Job opportunity - Research Assistant - Global Tobacco Control Research Program

Global Tobacco Control Research Program
Job Description: Research Assistant

The Global Tobacco Control Research Programme at Simon Fraser University (SFU) conducts
interdisciplinary research on the tobacco industry. We are particularly interested in studying the tobacco
industry within the context of globalization - how it operates as a business, how it seeks to influence and
undermine public policy, and how it continues to earn huge profits by supplying a product that kills half
of its users.

We are looking a Research Assistant to assist with research on the expansion of the Chinese National
Tobacco Company (CNTC), the largest tobacco company in the world. This research will particularly inform
our research project on the political economy of Chinese engagement in East African tobacco industries,
while expanding the geographical focus beyond East Africa to Asia and the Americas.
The Research Assistant will conduct online document searches of industry and news databases for
information on CNTC’s global activities and organize and interpret findings. There may be opportunities
to co-author publications and develop further research project ideas.

This is a full-time (35 hrs/week) temporary position for three months (from approximately June to
September 2019) at SFU Burnaby’s campus (with some flexibility to work from home). Pay is $20.00 per
hour.

Responsibilities:
• Gathering economic data from online (eg. UNcomtrade), industry (eg. Tobacco Reporter) and
other sources
• Conducting systematic searches of news media databases (eg. Factivia)
• Organizing results into annotated bibliographies, graphs, timelines, etc.
• Gathering and summarizing relevant academic literature
• Participating in team meetings
• Collaborating on research outputs and publications

Qualifications

Essential
• Bachelor’s degree (completed or near completion) in related field such as Health Sciences,
Political Science, Economics, Business or International Studies
• Excellent analytical and critical thinking skills
• Strong writing and communications skills
• Self-motivated

Desirable
• Some past document-based research experience
• Some knowledge of tobacco industry
• Ability to read Chinese or Portuguese

To apply, please email a brief cover letter and resume to Dr. Julia Smith at jhs6@sfu.ca by May 31, 2019.