Lay Advisors - Fellowship and scholarship assessment

Summary

We are seeking two Lay Advisors with strong decision-making skills and an interest in the fair and objective assessment of fellowship, membership and scholarship applications.

About the opportunity

Successful applicants will become members of the Lay Advisory Group and will also serve as the lay representative on either the Fellowship Committee or Scholarship Committee.

Both Committees consider applications against agreed criteria and require members to exercise sound judgement, objectivity and discretion. The lay advisor will provide an independent, non-clinical perspective and help support fair, transparent and consistent decision-making.

What will you bring?

As the lay advisor, you will review applications and supporting information, participate actively in discussions, ask questions and provide constructive challenge.

We are particularly interested in hearing from people with experience or an interest in areas such as:

• assessment of applications, nominations, grants, awards or other competitive submissions;
• governance, regulation, professional standards or quality assurance;
• recruitment, selection, admissions or formal decision-making;
• reviewing complex information and applying agreed criteria consistently;
• equality, diversity, inclusion and awareness of potential bias;
• working with Boards, committees, panels or advisory groups; or
• handling sensitive or confidential information.

You should be able to consider complex information objectively, exercise sound independent judgement and contribute to fair, balanced and evidence-based decisions. You should also be comfortable explaining your reasoning, challenging assumptions appropriately and working collaboratively with people from a range of professional backgrounds.

You will also contribute to the wider work and discussions of the Lay Advisory Group, bringing the independent perspective expected of all College lay advisors.

Fellowship Committee

The Fellowship Committee considers applications and nominations for admission to the College, including Fellowship qua Physician, Fellowship qua Surgeon and applications for Medical and Surgical Membership where applicants have not passed an approved membership examination.

The lay advisor will contribute to the assessment of applications against the relevant criteria, helping to ensure decisions are fair, objective, consistent and supported by the evidence presented.

The Fellowship Committee meets at least four times per year, with meetings currently held via Microsoft Teams.

Scholarship Committee

The Scholarship Committee oversees the College's scholarships and awards programme, including reviewing and scoring applications, reviewing eligibility criteria, interviewing applicants where required, selecting successful candidates and determining appropriate levels of funding.

The lay advisor will help ensure that applications and funding decisions are considered objectively and consistently, including where the Committee must balance competing priorities or limited resources.

The Scholarship Committee normally meets three times per year, with some additional preparation required to review and score applications.

Commitment

In addition to the relevant Committee meetings, all lay advisors become members of the Lay Advisory Group, which meets approximately three to four times each year. Total time commitment is expected to be approximately 15-20 hours per year.

Meetings are hybrid, with the option of attending in person at our Glasgow offices or remotely via Microsoft Teams.