Welcome to our Postgraduate Researcher Training and Development Bulletin! In this fornightly bulletin, you will find all our upcoming courses divided into four key areas of researcher development as per the Vitae Researcher Development Framework:

• Knowledge and intellectual abilities
• Personal effectiveness
• Research governance and organisation
• Engagement, influence and impact

In this bulletin, you will also find other training and development opportunities across the University and beyond.

If you are accessing this newsletter off-campus, please note that you will need to connect to the University's VPN to access the booking links.

Next bulletin: Wednesday 8 May.

NEW- PGR Thesis Writing - Finding your academic voice (Wednesday 8 May, 11.00-12.30, online via MS Teams and in-person in Old Library Training Room 4, Streatham Campus)

This series of writing workshops has been developed by Dr Emily Bernhard Jackson and is designed to help you feel more confident about your academic writing by focusing on different aspects of thesis writing over six sessions. You do not need to attend all sessions, but it is recommended. This workshop will help you to feel confident in your academic voice.

NEW- PGR Thesis Writing: How to Find and Use Other Critics (Wednesday 15 May, 11.00-12.30, online via MS Teams and in-person in Old Library Training Room 4, Streatham Campus)

This series of writing workshops has been developed by Dr Emily Bernhard Jackson and is designed to help you feel more confident about your academic writing by focusing on different aspects of thesis writing over six sessions. You do not need to attend all sessions, but it is recommended. This workshop will help you to find and use other critics in your writing.

NEW- Conducting a literature review Part 1- searching, reading and note-taking (Monday 20 May, 13.30-15.00 via MS Teams)

Writing a literature review is an essential starting point of good research; this session covers searching, reading and note-taking.

NEW- PGR Thesis Writing: Conceptualising a Ph.D Thesis (Wednesday 22 May, 11.00-12.30, online via MS Teams and in-person in Old Library Training Room 4, Streatham Campus)

This series of writing workshops has been developed by Dr Emily Bernhard Jackson and is designed to help you feel more confident about your academic writing by focusing on different aspects of thesis writing over six sessions. You do not need to attend all sessions, but it is recommended. This workshop will help you understand the construction of a PhD.

NEW- PGR Thesis Writing: Building your Sentences and Paragraphs (Wednesday 29 May, 11.00-12.30, online via MS Teams and in-person in Old Library Training Room 4, Streatham Campus)

This series of writing workshops has been developed by Dr Emily Bernhard Jackson and is designed to help you feel more confident about your academic writing by focusing on different aspects of thesis writing over six sessions. You do not need to attend all sessions, but it is recommended. This workshop will help you to construct and revise sentences and paragraphs for clarity and effectiveness.

NEW- Conducting a literature review Part 2- critiquing, structuring and writing (Monday 3 June, 13.30-15.00 via MS Teams)

Writing a literature review is an essential starting point of good
research; this session covers critiquing, structuring and writing.

NEW- PGR Thesis Writing: Q and A Discussion (Wednesday 12 June, 11.00-12.30, online via MS Teams and in-person in Old Library Training Room 4, Streatham Campus)

This series of writing workshops has been developed by Dr Emily Bernhard Jackson and is designed to help you feel more confident about your academic writing by focusing on different aspects of thesis writing over six sessions. You do not need to attend all sessions, but it is recommended. This workshop will give you the opportunity to ask any questions you have following your attendance at the workshops in this series.

Questionnaire: a very basic introduction (Tuesday 16 July, 10.00-11.30 via MS Teams)

The workshop will focus on considering the key things to think about at the early stages of setting out on a questionnaire survey; it will be particularly appropriate for those who have no experience of questionnaire design.

PGR Skills Development & Network building (Tuesday 30 April, 12.30-14.00 in Old Library Training Room 4, Old Library, Streatham Campus)

The aim of this session is to develop your skills in communicating research (including coverage of Research Showcase) and to get to know some of your fellow Postgraduate Research Students (PGRs) in a welcoming and supportive environment. Undertaking a PhD can sometimes be a lonely experience, so this is an opportunity to connect with others who are on their own doctoral journey and to build up your community of peer-support, all while having fun and learning something new along the way.

How to manage your career (Tuesday 30 April, 13.00-14.30 via MS Teams)

The tools and techniques introduced in this session will be applicable to managing a career within research, but also to those participants wishing to investigate a broader career path outside academia.

Mapping and Marketing Your Skills (Tuesday 7 May, 13.30-14.30 via MS Teams)

Mapping your experience, skills, competencies & attributes will enable you to write CVs and personal statements, and market yourself and answer questions effectively in interviews.

This interactive course will guide you through the process of mapping and collating the experiences you have had during your research experience to date as a Postgraduate Researcher.

Getting Stuff Done (Tuesday 14 May, 10.00-11.30 via MS Teams)

This interactive webinar will focus on how we keep track of and (re-)negotiate the commitments we make with ourselves and others.

Jonathan will share his experiences and share the tools that he has used and is using to keep all the plates spinning, whilst still finding time to enjoy the sunshine and relax.

LinkedIn for Researchers: Developing and Using Your Profile (Tuesday 14 May, 13.30-15.00 via MS Teams)

The tools and techniques introduced in this session will be applicable to all those who wish to develop their LinkedIn profile and be proactive in developing online relationships with the wider professional and research community.

