Role Purpose and Overview

Joining the team at Youth STEM 2030 as a Youth STEM Changemakers Programme Officer is an exciting opportunity to develop the programmes we create for young people through Youth STEM Changemakers. Youth STEM Changemakers is our newest programme, and provides youth who want to make a difference with learning and skills development, enabling them to ultimately design STEM-based solutions to real-world problems. This fixed term role will focus on developing and delivering the entrepreneurship stream of the programme, as an accessible and impactful programme for marginalised youth in Scotland, who are underrepresented in entrepreneurial activities.

The role of Youth STEM Changemakers Programme Officer primarily involves designing and coordinating the delivery of programme content, to curate a programme which meets participants’ needs and creates lasting measurable impact for both young people and the SDGs. You’ll lead the logistical organisation of in-person and online events and workshops, as well as supporting the delivery of these as inclusive, safe, welcoming and fun events. You’ll be the first point of contact for participants, ensuring that we select high potential youth from diverse backgrounds for the programme, and that they are well-supported to participate fully in the programme. You’ll also collaborate with our wider network of partners and supporters to maximise the programme’s reach and impact.

We’re looking for someone who is proactive, who has a passion for (and ideally some background in) entrepreneurship and who can effectively build relationships with diverse young people as well as a range of business, non-profit and educational stakeholders. You will be able to bring an impact- and community-focussed approach to the role, to co-create a scalable and sustaining generation of STEM changemakers. Ultimately, this role will give more young people the skills, tools and networks needed to use STEM to tackle the world’s biggest sustainability challenges, such as climate change, poverty and inequalities.

Through this role, you’ll further develop your project management skills, be part of developing a new programme from the very beginning, and grow your facilitation skills through being part of the delivery team for our first entrepreneurship-focussed Youth STEM Changemakers cohort. You will expand your network and grow as a changemaker and leader through supporting young people at the start of their entrepreneurial changemaking journey.

Working at Youth STEM 2030

We’re a global youth-led social enterprise on a mission to empower youth globally to use science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) to tackle the world’s biggest challenges, such as climate change, poverty and inequalities.

By joining the Youth STEM 2030 Team, you’ll get to…

• Work with an incredible group of young changemakers, entrepreneurs, researchers, and innovators, from over 80 countries and across 6 continents!

• Make a real impact - we’re a small social enterprise, so you’ll really see the difference you’re making.

• Develop your skills in a supportive and welcoming environment, where it’s okay to experiment, fail and learn by doing.

• Take advantage of a range of training opportunities, tailored to your individual development needs, to enhance and expand your skillset.

• Collaborate with a range of stakeholders, including corporates, other non-profit organisations and young people around the world!

Youth STEM 2030 is committed to building and developing a workforce that reflects the diversity of the young people we support, and we work proactively to ensure all job applications are treated fairly, with respect and without bias.  We actively encourage applications from candidates who identify as being part of one or more marginalised groups, and seek to create an environment where each individual is supported to thrive and bring their whole selves to our team.

Key Responsibilities

This is a varied role, where you’ll develop and deliver an impactful and inclusive programme for young people who are taking an entrepreneurial and STEM-based approach towards tackling global challenges, provide support to a diverse group of youth from across Scotland to participate in the programme, and make a real difference in growing Youth STEM 2030’s impact. As a Youth STEM Changemakers Programme Officer, you will:

Elevate Young People’s Voices:

• All of our work is designed for youth, by the young people we work with. Across your role, you’ll ensure their views and voices have shaped the work you do, whether in the programme design of Youth STEM Changemakers, selection criteria for participants, or communication of the programme’s impact

• Support groups of young people to share their views and put their ideas into action to advance Youth STEM 2030’s mission

• Work proactively to ensure high representation of marginalised youth, and that all Youth STEM Changemakers activities and outputs are inclusive and accessible to our diverse community of youth

Programme Development and Logistics

• Work collaboratively to develop the Youth STEM Changemakers programme as an impactful, accessible and scaleable programme of learning for aspiring youth entrepreneurs in Scotland

• Lead the organisation of 2 key in-person events taking place at the start and end of the programme (January and March 2024) and an online showcase in March 2024, including venue management, participant travel/accommodation arrangements and speaker coordination;

• Support the selection of participants for the programme, including reviewing applications and conducting informal interviews

• Research, identify, contact and liaise with guest speakers to deliver parts of the programme, as well as key partners who can enhance the programme’s impact

Programme Delivery: 

