Assistant Editors

Assistant Editors have a broad and varied role, participating in all stages of the publishing process from pre-submission activities right through to final publication and promotion.

The day-to-day activities of an Assistant Editor are a combination of the accountabilities for the Publishing Editor and Development Editor roles, including travel as required to represent the Royal Society of Chemistry at conferences.

A key element of the Assistant Editor role is the ability to work independently and effectively across both development and peer review & journal coordination tasks. In comparison to a Publishing Editor role, peer review represents a smaller portion of the Assistant Editor role. The level of peer review is team-dependent and covers tasks such as external Associate Editor support and initial assessment of articles.

A key function of all three roles is help build the Royal Society of Chemistry’s reputation for excellence and quality through community engagement and implementing editorial policy. Publishing, Assistant and Development Editors regularly interact with our community in a variety of formats, developing and maintaining good relationships and excellent channels of communication with new and existing authors, reviewers, editors and customers.

Essential Requirements

• A degree in science, or relevant equivalent experience
• Excellent communication skills interacting with internal and external colleagues
• Strong organisational and time-management skills together with the ability to work under pressure, prioritise and to meet deadlines
• Ability to work well as part of a team
• Ability to take the initiative and solve problems independently and proactively
• Good attention to detail

Responsibilities

Responsibilities could include (depending on the specific role):

• Work in a defined journal portfolio, typically of 4-6 titles
• Carry out the assessment and selection (through peer review) of high-quality articles and reviews for publication
• Attract world-class authors to publish in the journals through direct invitation
• Promote content published in RSC journals in collaboration with Marketing colleagues
• Assist in the peer review of manuscripts submitted to the journal(s) by advising and supporting external Editors
• Support the production of journals, including issue make up, themed collections, and associated tasks
• Provide exceptional customer service to authors, reviewers, and external editors
• National/European travel (where required)

Benefits

At the Royal Society of Chemistry, we embrace flexibility and offer hybrid working, which means our teams come together when they need to collaborate. Although these roles are contractually based at our Cambridge office, you will be able to work from home within the UK, with the expectation that you will attend the office as needed for your role. In these roles it is expected that you will attend the office on an ad-hoc basis, typically no more frequently than once a month.

If you need flexible working arrangements, please outline this in your application.

We offer a comprehensive benefits package to all employees including:

• 26 days paid annual leave per annum, plus Bank Holidays (pro-rated for part time)
• 35 hour working week with flexible options, to be agreed with your line manager
• Enhanced maternity and paternity leave
• Paid volunteering days
• Pension plan with up to 12% employer contributions (depending upon your contribution)

Visit our Work For Us website to learn more about us, our benefits, equal opportunities statement and inclusive culture pledge.

Diversity and Inclusion

We are happy to accept applications from candidates at all stages of their careers. Our aim is that our workforce, at all levels, will be truly representative of all sections of society and each employee feels respected and able to give their best.

We are a Disability Confident Committed Employer. We recognise the benefits of a diverse workforce and welcome applicants from a range of backgrounds to apply. We particularly encourage applications from disabled and ethnic minority candidates. As a part of the Disability Confident Scheme, we endeavour, where possible, to offer an interview to candidates meeting the essential criteria of the role, who has a substantial physical/mental impairment which impacts their ability to carry out day-to-day tasks.

We are committed to making our recruitment processes accessible to all and as part of this, we are flexible in the ways we give and receive information. If you would like to apply using a different format, please contact the Recruitment Team at jobs@rsc.org or on +44 (0) 1223 432229 and we will do our best to put any reasonable adjustments in place.

If you have any questions, please contact us at jobs@rsc.org

Being part of the Royal Society of Chemistry is to be at the heart of a dedicated, forward-thinking and passionate collection of people. You’ll find opportunities to work in publishing, membership, sales, marketing, communications, technology and finance, community outreach, and many others. Everything we do, no matter the area, is to support a global scientific community.

The groups we work with are exceptionally diverse – from teachers, scientists and academics, librarians and corporates to politicians and the public. If you share our passion and would like to join us, please submit an application for an opportunity you are interested in. You will also be able to keep track of your progress in the selection process and new postings here.

Thank you for your interest in joining the Royal Society of Chemistry!

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