Hazel is a Senior Research Fellow at the Social Policy Research Centre where she is working on a variety of homelessness and housing-related research projects, as well as a range of program evaluations for governments relating to educational access and inequality and programs supporting young adults leaving out-of-home care.
Hazel has a particular expertise in housing policy issues. She is an AHURI author and has a published a range of book chapters and articles on housing and homelessness issues. She has extensive experience in working with vulnerable people of diverse backgrounds facing housing instability or homelessness and ensuring the active involvement of participants in research.
In addition to research work, Hazel strongly supports researchers having a pedagogical practice, and does sessional convening and tutoring in Social Sciences, Built Environment, and delivers the housing module on SPRC's Poverty and Inequality short course.
Prior to joining UNSW, Hazel was Senior Research Assistant at the Urban Research Centre at Western Sydney University where she worked on a variety of urban planning and housing-oriented research projects. Hazel was an advisor to a NSW Parliamentarian in the Housing, Fair Trading and other portfolio areas. Prior to this, Hazel was Policy Officer at housing peak body Shelter NSW, and earlier, a Tenant's Advocate at Redfern Legal Centre and Eastern Area Tenants Advice and Advocacy Service.
Hazel served for many years in a voluntary capacity on the Inner West Council Affordable Housing Reference Committee.
Qualifications:
Ph.D. (Human Geography), Macquarie University, 2002
Bachelor of Arts (Hons.) in Sociology, La Trobe University, 1994
Hazel Blunden has a continuous record of teaching across social sciences courses (including social research methods, urban studies and political economy) at University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), University of New South Wales (NSW), Western Sydney University (WSU) and also earlier on at Macquarie University and University of Sydney. Hazel has convened Masters level courses in FASS at UNSW as well as tutored on a range of undergraduate courses at UTS and UNSW. She has designed course content and managed and delivered face to face and online/blended learning course content.
Hazel manages blended learning content and course administration as well as doing face to face classes.
2020
Convenor, Social Research and Policy Project SOSS3002, UNSW
Head Tutor, Qualitative Social Research Project, SOSS2001, UNSW
2019
Tutor, Social Research and Society SRAP1001, UNSW
Guest lecturer, marking, Research Methods and Design SRAP5101, UNSW
Tutor, Contemporary Global Economy 99208, UTS
Course convenor, Research Methods and Design SRAP5101, UNSW
Lecturer/tutor, Social Research and Policy Project SRAP3002, UNSW
Marking, Research Methods and Design SRAP5103, UNSW
2018
Marking, Research Methods and Design SRAP5101, UNSW
Marking, Theory, Ethics and Research Impact SRAP5102, UNSW
Tutor, Investigating for Change 54053, UTS
Guest lecturer, Past, Present and Future of Innovation 81513, UTS
Tutor, Economy, Society and Globalism 54052, UTS
2017
Lecturer/tutor, Social Research and Policy Project SRAP3002, UNSW
Co-course convenor, Theory, Ethics and Research Impact SRAP5102, UNSW
Tutor, Economics, Society and Globalism 54052, UTS
Tutor, Self and Society 54050, UTS
Co-convenor, Theory, Ethics and Research Impact SRAP5102, UNSW
Co-convenor, Research Methods and Design SRAP5101, UNSW
2016
Tutor, Social Research and Society SRAP1001, UNSW
Co-convenor, Research Methods and Project Design SRAP5101, UNSW
Co-convenor, Research Methods and Project Design SRAP5101, UNSW
2015
Tutor, Social Research and Society SRAP1001, UNSW
Tutor, Cities: An Introduction to Urban Studies 101589.2, WSU
Tutor, Social Research Methods 400337.4, WSU
Convenor, Geographies of Social Difference 101556, WSU
2011-2014
Geographies of Social Difference, WSU
Social Research Methods, WSU
Economies and Cities and Regions, WSU
Applied Social Research, WSU
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5462-4634