Dr Jessica Ozan

Who am I?

I was born and raised in France, where I conducted most of my studies. After getting a BSc in Psychology (Paris V) and an MA in Social Sciences (Sorbonne, Paris V), I went to Ireland to complete my PhD. There I enjoyed reconnecting with my Irish heritage. After two years in the Caribbean, I decided to come back to Europe and landed in the UK. I have since rediscovered the warmth of pubs and northerners.

Academic and professional qualifications

Jessica obtained her MA in Social Sciences from the Sorbonne (Paris V) and a BSc in psychology fromUniversity Rene Descartes (Paris V).

Jessica completed her PhD in political science and sociology at the National University of Ireland, Galway. Her doctoral research explored the feasibility and added value of incorporating a focus on leadership as a causal mechanism in theory-based evaluation. This research was based on her experience as a member of the UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre. As a doctoral fellow, she worked as part of a team undertaking the Process Evaluation of the Tallaght West Childhood Development Initiative (Dublin, Ireland). This multi-faceted project aimed to improve the health, safety, learning, and overall wellbeing of children in this underprivileged area.

 Jessica also previously worked in Paris, France for the public consultancy firm Acadie where she contributed to various research and evaluation projects in the fields of housing policy and urban regeneration.

Previous employment

Doctoral Fellow - UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre, National University of Ireland, Galway (2009-2014)

Consultant in Research and Evaluation - Acadie – Coopérative Conseil, Politiques Publiques & Territoires, Paris, France (2008)

Intern - Barnardo's, London, UK (2008)

Research Assistant - Magistere de Sciences Sociales, Paris, France (2005-2008)

Languages

English (Fluent)

French (Native)

Spanish (Intermediate)

Why study ?

Undergraduate courses

Researching Crime and Society 

Research expertise

Jessica is a Research Associate at the Policy Evaluation and Research Unit at Manchester Metropolitan University. She has over 10 years’ experience of research and evaluation projects in the fields of youth development and social policy. Since joining MMU in 2014, Jessica has been working on the development of a pan-European longitudinal survey measuring child and youth well-being through several projects funded by the European Commission (FP7 MYWeB - Measuring Youth Well-Being; Horizon 2020 ECDP – European Cohort Development Project). She has co-edited a book on the topic. Jessica is particulalry interested in establishing structures such as Children and Youth Advisory Boards that enable child and youth participation in complex research projects. 

Jessica was also central to Horizon 2020 InnoSi (Innovative Social Investment: Strengthening communities in Europe), where she used evaluation methods to assess policies and social needs. She was involved in evaluations of programmes targeting young people leaving the care system in the UK for the Department for Education and Nesta.

Jessica is a Council member of the UK Evaluation Society, where she is the convenor of the Ethics and Good Practice group and the coordinator of the UKES North of England Regional Network. 

Expertise/ areas of interest

Evaluation methodology 

Research design (longitudinal surveys)

Children and young people's well-being

Child and youth participation

Young people leaving care

Publications

• Chapters in books

  J. Ozan, C. O’leary, S. Baines, G. Bailey (2019). Troubled families in greater Manchester. In: Implementing Innovative Social Investment: Strategic Lessons from Europe. Policy Press, pp.43-57.

  G. Pollock, J. Ozan, H. Goswami, C. Fox (2018). With a View Towards the Future: Working Towards an Accelerated European Cohort Survey. G. Pollock, J. Ozan, H. Goswami, G. Rees, A. Stasulane. In: Children's Well-Being: Indicators and Research. Cham: Springer, pp.163-178.

  J. Ozan, G. Pollock, H. Goswami, P. Lynn (2018). Challenges in Conducting a New Longitudinal Study on Children and Young People Well-Being in the European Union. G. Pollock, J. Ozan, H. Goswami, G. Rees, A. Stasulane. In: Children’s Well-Being: Indicators and Research. Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp.111-130.

  J. Ozan, I. Mierina, I. Koroleva (2018). A comparative expert survey on measuring and enhancing children and young people’s well-being in Europe. G. Pollock, J. Hind-Ozan, H. Goswami, G. Rees, A. Stasulane. In: Measuring Youth Well-being: How a Pan-European Longitudinal Survey could improve Policy. Springer,

• Reports

  J. Ozan (2016). Evaluation in the UK: Exploring the possible interface between evaluation and social research.

  R. Clarke, M. Ellison, J. Ozan, CC. Fox (2015). Evaluation of Intensive Community Support - Interim Report. Manchester Metropolitan University, Public Service Reform (PSR) Justice and Rehabilitation Team.

Invited papers

Ozan, J. (2020). 'Engaging children in evaluations: ethical challenges and considerations', The Evaluator, Summer, p.22-25.

Ozan, J. (2016). ‘Evaluation in the UK: Exploring the possible interface between evaluation and social research’, The Evaluator, Spring, p. 6-8.