Early Career Researchers Hub   :   ECR Training and Development

Welcome to this month's ECR Newsletter where you will find key information on the following:-

Spotlight On ... National Postdoc Appreciation Week 2025 (NPAW)

Research Staff Development Programme

Learning and Development Opportunities: University of Exeter and Beyond

Research Grants, Funding & Competitions

Research & Researcher Networks

Health, Wellbeing & Support

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Please direct any questions you may have to researcherdevelopment@exeter.ac.uk.

Monday 15 September - Friday 19 September 2025

National Postdoc Appreciation Week (NPAW) seeks to acknowledge, recognise and celebrate all the hard work that post-docs and researchers dedicate to research, teaching, mentoring, outreach and so much more!

National Event
The National Event is hosted by the University of Manchester and is open  to all researchers from all institutions in UK and Republic of Ireland.

Monday 15 September 2025 (10.30 am - 12.30 pm) Online - 'From Surviving to Thriving: Planning your Future'
Join us to explore the power of self-leadership. Our expert speaker will share strategies for taking control of your development, followed by a panel discussion with former postdocs who have carved diverse career paths. Come celebrate your journey and gain tools for tackling what’s next. Expect inspiration, honest insights, and a dash of comic relief!

Register Here

The University of Exeter Events
This year the University of Exeter is hosting two online events to celebrate NPAW 2025. These will take place online and are bookable via iTrent. These events are open to all University of Exeter researchers and our GW4 Colleagues.

Wednesday 17 September 2025 (1 pm - 2.30 pm) online - 'Leading from Within' with Sarah Williment - Register here.
Thursday 18 September 2025 (2 pm - 3.30 pm) online -  'What Next? Postdoc Career Steps Alumni Panel Session', with Dr Elizabeth Laruni, Dr Jamie McFadzean and Dr Hannes Titeca - Register here.

Initiatives & Activities
So you can say a special thank you to your ECR Colleagues, the Researcher Development and Research Culture team are running an initiative that allows you to send a personalised bookplate with a message of thanks.

To nominate a colleague, please fill in this form by 5 pm on Monday 8 September.

By completing this form, you will send an ECR of your choosing a bookplate and small edible treat to say thank you for their contributions. You may wish to acknowledge this individual for their attitude, behaviours, professionalism, mentorship or perhaps something else entirely!

Reasons for nomination may include, but are not limited to:

• contributing to a supportive and inclusive research environment and/or community;
• behaviours or actions that create a positive working environment and Research Culture;
• anything else that you wish to say thank you for.

Please note, this is not a financial award. Those nominated will receive a bookplate for them to affix to a book of their choosing with your words of thanks printed on it. These bookplates will be sent to recipients via the internal mail alongside a small edible treat.

All nominations must be received by 5 pm Monday 8 September 2025.

Treats will be sent via internal mail in the week beginning 15 September 2025.

The Research Staff Development Programme provides training and professional development for all research-active staff at the University of Exeter, across all campuses.  Early Carer Researchers (ECRs) should find the sessions and workshops particularly useful for their development as researchers.  Upcoming courses (you will need to be connected to the University VPN to book on):-.

NPAW 2025 Event: Leading from Within - 17/09/2025 (1 pm - 2.30 pm)
NPAW 2025 Event: What Next? Postdoc Career Steps Alumni Panel Session - 18/09/2025 (2 pm - 3.30 pm)

How to Manage Your Career - 23/09/2025 (10.30-11.00am)

Open Research - Making Your Work Open Access - 25/09/2025 (1 pm - 2 pm)

UNIque Programme for Women Researchers - 1, 15, 29 Oct, 12, 26 Nov 2025 (all 9.30 am - 10.30 am) - See below for application details

Get That Fellowship - 6/10/2025 & 20/10/2025 (10 am - 1 pm)

ECR Town Hall, Streatham campus - In-person: 7/10/2025 (1.30-3pm)

ECR Town Hall, Penryn campus - In-person: 14/10/2025 (11am-12.30pm)

