Welcome to the Doctoral College Newsletter - your fortnightly update for events, opportunities and news specifically relevant to postgraduate researchers.

Here are just some of the highlights this week:

• Take another look at our Festival of PGR Research posters in our online booklet; head to the News section for the link.
• Step back in time with environmental historian Semih Celik, who is leading a Wild Wednesdays Walk. Full details in our Events section.
• Congratulations to Dr Pankhuri Singh, who recently completed her PhD at Exeter, for her doctoral thesis being shortlisted for Doctoral Research of the Year category in the MeCCSA Outstanding Achievement Awards 2026. You can find out more in the Student Achievements section.

To find out more about these, and everything else at the University for PGRs, jump to the relevant sections using our linked contents list:

News

Events

Opportunities

Reminders

Student Achievements

Community

Careers Support

Wellbeing Support and Sessions

Enquiries

The next newsletter will go out on Tuesday 7 July 2026. Please submit items for the next newsletter by Wednesday 1 July 2026. Please refer to our style guide before submitting your item.

You can also share your news and events on PGR Community Hub on Viva Engage, or on our Bluesky account.

The place to look for training and development opportunities at the University and beyond is our Postgraduate Researcher Training and Development Bulletin.

Were you unable to make our physical poster exhibitions for Festival of PGR Research? We've gathered together the digital copies of all entries displayed at the exhibitions, so take a virtual wander by flicking through our Sway presentation of the entries.

It's also a great opportunity to see what makes a poster stand out, which we hope will inspire you when you are making your own research posters.

As our first ever Festival of PGR Research is now wrapped up, we'd like your feedback- whether you participated or not- so that we can build on the successful elements of this year and enhance what we offer for 2027.

Please leave your constructive feedback via our feedback form; there is space to add your own suggestions.

The feedback form covers all components, from the competitions; workshops; events and anything else on the Festival of PGR Research calendar.

The form will close on Tuesday 30 June.

Date: Friday 26 June
Time: 15.00
Meeting Point: In front of the Old Library/Bill Douglas Cinema Museum (https://maps.app.goo.gl/1mCyJzbXkPYw4UND6)
Duration: Approximately 60 minutes.

Join environmental historian Semih Celik, who has been leading research in Streatham campus’ archives! The trail follows archival traces of the multiple botanical trajectories the Streatham campus has been built over since the early years of the 19th century into the late 20th century. Thanks to research in the University of Exeter Special Collections by six Green Consultants interns, and Semih’s own research in Devon Heritage Archives, this walk will explore Streatham’s historical connections to local, regional, and global nodes of botanical exchange that determined the meanings attributed to the botanical heritage of the campus and is expected to enrich the imagination of future engagement with that heritage.

The walk will mostly follow paved and some dirt roads across the campus.

Pauses will be given near Reed Pond, entrance to the Lower Hoopern Valley, Heatherly Labs, Plantation/Amory Building, and finish at the Taddiforde Valley if time allows.

To sign up and for more information, e-mail ck523@exeter.ac.uk

Applications are open for secondments with the MSCA-funded ACCELERATE project, advancing UAV/drone and AI applications in environmental, social, and heritage research.

Eligibility: Open to early career researchers (including postgraduate researchers) at Exeter in all subjects, and particularly in archaeology, history, anthropology, geography, heritage studies, engineering, data science, or AI. Interest in drones, impact assessment, or interdisciplinary research is encouraged.
Secondments: One month (extensions possible) at partner institutions across the EU, starting as early as Autumn 2026–27.
Funding: €2,300/month for travel and subsistence, reimbursed via receipts.
To apply: Submit a CV (max 2 pages) and a 500-word expression of interest (research summary, motivation, expected benefits, preferred host).
Deadline: Rolling — apply early to secure place.

Contact: Prof Ioana Oltean or Prof Marisa Lazzari.

Date: Wednesday 24 June
Time: 18.30-20.00
Venue: Studio 74, Exeter Phoenix

Join us for a panel talk and Q and A at Exeter Phoenix, exploring the research behind video games, and what they tell us about ourselves, our futures, and the stories we tell. We'll be joined by Professor James Newman (Bath Spa University), Dr Richard Cole, (University of Bristol), Dr Amy Cutler (University of Exeter), Dr Rob Sherman (University of Exeter), and Dr James Sweeting (University of Plymouth), hosted by Co-Founder and Director of Bristol Games Hub, Dr Tomas Rawlings. This is a fantastic opportunity to level up your video game knowledge and hear from leading researchers bringing their work to the public.

Book your free ticket via Eventbrite, and contact per@exeter.ac.uk if you have any further questions.

Congratulations to Dr Pankhuri Singh, who recently completed her PhD at Exeter, whose doctoral thesis had been shortlisted for Doctoral Research of the Year category in the MeCCSA Outstanding Achievement Awards 2026.

Dr Singh's thesis, 'Reimagining Shakespeare: A Journey through Vishal Bhardwaj’s Trilogy', is an in-depth examination of Indian filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaji’s film adaptations of the Shakespearean dramas, Macbeth, Othello and Hamlet, for Indian audiences (Maqbool, Omkara, Haider). Take a look at the judges' comments on the MeCCSA Outstanding Achievement Awards 2026 website.

