NOTE: Students must be approved for the 2025-26 Work-Study program in order to be hired for this position. The Work-Study Student Application form is available online here: Work Study Program Application | Awards | The University of Winnipeg

Please include confirmation of your approval to participate in the Work Study Program with your resume.

Research Assistants are normally students, in a University of Winnipeg undergraduate program, employed to assist with tasks related to research. Work is performed within defined guidelines and under supervision of a more senior researcher or faculty member.

Position Overview:

The student will work as an assistant on a research project aimed at addressing privacy and security concerns related to the use of mobile devices and applications among older adults. The assistant will be involved in various aspects of the research, including the development of resource materials for educating older adults, reviewing literature, analyzing digital artifacts in mobile phones (specifically Android phones), and disseminating results at three retirement homes within Winnipeg.

The research project involves three main objectives:

• to evaluate the usability of mobile security and privacy technologies among older adults;

• to create simple guidelines and sustainable educational resources to improve mobile security and privacy awareness among older adults;

• to develop and test prototypes of security mechanisms that address some of the challenges that we have identified in our earlier study.

The assistant will provide support in achieving the objectives of the project and assist in the production of research materials and outputs.

Duties:

• The selected candidate will be required to provide support in extending ethics approval and conducting usability tests with research participants. They will be required to create online forms for data collection. The candidate will perform qualitative and quantitative analyses of the collected data to determine usage patterns among research participants.
• The assistant will be required to support the creation of educational resources, such as videos, pamphlets and a website to enhance security and privacy awareness among older adults. Based on our analysis, the assistant will be required to undertake research that involves working with mobile devices, particularly Android and iPhone devices.
• They will be required to read technical documentation of applications and literature to answer research questions that emanate from the usability study. The assistant will also be required to work on a presentation document to disseminate the research output. The assistant will be required to interact with older adults and assist during four one-hour presentations/workshops that will be given at three retirement homes during the Fall and Winter terms as part of the UWinnipeg retirement lecture series. The candidate may also be required to contribute to the preparation of a manuscript for a conference.

Qualifications

• The assistant must have a good understanding of computer security, human-computer interaction, and usability testing, preferably gained through courses completed at the University of Winnipeg, online, or at another institution. Must have completed or are willing to complete the TCPS 2: Core-2022 Course on Research Ethics within the first two weeks of work. They must have strong technical skills as well as oral and written communication skills.
• The assistant is expected to possess strong organizational skills, with the ability to manage time effectively and meet set goals. They must be capable of working with the public and be able to work independently. Any previous experience in preparing and giving presentations or preparing manuscripts would be an asset.

Condition(s) of Employment:

• Must be legally entitled to work in Canada.
• Students must be approved for the 2025-26 Work-Study program. Students may be eligible for the Work-Study Program if they meet all of the following criteria:
  • Currently an undergraduate or graduate* student (PACE students are currently ineligible);
  • Enrolled full-time for the current Fall/Winter session (i.e., at least 18 credit hours or 12 credit hours if registered with Accessibility Services);
  • Completed at least 24 credit hours at an undergraduate level at the University (or equivalent);
  • Have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0;
  • Have demonstrated financial need (shortage between your expenses and resources)**; and
  • A Canadian citizen, permanent resident, protected person or an international student with a valid study permit.
    • Graduate students in a joint program may only be eligible if currently registered at UW or whose thesis advisor is a UW Faculty member.**Zero on all resources fields is deemed an incomplete application. As a full-time student, you are expected to have some form of funding source.

The period of work will be from ASAP - March 31, 2026 and the estimated total hours of work will be 41 hours.

Note*: This position is represented by the Public Service Alliance of Canada - Research Capacity Unit.*

The University of Winnipeg is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and recognizes that a diverse staff and faculty benefits and enriches the work, learning and research environments, and is essential to academic and institutional excellence. We welcome applications from all qualified individuals and encourage women, racialized persons, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, and 2SLGBTQ+ persons to confidentially self-identify at time of application.

The University of Winnipeg is committed to ensuring employment opportunities are accessible for all applicants. If you require accommodation supports during the recruitment process, please contact human_resources@uwinnipeg.ca.

The personal information of applicants is collected under the authority of the University of Winnipeg Act and 36(1)(b) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. All personal information collected via the recruitment process is used to assess the applicant’s suitability, eligibility, and qualifications for employment, and to otherwise support recruitment activities. This information will be provided to participating members of the recruitment process. Questions regarding the collection of your personal information may be directed to the Director, HR Services, 515 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, MB, R3B 2E9 or human_resources@uwinnipeg.ca.