Career Development Fellow in New Testament
University of Durham
Job Title: Career Development Fellow in New Testament (3 years)
Working Arrangements: Full-Time
Closing date: Wednesday 16th July (midnight)
Potential interview date: Friday, 1st August 2025 (online)
The Department of Theology and Religion seeks to appoint an excellent early career scholar as Career Development Fellow in New Testament for a term of three years. The Fellow will provide teaching in place of Professor Grant Macaskill, Lightfoot Professor of Divinity, during his tenure of a Leverhulme Senior Research Fellowship. We welcome applications from those with research and teaching interests in the broad field of New Testament studies. The successful applicant will ideally be in post by 1st September 2025.
The University is committed to enabling all our colleagues to achieve their full potential. Durham University’s Career Development Fellowships are fixed term positions, which include structured development support for early career academics to deliver outstanding education, innovative research/scholarship, and to engage in citizenship activities. The post-holder will be a full academic member of the Department, working alongside world-class colleagues, with the support of a designated mentor.
Career Development Fellows will benefit from tailored support to strengthen their skills, will be provided with a range of academic opportunities, and will benefit from protected time to foster different aspects of their career. The Career Development Fellowships will enable early career academics to acquire a strong and well-rounded foundation to support future applications for substantive academic roles at Durham or elsewhere (no guarantee can be given that a permanent role at Durham will be available for the CDF to apply for at the end of the Fellowship).
The Department
The Department of Theology and Religion is one of the finest in the world and currently ranked 6th in the QS World University Rankings (2025) and 1st in the Complete University Guide (2026). There are particular strengths in Christian theology, Biblical Studies, Church History, and the Study of Religion. The Department has approximately 28 full-time academic staff and around 15 post-doctoral researchers. Four members of staff are Fellows of the British Academy.
The Department has approximately 280 undergraduates. In addition to taught postgraduate students, there is a thriving community of over 100 doctoral students studying on-campus or part-time at distance. In partnership with Cranmer Hall, the Anglican seminary at St. John’s College, the Department offers a professional Doctorate in Theology and Ministry. Through the Common Awards partnership, the Department oversees degree courses for theological education institutions in the Church of England and other British denominations.
The Department is home to five research centres: the Centre for Catholic Studies, the Michael Ramsey Centre for Anglican Studies, the Centre for Death and Life Studies, the Centre for Theology and Quantitative Research, and the International Centre for Moral Injury. There are strong collaborative relationships with research institutes in the University, particularly the Institute for Medical Humanities and the Institute of Medieval and Early Modern Studies.
The Department has a long and distinguished history in Biblical Studies. Excellent teaching in Biblical Studies is offered at all levels. In addition to Biblical languages, instruction is offered in Syriac, Aramaic, Middle Egyptian, and Ge’ez. The Department recruits a large number of high-quality doctoral students in New Testament from across the world, many of whom progress to academic careers. There is a weekly term time meeting of the Biblical Studies and Patristics Research Seminar which attracts national and international speakers. Durham will host the annual meeting of the Society of New Testament Studies (Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas) in July 2026.
This post offers an exciting opportunity to develop internationally excellent research/scholarship and teaching while providing unrivalled, tailored support for your career progression at an exciting and progressive institution. For more information, please visit our Department pages at https://www.durham.ac.uk/departments/academic/theology-religion/.
Given the developmental fixed-term nature of this role, the post will not be extended beyond the initial term. Following the end of the term, the role-holder will be in a strong position to apply for relevant permanent academic roles, should they arise, at Durham or elsewhere.
Successful applicants are normally expected to be within 8 years of completing their PhD, although career breaks for parental leave and/or health reasons will be considered. This is because the roles are aimed at early career academics who would benefit from a structured development programme and provision of both formal and ‘on the job’ training. The posts are also open to those who are returning to academia after a career in another sector.
Successful applicants will, ideally be in post by 1 September 2025
The University provides a working and teaching environment that is inclusive and welcoming and where everyone is treated fairly with dignity and respect. Candidates will be expected to demonstrate these key principles as part of the assessment process.
Key responsibilities:
It should be noted that the precise content of each Career Development Fellowship will vary dependent on the experience of the role-holder, their career aspirations, and the business need of the Department.
At the outset of the Fellowship a personal development plan will be produced in discussion with the Head of Department, which will outline any training needs, or other experience the post-holder wishes to gain to develop their academic career.
The development plan is a tool to assist the post-holder's academic career progression and will be reviewed regularly during the Fellowship to ensure that development needs are being met.
During the course of the Career Development Fellowship the successful candidate will gain valuable experience in a wide spectrum of academic activities. Examples include:
Development
- Membership of Departmental committees and appropriate professional body.
- Contribute to a collegial and respectful working environment which is inclusive and welcoming and where everyone is treated fairly with dignity and respect.
- Engage in citizenship to support the department and wider discipline.
- Engage in continuing professional development by attending relevant training and development courses, as detailed in the personal development plan. Opportunities could include:
- Research Project Leadership
- Supported progression towards Higher Education Academy (HEA) membership
- Leadership in Learning and Teaching course
Education
- Teach modules at undergraduate/postgraduate levels, developing an awareness of different approaches to and methods of teaching and supporting student learning.
- Develop the ability to manage own teaching and designing, planning and writing of engaging and innovative teaching materials.
- Develop and deliver an inclusive curriculum and make an active contribution to an inclusive community in which diversity is embraced and celebrated.
- Co-supervise undergraduate and postgraduate students, and where appropriate act as part of a PhD supervisory team.
- Provide student support, assessment of academic performance and provision of feedback, dealing with student disciplinary matters and complaints.
Research/Scholarship
- Demonstrate progress towards independent development of internationally excellent research/scholarship.
- Develop clear plans for the pursuit of national and international funding opportunities to support research/scholarship and end-user engagement.
- Develop a personal research/scholarship plan which supports and enhances the department’s research and/or pedagogic strategy.
- Contribute to enhancing the quality of the research environment.