The PGR Community Hub is a collaborative online space for Postgraduate Researchers at the University of Exeter. Posts can be uploaded by PGRs, The Exeter Students' Guild or The Falmouth and Exeter Students' Union, alongside teams that support PGRs such as the Researcher Development and Research Culture Team. Please use this space to discuss ideas, share best practice, ask questions and keep up to date with the latest activities, events and opportunities. Here you can have your voice heard and shape our community and research culture.

Please do not use this channel to advertise/search for rooms to rent; the University has its own Viva Engage channel where you can do this.

Join fellow PGRs in this online space, led by PGRs for PGRs to focus individually on whatever tasks you would like to work on. You can join the PGR Study Space Microsoft Teams Group here.

The PGR Study Space facilitated hours are as and when facilitators are available.

There are unfacilitated sessions outside of these hours so you can fit it around your working patterns.

If you have any queries, please contact PGRStudySpace@exeter.ac.uk. 

The Exeter Wellbeing Network is a social group for staff and PGRs run by volunteers, hosting a variety of events to help colleagues based at Streatham, St. Luke's or online to connect with one another. Recurring events include StaffCraft, singing, Walk and Talk and Fika; find the full list on our webpage.

You can also contact us at wellbeing-network@exeter.ac.uk.

If you are looking for information about activities at Penryn, Falmouth and Truro, please visit the Cornwall Wellbeing Network webpage.

There are a wide range of societies and/or groups that you may like to join, such as the Mature Students Society and the PG Society (Exeter).

Check out the Doctoral College Networks webpage for full information. Don't forget to also take a look at the societies on offer at Exeter Students' Guild and Falmouth and Exeter Students’ Union websites, which include a society for international students as well as various sports and interests.

The University has some excellent resources to help with careers. Whether you plan to work in industry, set up your own business, join the third sector, stay in academia, or are not yet sure and want to explore your options, you can find guidance and helpful pointers using these resources:

• PGR Career Planning Guide - a dedicated website to support your career development. This resource provides in-depth information and practical guidance specifically tailored towards postgraduate researchers whether you are thinking about working in academia, industry, self-employment or research.
• Career Zone- much of the online content is open to all current Exeter students, including PGRs
• PGR Training & Development Resources SharePoint- contains presentation slides from past training sessions. For career skills, check out the Personal Effectiveness section
• PGR Training and Development Bulletin- find out what courses and opportunities are happening at the University in this monthly newsletter, which all PGRs are signed up to
• Upcoming training courses- our training programme is available to book now

Every Mind Matters
Having good mental health helps us relax more, achieve more and enjoy our lives more. The NHS have expert advice and practical tips to help you look after your mental health and wellbeing. See their website here.

 

Spectrum.Life
Spectrum.Life provides a confidential telephone, video, and live chat counselling service to help with stress, anxiety, depression, relationship issues, bereavement and more  (sign up using your University of Exeter email address).. The Spectrum Life web portal offers wellbeing courses, mindfulness, healthy eating resources and online fitness classes to help you to stay well.

Wellbeing Centre
If you would like to speak to PGR Education Welfare Team for Welfare, they can be contacted at welfare.pgr@exeter.ac.uk or tel: 01392 726207. Further wellbeing information, tools and support can be found on our wellbeing webpages.

Mindfulness is a powerful practice of training our attention and an evidence-based way to tackle anxiety, stress and low mood. If you’re interested in exploring more, there is a variety of free internal options available for all colleagues.

Sessions from the internal Mood Disorders Centre mindfulness team include: an eight-week MBCT-L course (2hrs weekly), an eight-week ‘deeper mindfulness’ course for those who’ve completed the MBCT-L course and bespoke ‘healthy mind’ sessions for whole teams, which can be delivered in-person or online.

You may also be interested in trying mindful meditation in 30 min online sessions each Thursday lunchtime. This is a secular practice run by the Chaplaincy.

Details on how you can contact the PGR support team, either via email, telephone or face to face via our hubs (located on all campuses) is available on our contact us webpage.

Remember you can come along and meet the team or to ask any enquiries you might have at either of our helpdesk hubs below at any of our campuses:

The Streatham PGR Hub is open from 10.00 – 15.00 Monday to Friday. The Streatham Hub is situated in the Old Library Ground Floor next to the Quiet Study Space and Bill Douglas Centre.

The St Luke’s PGR Hub is open from 10.00 – 15.00 on a Monday and a Thursday. Students wishing to access the hub should go to the Info at St Luke’s desk and request PGR support, the PGR team will then be called to see you.

The Penryn PGR Support Office is open from 10.00 – 14.00 Monday to Friday. It is based in the Postgraduate Suite in Daphne Du Maurier building 3 (next to the SU and opposite the Stannary).

For enquiries surrounding training and development, please contact the team on: ResearcherDevelopment@exeter.ac.uk

You can view previous versions of the newsletter here.