press releases, memoranda, and help with outreach. The selected applicants will also represent CCG in the media and at other events, roundtables, and conferences and before relevant governmental, and other bodies. In addition, you will have organizational responsibilities such as providing inputs for research/grant applications, building networks, social media and media engagement and designing and executing Centre events.

2. Programme Officers and Project/Programme/Team Lead/Manager

In addition to conducting and publishing academic and policy research and organisational responsibilities, as mentioned in the role description above, applicants with more experience will manage, advise and mentor younger team members. As a senior member of the team, you will help shape CCG’s strategic direction and assist and advise senior leadership on issues including policy positioning and direction, staff management and growth, organizational capacity building and structure, writing of grant proposals/fundraising, building collaborations and diversity. You will also be building and maintaining relationships with our stakeholders, including members of parliament, senior government officers, judges, senior lawyers, scholars, and journalists. We are looking for someone who is very constructive and is not only able to help our community get the most out of CCG’s work but is also able to connect people with each other, playing an enabling, generative role that encourages and supports the community’s work.

3. Part time consultants

Part time consultants will work on research projects across the various domains of CCG’s research work. Selected applicants will primarily be expected to develop, undertake, edit and review research that will contribute to the Centre’s ongoing work including privacy and data protection, surveillance, freedom of speech and expression, emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, platform regulation, cyber security and national security. This is an indicative list of some of the areas CCG is currently working on, and not an exhaustive list of projects for which we are looking for consultants in. We welcome applicants with an interest in any of the areas that CCG broadly works in to apply. Depending on the project(s) the consultant is hired to be involved in, the contract period will vary. The Consultant will research, author/ co-author, edit and review research papers, reports, policy responses, and any other publication and related work of the Centre.

Qualifications

• The Centre welcomes applications from candidates with degrees in law, social sciences, international affairs, development studies, economics, public policy and other relevant fields. Outstanding candidates with B.Sc./B.Tech degree with a specialisation in IT/Computer Science/Cyber Security with a demonstrated interest in or an advanced degree in public policy will also be considered.

• Preference may be given to candidates who are able to provide evidence of an interest in human rights / constitutional law/ technology law and / or policy / Internet governance/ national security law.

• Must have a demonstrable capacity for high-quality, independent work.

• Successful candidates for Managerial positions should show great initiative in managing both their own and their team’s workloads. They will also be expected to lead and motivate their team through high stress periods and in responding to pressing policy questions.

• Strong research, writing and communication skills are necessary.

However, the length of your resume is less important than the other qualities we are looking for. As a young, rapidly-expanding organization, CCG anticipates that all members of the Centre will have to manage large burdens of substantive as well as institutional work in addition to research. We are looking for highly motivated candidates with a deep commitment to building policies that support and enable human rights and democracy. We are looking for people who see good research and policy designs as a way to build a better and more equitable world.

At CCG, we aim high, and we demand a lot from each other in the workplace.

We look for individuals with work-style traits that include the ability to work both collaboratively and independently in a fast-paced environment, while being empathetic towards colleagues. We aim to create high-quality research outputs. It is therefore vital that you be a good team player, as well as be kind and respectful to colleagues. At the same time, you should also be self-motivated, proactive, creative as well as be capable of independently driving your research when required. We like to maintain the highest ethical standards in our work and workplace, and love people who manage all of this while being as kind and generous as possible to colleagues, collaborators and everyone else within our networks. A sense of humour will be most welcome. Even if you do not necessarily fit the requirements outlined but bring to us the other qualities we look for, we will be glad to hear from you.

Remuneration

The salary will be competitive and will be commensurate with qualifications and experience. Where the candidate demonstrates exceptional competence in the opinion of the interview panel, there is a possibility for greater remuneration.

Application Process

Interested applicants may fill the application form provided by 11:59 pm IST on August 15, 2021. Please note that applications will only be accepted via the google form. In case of any doubts, please contact us at ccg@nludelhi.ac.in with the subject line “Application for Researchers”. A complete application will require the following:

• A signed and completed Application Form, available here.

• The form requires a Statement of Motivation which applicants have to answer in a maximum of 800 words. The Statement of Motivation should ideally engage with the following aspects:

(i) Why do you wish to work with CCG?

(ii) What will be your likely contribution to our work? What do you think are the most important focus areas for the team to consider, and how do you hope to contribute to it?

(iii) What past experiences and skills optimally position you to do so?

(iv) How does working with CCG connect with your plans for the future?

• Please combine the CV, writing sample and statement of motivation in a single PDF file labelled as “Your name – CCG”. The PDF should be uploaded on the link provided in the application form. The single PDF file should contain: (1) a Curriculum Vitae (maximum two pages) (2) a writing sample of between 1000 and 1500 words (essay or extract, published or unpublished preferably on a relevant topic), and (3) Statement of Motivation, to be uploaded in the application form.

• Applicants should note that they cannot save their work on the application form and return to it later, so they may find it advisable to prepare their Statement of Motivation and merge relevant documents into a pdf beforehand.

• Names and contact details of two referees who can be contacted for an oral or a short written reference (to be filled in the form).

Since we require applicants to upload their CV and writing sample, accessing the form requires a Google (Gmail) login. For applicants not having a Google (Gmail) account, we encourage them to create an account, following the quick and simple steps here.

NOTE

• National Law University Delhi is an equal opportunity employer.

• National Law University Delhi reserves the right to conduct interviews (video or telephone calls).

• National Law University Delhi is unable to cover the costs of travel and accommodation for attending the selection interviews.

• The position is a contractual position and shall be paid under the grants received by the Centre for Communication Governance at National Law University Delhi.

• We will contact only shortlisted candidates.

• The Centre reserves the right to not fill the position(s) if it does not find suitable candidates among the applicants.