Research assistant supporting statement: research evidence

A research assistant supporting statement should connect the vacancy's research criteria to work you personally carried out: literature searches, methods, data collection and contributions to outputs. This guide is for a job application; use the employer's person specification to decide which projects and skills belong in it.

Check the research post you are applying for

Norland's Person Specification for a Research Assistant carries a February 2025 version footer. Read on 9 November 2026, it lists a PhD, or currently undertaking one, in early years, education or a related field as essential, assessed through the application. That is the requirement in this early-years research example. Check the qualification wording in your own vacancy before drafting.

The document has separate columns for essential or desirable status and assessment through Application (A) or Interview (I). Research experience, database searches and primary data collection are essential and marked A/I. Quantitative analysis and experience using statistical packages are desirable and marked A/I. Preserve those distinctions when you make your checklist.

The person specification guide explains how to read assessment columns. Your statement still needs to answer the instructions attached to your particular post.

Build an evidence table from your projects

The first column below paraphrases selected Norland criteria. The other columns offer prompts for choosing your own evidence.

Norland criterion and status	Project evidence to gather	Your contribution and output
Database literature searches: essential, A/I	A search you conducted for a defined research question	The databases and search terms you used, and the record you kept
Annotated bibliographies and literature reviews: essential, A/I	A review you helped produce	Which sources you assessed and which sections you wrote
Developing research instruments: essential, A/I	Work on a questionnaire, interview guide or other instrument	The questions or revisions you contributed and who reviewed them
Collecting primary data: essential, A/I	A project in which you gathered data	Your collection task and the record of what you completed
Analysing and synthesising qualitative data: essential, A/I	An analysis you can explain	Your part in interpreting the material and the resulting output
Analysing quantitative data: desirable, A/I	Relevant analysis, if you have done it	The method you used and what you checked

Start with the research question when choosing a project. Then identify the stage you worked on and the decision you made. A project title alone leaves your contribution unclear; add enough detail for the shortlister to understand the work you did.

Describe methods at the level you used them

Norland asks for experience of using databases for literature searches and writing annotated bibliographies and literature reviews. It also lists systematic literature reviews or scoping studies as desirable. Use the name that accurately describes your work. If you helped with a wider review, explain the part assigned to you.

For software, name what you used and the task you completed with it. Norland gives NVivo and SPSS as examples in its desirable packages criterion. Listing a package without an action leaves the reader to infer your experience. If you have only used it in training, identify that setting.

Keep group achievements separate from your own contribution. You can describe an output that several people produced, while stating which data you collected or which section you drafted. Include a result you can explain from your records. Do not invent publication details or claim sole authorship of shared work.

Careers Wales advises applicants to use relevant examples and be specific about the work they did. Its guidance includes education, work experience and volunteering among possible sources of examples. A study project can therefore be worth checking against a criterion; whether it meets a required level of research experience depends on the vacancy.

Plan one research example

This criterion comes from Norland. Use the prompts to plan an account of your own research work.

Criterion: "Experience of developing research instruments"

• When and where: name the project setting and explain the question it investigated.
• What you did: identify the instrument, your design or revision task and the feedback you acted on.
• What happened: describe the version or output you contributed to and what you can verify about its use.

Add your dates and the extent of your responsibility where relevant. If your supervisor chose the method, say so. Your contribution may lie in preparing, testing or revising part of the instrument; describe the work you actually completed.

Before you submit

Read each essential line against the draft, including qualifications and the required research setting. Check that software names have a task beside them and that each shared output has a clear account of your contribution. Follow the form's word limit, as Careers Wales advises.

For broader application planning, see the university job guide, or check your draft against this vacancy.