Publishing in Open Access - 15/10/2025 (10.30 am - 11.30 am)

Managing Being a Parent and a Researcher - 16/10/2025 (10.30-11.30am) (Streatham campus in-person, Old Library room 3) 

Mapping and Marketing your Skills - 21/10/2025 (10.30-12.00)

Emotionally Challenging Research - impacts, coping and proactive interventions - 22/10/2025 (9.30 am - 1 pm)

LinkedIn for Researchers - Developing and Using your Profile - 18/11/2025 (12.45-2.00pm)

Creative Skills in Research - Adaptability and Flexibility -

In-person, Streatham campus: 25/11/2025 (10am-4pm)

In-person, Penryn campus: 3/12/2025 (10am-4pm)

1:2:1 Confidential Careers Appointments with Kenneth Howgill (ECR Careers Coach).

Focus Space - supportive space encouraging productivity for Research Staff. 

Application Deadline : Friday 12 September 2025 (12 noon)

All sessions are online and there is an application process for spaces.  You may wish to discuss this development opportunity with your line manager/principal investigator.  All applicants will receive notification of outcome w/c 22 September 2025.  Note that there are a very limited number of spaces available.

Wednesday 1 October 2025 (9.30 am - 10.30 am)
Wednesday 15 October 2025 (9.30 am - 10.30 am)
Wednesday 29 October 2025 (9.30 am - 10.30 am)
Wednesday 12 November 2025 (9.30 am - 10.30 am)
Wednesday 26 November 2025 (9.30 am - 10.30 am)

Are you a woman researcher wondering what’s next — or how to get there with confidence?  Whether you’re stuck, ready to grow, or simply in need of space to think, UNIque is a powerful 8-week development programme that’s already helped hundreds of women researchers take bold, brilliant next steps. Watch an introduction video.

An 8-week online course designed specifically for women in research – PhDs, postdocs, fellows and beyond.

What’s included:

• 5 interactive Zoom sessions every 2 weeks to keep you on track;
• Reflection tools and exercises challenging you to move forward;
• Support from an experienced coach and your peers;
• Real-life strategies for confidence and clarity;
• A community space that’s both warm and ambitious.

Check out what women like you say here.

Wednesday 17 September 2025 (1 pm - 2.30 pm) - Online

This interactive webinar offers early career researchers an opportunity to explore, learn more about, and reflect on, the theme of self-leadership (leading from within). Within this session, we will consider how we lead and manage ourselves (our inner resourcefulness and emotional state) to enhance our personal effectiveness and build greater resilience to navigate the challenge of an increasingly uncertain and complex environment.

The session will offer a light-touch mix of some theory and concepts around self-leadership as well as practical tips and techniques.

Thusday 18 September 2025 (2 pm - 3.30 pm) Online

Join this Alumni Panel session What Next? Postdoc Career Steps as part of National Postdoc Appreciation Week 2025! Hear from three Exeter alumni who have gone on to use their researcher skills and backgrounds in higher education institutes and beyond into diverse sectors.

We are looking forward to welcoming:-

• Dr Elizabeth Laruni, who gained a PhD in History and is now Conflict Sensitivity and Gender Lead with the charity International Alert.
• Dr Jamie McFadzean, who gained a PhD in Biological Sciences and is now Vaccination & Research Policy Lead with DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs).
• Dr Hannes Titeca, who gained a PhD in Economics and is now a Senior Analyst for Ofgem.

Each panellist will give a brief overview of their career steps after completing their research degrees at Exeter, and reflect on how their research backgrounds and skills have led to their current positions. There will be time for Q&A.

Panellists pictured below: Dr Elizabeth Laruni, Dr Hannes Titeca and Dr Jamie McFadzean

Monday 6 October 2025 (10 am - 1 pm) - First module - Online
Monday 20 October 2025 (10 am - 1 pm) - Second module - Online

Two-Part course - you must be able to attend both modules.

