Introduction

The University of Cambridge contributes to society through the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence. Excellence in research arises from the commitment, motivation and hard work of our research communities, including our research staff, who make a valued contribution. The University recognises its responsibility towards its members, including its responsibility to support researchers in managing their careers and fulfilling their responsibilities in carrying out research.

The University's Employment and Career Management Scheme for Researchers draws on the framework of the national Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers. It builds on existing processes and good practice within the University, and is informed by good practice across the UK. It is intended to contain clear minimum standards, and to be sufficiently flexible for Departments, Faculties, Institutes and Centres to adapt it to the needs of their research communities.

The Scheme sets out University policy on the employment and career management of researchers. Researchers, principal investigators and/or the supervisors of researchers, and heads of department and departmental administrators are encouraged to refer to the shorter guidance notes that are provided with this Scheme.

Scope of the Scheme

This Employment and Career Management Scheme sets out the University's provisions and guidelines for the employment of researchers. Researchers are broadly defined as individuals whose primary responsibility is to conduct research and who are employed for this purpose. This definition includes a wide range of research staff with different disciplinary backgrounds, levels of training, experience and responsibility, types of contract (fixed- or open-ended, full- or part-time), and different career expectations and intentions.

The Scheme applies to those researchers employed within the University's Departments, Faculties, Centres and Institutes (hereafter referred to as 'Departments') by the Chancellor, Masters and Scholars of the University of Cambridge. The Scheme is presented as a framework and it is expected that it will be applied in a flexible and appropriate way, in accordance with the experience and needs of researchers.

This Scheme has been developed in the light of the national Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers (2008) and the European Charter for Researchers (2005). This Scheme replaces the former Code of Practice Document for the Employment of Contract Research Staff.

This Scheme contains guidance relating to intellectual property rights policy. This guidance is provided solely to aid understanding. Every effort has been made to incorporate the latest information at the time of publication. However, if the guidance contained in this Scheme deviates from University Policy, the University's intellectual property policy takes precedence.

This Scheme has been approved by the University's Human Resources Committee.