• Design, plan and facilitate groups of young people in interactive and engaging sessions, such as workshops (virtual and in-person), peer-peer learning groups, networking or social events

• Deliver skills development sessions which align with your areas of experience, to equip young people with the key tools to make change

• Work as part of a team to ensure the smooth running of virtual and in-person events, including managing backstage support or in-person logistics; problem solve to resolve any issues experienced by attendees or speakers

• Host guest speakers in live sessions, enabling programme participants to learn from other changemakers

Youth STEM Changemakers Participant Support & Community Development:

• Provide participants with clear and concise communications of key information for their participation before, during and after the programme

• Provide support to individual participants, to ensure they can fully participate in and get maximum benefit from the programme

• Work proactively to build community and facilitate meaningful connections amongst participants, creating a welcoming, safe, fun and inclusive (predominantly virtual) environment of youth making change through STEM-based entrepreneurship

Impact, Outreach & Communications:

• Collect and analyse key data (both quantitative and qualitative) from participants, to measure the programme’s success, identify actions which enable us to continuously improve, and communicate the impact we’re creating

• Proactively outreach to other youth-focussed entrepreneurial/sustainability/STEM organisations, to enable as many young people (with a particular focus on marginalised youth) as possible to apply to take part in Youth STEM Changemakers

• Work collaboratively to create a social media content plan which shares the stories of our participants and effectively communicates the impact of Youth STEM Changemakers

Other Duties:

• Ensure that both the participant-facing and ‘behind the scenes’ planning and organisation of Youth STEM Changemakers is documented and shared consistently, using Youth STEM 2030’s knowledge management methods

• Represent Youth STEM 2030 at events hosted by other organisations

• Other duties, as required, to increase the impact and reach of Youth STEM Changemakers.

Person Specification

You’ll excel in this role if you are passionate about empowering and supporting young people, and building inclusive and impactful programmes! You’ll be especially passionate about equipping young people with the tools, skills and networks to use STEM-based entrepreneurship to take action to tackle the world’s biggest sustainability challenges. We are looking for someone who is eager to get stuck in and is able to bring their own ideas to the team. Above all, you should be a proactive team player, who is passionate about our mission and extremely self-motivated.

Essential Skills and Experience:

• Excellent project management and organisational skills with the ability to plan projects to achieve a goal within a timeframe and budget, manage your time and workload effectively, and handle competing priorities.

• Existing experience in (or transferrable skills to enable you to succeed in) organising, delivering and evaluating high-quality and impactful events.

• You’re able to communicate effectively in English or BSL, including to share information, encourage active participation, and obtain information with a range of stakeholders, including young people, suppliers, supporters and partners.

• You can create and confidently host/facilitate a fun, inclusive, safe and welcoming environment (both in person, and online via Zoom and Slack, a virtual workspace), which supports a diverse group of young people to participate fully.

• Awareness in - or direct experience of - the key needs of (youth) changemakers who are in the early stages of an entrepreneurial journey - we are open to candidates who have gained this through any method, including starting a side-hustle or business, delivering enterprise education, self-led learning, academic learning, etc.

• You are able to see the bigger picture and understand how our programme design, the community we build and young people’s experiences as part of our programmes can impact different stakeholder groups.

Personal Attributes:

These are characteristics that we look for in anyone who wants to join our team…

• You take a proactive approach, work on your own initiative to identify issues, problem-solve to find solutions, and have creative ideas for improving things

• You’re keen to learn and driven to continuously improve, bring a positive attitude towards ‘learning by doing’ new things, and respond positively to constructive feedback

• You can collaborate effectively, especially within a remote working environment like ours

• You thrive in an impact-driven environment, and are committed to working to ensure that all our activities and outputs are inclusive and accessible and elevating marginalised voices

• You’re committed to Youth STEM 2030’s mission and values, with a passion for empowering young people to drive change.

Desirable Skills, Attributes and Experience:

Any experience in the following areas would be of added benefit to your application, but this is not essential (and we encourage your application even if you do not have experience in any of these):

• Working with young people, and developing inclusive programmes which empower youth, equipping them with the knowledge, community and resources to make meaningful change through entrepreneurship.

• Collaborating with partner organisations effectively, and creating partnerships between organisations.

Other Essential Criteria:

Youth STEM 2030 is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all; this is a responsibility that is shared by all members of staff.  Since this role involves working with children and young people, the successful candidate will be appointed on the condition of becoming a member of the PVG (Protecting Vulnerable Groups) scheme.  Youth STEM 2030 will pay for and administrate this.