A fellowship can be a great stepping stone in a research career but what does it take to get one? This course will cover everything from understanding fellowship schemes, the essential 3Ps in any application and practicing fellowship pre thinking using a concept note exercise.

The first module will focus on exploring fellowships, ideation tools and writing essentials. The second module will host a mock fellowship panel where you will present a fellowship concept note from one of your peers and they will present your ideas to the panel. This will be followed by further tips and advice from the tutor. In between modules, you will generate a concept note – a short document focusing on the 3Ps using either your fellowship idea or your existing research as a starting point. This will need to be submitted to the tutor before the second module.

Thursday 16 October 2025 (10.30-11.30am)

In-person, Streatham campus, Old Library room 3

Being a researcher while raising a family can feel overwhelming, but it is absolutely possible with the right strategies, support, and expectations. This short, interactive session will share practical approaches to balancing academic work and parenthood, covering topics such as time and energy management, setting boundaries, building support networks, and effective communication with supervisors and colleagues. Participants will also hear from peers and the facilitator about personal experiences, tips, and resources available at the University of Exeter and beyond.

 

Martina Egedusevic, PhD, is an Impact Fellow at the University of Exeter, based within the Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute. She is passionate about sharing strategies to make academic life more inclusive and sustainable for parents.

Tuesday 25 November 2025 (10am - 4pm) - Streatham Campus, Creative Quadrant (in grounds of Streatham Court, Exeter Business School) 

 

Wednesday 3 December 2025 (10 am - 4 pm) - Penryn Campus, Peter Lanyon, Seminar Room 06

Forging an academic career is highly demanding, requiring both a rhino hide to survive the slings and arrows of unsuccessful grant applications and missed opportunities, and wide-eyed wonder to sustain passion and curiosity for a subject. How does one stay creatively malleable in a potentially ossifying environment? In this session, we will explore the roles of adaptability and flexibility in the creative process – both are required for creativity and are strengthened through creative habits. We will explore related themes of ambiguity, iteration, failure and confidence, and introduce practical tools to challenge path dependency and encourage reframing. The session will be interactive, discursive, informal and – if we get it right – enjoyable and informative.

Human Tissue Act (HTA) training is mandatory for anyone using or storing human tissue samples at the University of Exeter. 

The next session is on Monday 13 October 2025, 10 am – 11 am (online).

Anyone collecting informed consent as part of their research needs to attend the Informed Consent training, Monday 13 October 2025, 11.15 am – 12.15 (online).

Both sessions are online and open to everyone (ECRs and PGRs).  We also welcome anyone to join for a refresher if they haven’t attended the training for over two years.  There is no registration deadline or booking limit.

Please email HTA-return@exeter.ac.uk for further enquiries or to book a place.

We are delighted to announce that Policy@Exeter has commissioned the Institute for Government (IfG) to deliver Policy Impact training to academics at the University of Exeter. Participants to learn how government and policy making work, explore routes to policy engagement and practise communicating with policy makers, during either a one-day online workshop (six places available) on 16th November (0930-1600) or a two-day in-person bespoke workshop (20 places available) which will be held on Streatham Campus on Tuesday 11th and Wednesday 12th November (1100-1600 both days), and which will explore communicating with policy makers in more detail. If you would like to apply for a place on this training, please complete this form. Anyone with an interest in policy engagement is welcome to apply but priority will be given to those with a current or confirmed upcoming project which will involve policy impact or engagement, and priority for the online workshop will be given to those based outside Exeter or with relevant accessibility needs. Please contact policyengagement@exeter.ac.uk with any questions.

Thinking about adding a creative element to your research work but not sure where to begin?
Developed by the University’s Arts and Culture team, the Get Creative toolkit offers practical, step-by-step guidance for planning and delivering successful projects with creative collaborators. It combines an interactive online guide with reflective prompts, a downloadable Planning Canvas to take ideas from concept to proposal, and detailed how-to advice on running exhibitions, workshops, performances, and other activities. You’ll also find tips on engagement, communications, finance, evaluation, and commissioning creatives.
The toolkit is a flexible resource to help you explore new approaches and make your projects more engaging, innovative, and impactful. Start here.

