Qualitative sub-contracting researcher for all your project or ad-hoc needs

Services

• Versatile sub-contracting researcher across the whole qualitative process from desk research/literature reviews, depth interviews (F2F, telephone and on-line) and focus group moderation (including on-line and asynchronous) to analysis and reporting of findings.
• Some quantitative skills too, e.g. SPSS crosstabs, Excel Charts and Pivot Tables.
• Certified Member of Market Research Society (CMRS) and MA in Social Research, which means that Caroline can work across market and social research.
• Available for short or long-term assignments, whatever matches your needs – just get in touch: caroline@flresearcher.com
• Specialist in education and skills/learner experience research for ten years.  This means that Caroline can easily diversify to broader areas of market research such as customer journey/customer experience research as she has often researched learner journeys/experiences of educational and training programmes.
• Enhanced DBS (CRB) clearance transferable to all organisations (Update Service). Professional Indemnity/Public Liability insurance.

Speciality

• Established education and skills researcher since 2008, with a focus on vocational education and training, adult education, life skills development in primary and secondary schools, and initiatives to encourage young people to continue with education and training after leaving compulsory schooling.
• In-depth understanding of the education and skills ‘ecosystem’ from early years to adult and higher education. Caroline will bring a wealth of experience to any of your projects in the area of education and skills.
• Clients have included public sector research organisations (such as the National Foundation for Educational Research – NFER, The National Centre for Social Research – NatCen and the Learning and Work Institute) and educational market research companies such as Chrysalis Research and Insightful Marketing and Research.
• Caroline is passionate about educational research, but she is also keen to diversify her research activity and gain expertise in new areas. Educational research skills easily translate to customer experience/customer journey research as projects often explore learner experiences of education and training such as apprenticeships and adult education. For example, Caroline recently researched learner (customer) journeys of adults returning to education for the first time since leaving school, focusing on attitudes, motivations, touch-points, pain points, and how the service could be improved and enhanced.

Background

Caroline taught in both primary and secondary school sectors for ten years before moving into educational research via an MA in research methods.  She landed her first research job in 2008 at the Centre for Education and Industry, University of Warwick, where she worked on a range of educational research themes in the 14-19 education phase with a general focus on vocational education/training and programmes to re-engage learners who have either dropped out or are at risk of dropping out of learning. Since becoming a freelancer in 2017, Caroline has continued to focus on researching initiatives to support learner engagement and aspirations in education and training. She is also keen to diversify into customer experience/customer journey research, drawing on her expertise in learner experience research.  Caroline is spending much of the ‘lock-down lull’ re-training herself in this area.