About the Team

GovAI was founded to help humanity navigate the transition to a world with advanced AI. Our first research agenda, published in 2018, helped define and shape the nascent field of AI governance. Our team and affiliate community possess expertise in a wide variety of domains, including compute governance, US-China relations, arms race dynamics, EU policy, and AI progress forecasting.

GovAI researchers have published in top journals and conferences, including International Organization, NeurIPS, and Nature Machine Intelligence. Our alumni have gone on to research roles at top academic institutions, including the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge, and top AI labs, including DeepMind and OpenAI.

‍

About the Role

Research Scholar (General Track) is a one-year visiting position intended to support the career development of researchers who hope to positively influence the long-run impact of artificial intelligence. 

As a Research Scholar, you will deepen your understanding of AI governance, connect and collaborate with a network of experts, and produce work within an institutional home that offers both research freedom and research support.

You will receive research supervision from a member of the GovAI team or network. The frequency of supervisor feedback will vary depending on supervisor availability, with a minimum of one supervision a month. There will also be a number of additional opportunities for Research Scholars to receive feedback, including internal work-in-progress seminars. You will receive further support and regular check-ins from Emma Bluemke, GovAI's Research Manager. 

You will have significant freedom to pursue projects of your own choosing, collaborate with others inside or outside of GovAI, dedicate time to study, or otherwise spend your time in the way you consider most productive for your career aims.

We are also hiring for a Policy Track version of the role, which might be of interest to applicants who primarily intend to conduct policy-related research or plan to pursue a career in policy making. The Policy Track version of the role (a) places less of an emphasis on free exploration and more of an emphasis on collaborative work within our Policy Team and (b) allows Scholars to work remotely if they wish. Please note that the round one application form for both tracks is the same, and applicants can choose to be considered for either or both tracks within the form.

‍

Qualifications and Selection Criteria

We are open to candidates with a wide range of research interests and intellectual backgrounds. We have previously hired or hosted researchers with backgrounds in political science, computer science, public policy, economics, history, philosophy, and law. We are particularly interested in hosting more researchers with strong technical backgrounds.

You might be a particularly good fit if you have:

• A strong interest in using your career to positively influence the long-run impact of artificial intelligence, in line with our organisation’s mission
• Demonstrated ability or potential to produce excellent research (ability might be demonstrated by academic publications or by non-academic work such as blog posts)
• A commitment to intellectual honesty and rigour
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills
• Self-direction, proactivity, and a desire to have a positive social impact
• Receptiveness to feedback and commitment to self-improvement
• Some familiarity with the field of AI governance
• Some expertise in a domain that is relevant to AI governance 

There are no educational requirements for the role. However, we expect that the most promising candidates will typically have graduate study or policy experience.

‍

Salary, location, and duration

Contracts are full-time and last 12 months fixed-term. Although renewal is not an option for these roles, Research Scholars may apply for the role of Research Fellow once their contract ends.

Research Scholars on the General Track are expected to work primarily from our office in Oxford, UK. However, we will also consider applications from exceptional candidates who are only able to work remotely. We are able to sponsor visas. 

Depending on their experience, we expect that successful candidates’ annual compensation will typically fall between £50,000 and £60,000 if based in Oxford, UK. If a Research Scholar resides partly or entirely in a city with a higher cost of living, this salary will be adjusted to account for the difference. In rare cases where salary considerations would prevent a candidate from accepting an offer, there may also be some flexibility in compensation. 

Benefits associated with the role include health, dental, and vision insurance, a £5,000 annual wellbeing budget, a £1,500 annual commuting budget, flexible work hours, extended parental leave, ergonomic equipment, a competitive pension contribution, and 33 days of paid vacation (UK).

Please inquire through contact@governance.ai if questions or concerns regarding compensation or benefits might affect your decision to apply.

‍

How to apply and what to expect

Applications for Research Scholar General Track are now closed.

The application process consists of a written submission in the first round, a paid remote work test in the second round, and an interview in the final round. The interview round usually consists of one interview but might contain additional interviews in some cases. The application form contains a description of the materials required for the first round. 

Please feel free to reach out to contact@governance.ai if you would need a decision communicated by a particular date or if you have questions about the application process.

We are committed to fostering a culture of inclusion and we encourage individuals with underrepresented perspectives and backgrounds to apply. We especially encourage applications from women, gender minorities, people of colour, and people from regions other than North America and Western Europe who are excited about contributing to our mission. We are an equal opportunity employer.

We would also like to highlight that we will likely invite applications to Research Fellow positions in the second half of 2023. These are non-visiting positions, intended for AI governance researchers who are interested in designing and executing a research agenda over two or more years. If you think that the Research Fellow position would be a better fit for you, please reach out to contact@governance.ai or register your interest in that role using this form instead.