We’re inviting early-career researchers to take part in a short survey exploring how academics form perceptions of higher education institutions. The survey also examines what influences nominations in global reputation surveys such as the QS World University Rankings and Times Higher Education World Rankings.

It will take around 5 minutes to complete, and your responses are anonymous and confidential.  Your insights will help improve how academic reputation is understood and measured.

The Inclusive Research Hub is a living resource developed by the Inclusive Research Collective in collaboration with the People Development Team at the University of Bristol. It provides an accessible introduction to key concepts and practices in inclusive research, with over 20 sections organised across six key stages of the research process. Topics include reflexivity, literature review, budgeting, pre-registration, open-source software, and inclusive communication—alongside a growing collection of case studies.

The Hub is a useful resource for researchers at all career stages and across all disciplines, as colleagues in technical and administrative roles. We welcome feedback and contributions to help improve and expand the resource. If you or your colleagues would be interested in contributing case studies, reflections, or disciplinary perspectives, we’d love to hear from you.

13 - 17 October 2025

Starting on Monday 13 October, and throughout the week you can:-

• Explore job roles and potential employers.
• Gain insight from experienced alumni.
• Connect with employers and learn from their expertise.
• Build your networks.

For your diaries:-
Monday 13 October (5.30 - 6.45 pm) - From Campus to Policy: Starting a Career at a Think Tank (virtual panel of alumni).
Tuesday 14 October (5.30 - 7 pm) – Careers in Policy and Government, a virtual workshop run by the Institute for Government
Thursday 16 October (10 am – 3 pm) Civil Service Fast Stream will be in the Forum for a drop-in; 11.30 am - 1 pm Strategic Thinking skills in-person workshop; 3 - 4.30 pm Careers in Defence, Security and Intelligence sectors in-person lecture by Professor Frances Tammer; 5.30 - 8 pm Speed networking event hosted by PolSoc with Exeter alumni followed by a food and drinks reception.
 

All the details of the week and how to sign up can be found here

 

Thursday 11 September 2025 (9.30 am - 6 pm) - Streatham Campus, Xfi Building

Sponsored by the new Centre for Environmental Intelligence (CEI), the EI Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) and the EI Research Network, the event brings together the growing EI community at Exeter and beyond

Join students, staff, and external partners to explore exciting EI research, celebrate progress, and look ahead to 2025/2026. The day includes short talks, posters, panel discussions, and networking opportunities - perfect for sharing work, gaining feedback, and sparking collaborations. Open to all interested in Environmental Intelligence across the University and wider research community.

Please email ei-network@exeter.ac.uk if you have any questions.

Any form of recording whether via Teams or external tools like Fellow and other AI notetakers is NOT permitted. If you have any accessibility needs and do require a recording of the session, please contact Researcher Development in advance and we will arrange this with the trainer.

Deadline - Monday 8 September 2025

The Images of Research competition competition provides a great opportunity to practise communicating research to a non-specialist audience and has received hundreds of entries over the years, showcasing the breadth of research undertaken at the university through a single, visually-engaging image and short, jargon-free description. 

Due to popular demand, we are pleased to announce that this year, Postgraduate as well as Early Career researchers can enter!

Looking for some inspiration? Read our blog to hear from last year’s winners or watch our video to find out about the benefits of the competition. 
  
The deadline to submit entries is Monday 8 September 2025. Further information including how to enter and submission guidance can be found on our website.

 The Images of Research competition is one of the ways we seek to support our early career researchers. You can find out more about how we support a positive research culture on our Research Culture SharePoint site.

Are you a researcher with an interest or expertise in futures research?

Celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2026, GW4 Crucible is a leadership development programme which brings together 30 competitively selected future research leaders.

This year's theme is Imagined Futures. The programme will leverage the combined expertise from politics to computer science, from architecture to health, and from history to engineering, to generate innovative, multifaceted and radically interdisciplinary approaches to research which will shape future generations.

