Undergraduate Student Summer Research Assistant Internship

Department: Faculty of Community Services

Position supervisor: CERC Manager: Operations and Partnerships; Postdoctoral Fellow: Arts, Healing and Wellbeing

Contract length: 13 weeks, May 2024 start

Hours of work per week: 35

Position type: Non-Union Research Assistant (summer student)

Rate of pay: $20.00/hr

About Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University)

At the intersection of mind and action, Toronto Metropolitan University is on a transformative path to become Canada’s leading comprehensive innovation university. Integral to this path is the placement of equity, diversity and inclusion as fundamental to our institutional culture. Our current academic plan outlines each as core values and we work to embed them in all that we do.

Toronto Metropolitan University welcomes those who have demonstrated a commitment to upholding the values of equity, diversity, and inclusion and will assist us to expand our capacity for diversity in the broadest sense. In addition, to correct the conditions of disadvantage in employment in Canada, we encourage applications from members of groups that have been historically disadvantaged and marginalized, including First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples, Indigenous peoples of North America, racialized persons, persons with disabilities, and those who identify as women and/or 2SLGBTQ+. Please note that all qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, applications from Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.

As an employer, we are working towards a people first culture and are proud to have been selected as one of Canada’s Best Diversity Employers and a Greater Toronto’s Top Employer for 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018. To learn more about our work environment, colleagues, leaders, students and innovative educational environment, visit www.torontomu.ca , check out @TorontoMet (external link) , @TorontoMetHR (external link) and @ECItorontomet (external link) on Twitter, and visit our LinkedIn company page (external link) .

About The Program/department/team

This student research internship is a shared partnership between the Canada Excellence Research Chair - Health Equity and Community Wellbeing and Xenia Concerts.

CERC - Health Equity and Community Wellbeing

The Canada Excellence Research Chair in Health Equity and Community Wellbeing (CERC) program is a transformative research initiative that employs an engaged community partnership approach to expand our understanding, practice, and delivery of health outcomes for all members of our communities.

The CERC in Health Equity and Community Wellbeing is led by professor Karen Soldatic. Collaborating closely with a network of health-care institutions, service providers, and civil society organizations, the program aims for a paradigm shift – one that challenges a siloed, expert-driven approach to health and well-being and moves instead towards a community-engaged, preventative model of well-being.

Uniquely applying a critical disability lens, the research program aims to not only reduce health disparities that are inextricable from their social contexts, but to embed community knowledge into health-care institutions, systems and models of delivery. Visit https://www.torontomu.ca/cerc-health-equity/about/ for more information.

About Xenia Concerts

Xenia Concerts was launched by the internationally acclaimed Cecilia String Quartet in 2014 as a pilot program that aimed to address a barrier in the arts: people living with autism are often not welcome at concerts because they tend to express themselves in ways that are often frowned upon at traditionally organized events. After spending a year consulting with caregivers, healthcare experts, and community members, the Cecilia Quartet presented a series of three concerts designed to welcome and appeal to children and families within the autism community. These first concerts, which took place at The Sony Centre for the Performing Arts (now Meridian Hall), received enormous acclaim for their quality and accessibility.

Since becoming a registered charity in 2017, Xenia has continued to grow and now presents 30+ concerts per year to children, youth, and their families in the GTA and across Canada. Our events have also extended beyond the autism community to provide family-friendly, accessible programming to the broader neurodiversity community, the disability community (including Deaf-friendly performances with musical ASL), the dementia community, and older adults with low income. Visit https://xeniaconcerts.com (external link) for more information.

The opportunity

Working Throughout The Summer Under The Supervision Of The Post-Doctoral Fellow In Arts, Healing And Wellbeing, The Research Assistant (RA) Will Execute The Following Tasks Throughout The Paid Research Position In Partnership With Xenia Concerts Inc. (hereafter Xenia)

• Explore the relationship between the work of Xenia and health equity for intersectional disability communities;
• Explore methods for engaging people with various forms of disability in providing feedback;
• Assist in developing research questions related to Adaptive Concerts and accessible arts programming;
• Conduct evidence-based literature reviews to inform future research in the aforementioned arenas;
• Assist Xenia in organizing and analyzing data from audience surveys;
• Attend and evaluate Xenia events when possible;
• Pilot new formats and methods for collecting audience feedback at events;
• Collaborate with Xenia and TMU research and local partners where applicable;
• Other duties as required.
  
  

Qualifications Required

• Minimum 2 years of undergraduate level study and currently enrolled with TMU;
• Interest in, and understanding of, the arts, music and performance;
• Understanding of disability and neurodiversity;
• Strong interpersonal skills including the capacity to work with culturally diverse communities with varied needs;
• Commitment to accessibility and anti-ableism;
• Time management and organization skills;
• Advanced writing skills with editing and proofreading ability;
• Computer skills (notably word processing and library/research resource capacities);
• Interest in exploring benefits to health and wellbeing in artistic contexts;
• Desire to develop research insights that contribute to community wellbeing through implementation in the arts.
  
  

Assets

• Previous experience writing academic papers including literature reviews and/or annotated bibliographies;
• Proven ability to research and compile academic sources relevant to the outlined topics;
• Data entry experience in a research and/or nonprofit setting;
• Final year undergraduate or graduate student;
• Experience with or interest in learning NVivo software, Refworks, Redcap.
  
  

How To Apply

Please email your application to cerc.healthwellbeing@torontomu.ca by 5pm April 29, 2024.

In the subject heading indicate: Health Equity + Arts Based Practice: Undergraduate Student Research Internship - “your name” and include the following documents in a single word or .pdf file:

• a brief CV (2-4 pages)
• cover letter that clearly indicates your why you are interested in this internship (max 2 pages)
• three potential references (references will be contacted for preferred applicants only)
  
  

Toronto Metropolitan University’s commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion

• We encourage all First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples or Indigenous peoples of North America, to self-identify in their applications. If you are an Indigenous applicant and require support during the recruitment process, please reach out to James McKay, Indigenous HR Lead at james13@torontomu.ca .
• Toronto Metropolitan University is committed to the principles of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), and aims to ensure that independence, dignity, integration and equality of opportunity are embedded in all aspects of the university culture.
• We will provide an accessible experience for applicants, students, employees, and members of the Toronto Metropolitan University community. We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free work environment, starting with the recruitment process. If you have restrictions that need to be accommodated to fully participate in any phase of the recruitment process,please reach out to Human Resources:
• Current employees can contact HR by logging into AskHR to submit a request .
• External candidates who do not have TMU login credentials can contact HR by visiting torontomu.ca/human-resources/contact .
• All information received in relation to accommodation will be kept confidential.