The hybrid programme will bring these individuals together through two in-person residential (two-day) labs, as well as four online masterclasses. You will explore working in an interdisciplinary and collaborative way and will have the chance to connect with expert guest speakers, enhancing your professional networks and visibility.

You can hear more about the programme from past participants here.

The deadline for expressions of interest is 15 October 2025. Find out more and apply now.

If you would like to discuss GW4 Crucible and how participation will help you make the next steps in your career, please contact Dr Chris Wood: c.b.wood@exeter.ac.uk

The University’s Arts and Culture team invites expressions of interest to host a Creative Fellow during the 2025 - 2026 academic year. Open to academic and professional services staff at the Streatham and St Luke’s campuses, fellows can be hosted in a department, centre, institute or network. Rather than being a ‘residency’ or commission, where an artist is expected to work towards a pre-agreed output, these opportunities are described as placements, where the cultural practitioner is a peer. Deadline for expressions of interest is Sunday 21 September. Read the full call out here.
If you'd like to know more about the fellowships before submitting an expression of interest, the team are holding two online info sessions on Thursday 4 and Wednesday 10 September between 2-3pm. Contact Naome Glanville at Arts and Culture directly to receive a Teams link (n.r.glanville@exeter.ac.uk).

The Engaged and Participatory Research Fund is an annual scheme funded from the University of Exeter’s Participatory Research Fund allocation, awarded by Research England. We are seeking to fund projects between academics and their external partners, which use engaged or participatory approaches and demonstrate benefit for all partners. A total fund of £70,000 is available and applicants can apply for funding from £1,000 up to £10,000. The lead applicant must be staff (or a post graduate student with a staff member acting as co-applicant) at the University of Exeter. We welcome applications from academic and professional staff from all levels. All applications must be co-created with an external partner as a co-applicant. The deadline for applications is 10am on Friday 10th October 2025. For more information: Funding | Public Engagement | University of Exeter

Application Deadline: Tuesday 14 October 2025

Starting Grants support talented early-career researchers who have already produced excellent supervised work, are ready to work independently and show potential to be research leaders.  

What's funded?  Research, in any field, conducted in a public or private research organisation in one of the EU Member States or Associated Countries. Starting Grants may be awarded up to €1.5 million for five years.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)  has announced that applications for their R&D Fellowship Programme for 2026/2027 are now open. The programme is especially suited to early and mid-career researchers eager to see how science and analysis can directly shape public policy. However, Defra welcomes applicants from all career stages and scientific disciplines who are passionate about applying their expertise to drive innovation and impact.  Full details about the programme, including a candidate pack, and how to apply can be found at:

Research and Development Fellowship Programme 2026/27 - Defra Jobs - UK Government

The deadline for applications is the 16th September 23:55.

If you require any further information, please contact the coordinating team at Defra: ExternalAdvice@defra.gov.uk

Deadline : Monday 15 September 2025

Solid research is the underlying driving force to crystallize fearless creativity and innovation. While we are committed to run in-house research and engineering, we are also excited to collaborate with academic partners to facilitate exploration of new and promising research. The Sony Focused Research Award provides an opportunity for university faculty, research institutes, and Sony to conduct this type of collaborative, focused research. The award provides up to $150K USD* in funds, and may be renewed for subsequent year(s). A list of candidate research topics appears on their website (button below).

*Awards will be paid in USD or the respective currency depending on the country of the participating university/institution.

First Open Call Deadline : Friday 31 October 2025 (5 pm)

Running from 2025 to 2030, IRIS (Interdisciplinary Research In Societal challenges) will recruit 36 international postdoctoral researchers through two open calls, each for a period of 30 months.

The project is currently looking for 18 researchers. The call is eligible for researchers with a PhD for maximum 8 years who have not resided or carried out their main activity in Belgium for more than 12 months over the last years, before the call deadline (31/10/2025).

Your Entrepreneurs Scheme (YES), now celebrating its 30th successful year, is a global programme designed to equip early career researchers, including PhD students, postdocs, research fellows, and technicians, with vital entrepreneurial and innovation skills. Supported by top industry partners such as GSK, Syngenta, and Mondelez, YES immerses participants in a simulated start-up environment to develop commercial thinking, IP knowledge, financial awareness, teamwork, and communication — competencies highly valued across academia, industry, and policy sectors.
We are pleased to announce that the registration deadline for YES 2025 has been extended to 10th September 2025! However, we strongly encourage early applications to secure a spot and maximise the benefits of the programme.

Application information

NB - There is a cost for this programme, but some bursaries are available, while for UK technicians working at universities, places are FREE.

The Bloomsbury Academic Writing Fellowship is returning for its third year, with a broader subject remit and an expanded panel of expert judges.

Designed to support early career scholars in developing an idea through to manuscript stage, the Fellowship is open to UK-based up-and-coming authors and researchers who identify as Black, Asian, or Ethnically Diverse (BAED) and working within the Humanities and Social Sciences.

The selected Fellow will receive:
• A full year of editorial mentorship
• £1,000 financial support
• £250 worth of Bloomsbury Academic books
• Event and networking opportunities

You can find full details and application information via Writers & Artists. Applications open on 1st September and close on 1st October 2025 at 11:59pm (UK time).

What happens when AI outgrows us—or grows with us? From 16–19 September 2025 in Exeter, the Superintelligence Conference (SiC25) will bring together researchers, thinkers, and creators to tackle the biggest questions about the future of intelligence.
Expect:
🎙️ Keynotes that challenge assumptions – from AI’s “new clothes” to the future of regulation and alignment.
📚 Talks and papers spanning reinforcement learning, embodied AI, machine morality, and even speculative science fiction.
⚡ Interactive sessions – speed networking, open idea labs, and workshops designed to spark new collaborations.
🌀 Panels on consciousness and computing intelligence that blur the boundaries between science, philosophy, and society.

Whether you’re fascinated by alignment, ethics, embodiment, or creativity in AI, SiC25 offers a unique chance to connect with researchers across disciplines and shape the conversation on superintelligence.

👉 https://www.superintelligenceconference.org/registration

Deadline: 8 September 2025

We’re excited to support ECRs at the intersection of digital innovation and the circular economy. These projects address real-world challenges through creative, transdisciplinary approaches.

Looking for collaborators? We’re actively connecting academics with non-academic partners to co-develop proposals.

Explore potential collaborators
Share your interests and opportunities

We welcome applications from diverse and underrepresented groups. If you have specific requirements to support your participation, please get in touch.

Interested in joining our ECR community? Our next meeting is on 19 August 2025 – email dice-network@exeter.ac.uk if you would like to join.

Have you noticed the University community for ECRs on Viva Engage? Lots of ECRs have already been added and if you are not on there, you can join. This is a collaborative online space to share and discuss ideas, ask questions and keep up to date with the latest activities, events and opportunities.

Have your voice heard and shape our community and ECR culture.

Join the conversation now by sharing your first post!

This page is maintained and moderated by the Researcher Development and Research Culture team.

Every Thursday 12:30-13:30, (restarting 25th September) Queen's Senior Common Room, Streatham campus

We are an informal group of like-minded knitters and crocheters (and other fibre crafters) of all abilities from all around the university, both staff and PGRs. This drop in group is an opportunity to meet other crafty colleagues, try out knitting or crochet (or pom pom making), share tips get advice on your latest project, and have a chat. You can bring your own project or contribute to charity knitting/crochet projects. It is free to attend. It's very causal, you can bring your lunch, or just pop in for a few minutes. Part of the Exeter Wellbeing Network

To be added to the mailing list, find out more, or to check where Queen's SCR is, please contact Isabel Castle I.Castle@exeter.ac.uk

Find out how the University can support Early Career Researchers.  The page includes support from the University, Spectrum.Life as well as a list of networks to support staff wellbeing.