There will be information provided and opportunities for Q & A as well as a live demonstration of using LinkedIn to engage with the wider researcher and professional community beyond Exeter.

Applying for non-academic jobs (Tuesday 25 June, 14.00-15.30 via MS Teams)

Applying for jobs beyond academia? Need help navigating the recruitment process? This interactive course will support you in enhancing your knowledge and understanding of the process of applying for positions in the job market beyond academia.

There will be a particular focus on how to write effective CVs, cover letters, application forms, LinkedIn profiles and how to perform well at interviews.

Applying for academic jobs (Thursday 27 June, 10.30-12.00 via MS Teams)

This course will enable you to enhance your knowledge and understanding of the process of applying for positions in the academic job market.

There will be a particular focus on how to write effective CVs, cover letters, application forms and perform well at interviews.

Success at Interviews (Thursday 4 July, 12.30-14.00 via MS Teams)

The tools and techniques introduced in this session will be applicable to all those who wish to develop their skills and knowledge of how interviews are used in the recruitment process for roles within and outside of academia.

There will be information provided and opportunities for Q and A as well as live input from former PhD researchers who have been successful in securing both post-doc roles and industry/public sector opportunities.

Check out researcherdevelopment.co.uk and ELE for useful resources on this topic area.

Research governance and organisation covers areas such as Research Ethics and Health and Safety.

Creating impactful public engagement content (Wednesday 1 May, 10.00-12.00 via Zoom)

This workshop will share clear, practical steps for creating effective, impactful public engagement content, whether it is for oral presentations or written platforms. We will examine key principles for creating content that will be relevant and relatable to audiences, and engage them at the highest levels. 

The session will include some individual exercises and group discussions, which offers participants the opportunity to immediately put into practice some of the concepts that we will discuss in the workshop.

Public speaking and presentation skills (Wednesday 8 May, 10.00-12.00 via Zoom)

Crafting engaging content only makes for one half of a successful presentation. Delivering and presenting that content clearly and effectively is what will make a presentation stick, leave a strong impression and truly engage an audience.

This workshop covers the physical and oral components of delivering effective and impactful presentations. It offers alternative ways of approaching public speaking and developing / practising oral communication skills so that speakers can step up to the podium with more confidence and ease, and less performance anxiety.

The Why, Who, What & How of Public Engagement with Research (PER) (Monday 20 May, 10.00-12.00 via MS Teams)

This webinar will introduce public engagement with research (PER), focusing on the importance of establishing why you want to engage and who you want to engage with before determining what the engagement will entail and how the engagement will occur. Reasons for incorporating PER into your research, as well as the benefits and costs of public engagement will be covered.

The Coding for Reproducible Research are running a series of software training sessions. Please register your interest via the registration form (the deadline is one week before the start of the course, or earlier if the course is over-subscribed). The Coding for Reproducible Research team will email you to confirm whether you have a place.

• Introduction to Version Control, Friday 3 & Friday 10 May, 10.00-12.00, Old Library Training Room 4, Old Library, Streatham Campus
• Introduction to HPC & ISCA, Tuesday 7 & Tuesday 14 May, 10.00-13.00, Old Library Training Room 4, Old Library, Streatham Campus
• Python for Data Analysis (Intermediate course), Friday 17, Friday 24 & Friday 31 May, 13:00-16:00, Old Library Training Room 4, Old Library, Streatham Campus
• Intermediate Version Control, Tuesday 21 & Tuesday 28 May, 10.00-15.00, Old Library Training Room 4, Old Library, Streatham Campus

There are limited spaces to attend virtually for those who can not feasibly get to the venue.

Are you interested in scaling up the impact of your research?

Do you have an idea for commercialising your research but haven't had the chance to explore it further?

The Entrepreneurial Researcher Programme (ERP) is your opportunity to explore new ideas, generate impact from your research and identify sustainable, commercially viable funding routes to bring your ideas to life. The programme will be delivered online over four group sessions between Tuesday 21 May and Thursday 11 July 2024.  

This cohort is open to postgraduate students from all disciplines.

The ERP programme is a prime opportunity for researchers keen to translate their academic work into tangible economic, societal and environmental impacts.

All ERP participants will have the opportunity to present their solutions to a panel of industry stakeholders during the final session of the programme.

Deadline for applications: Sunday 28 April.

Staffordshire University have organised a series of free online workshops on the use of GAI (Generative Artificial Intelligence) for a range of different research applications:

What is Generative AI? – Wednesday 1 May, 13:00-14:00 online

GAI for Researcher Career Support – Wednesday 8 May, 13:00-14:00 online

Applications of GAI for Qualitative Research – Wednesday 15 May, 13:00-14:00 online

Using GAI to repurpose research for different audiences – Wednesday 22 May, 13:00-14:00 online

Please note that as this is an external course we are unable to advise on queries. If you do have any queries, please contact the event organiser as specified on the EventBrite page.

This public engagement training involves:

• A 1-hour online ‘Engagement Masterclass’ over Zoom on Tuesday 7 May 14:00-15:00.

In a packed hour you will discover some top tips on increasing the reach, profile and impact of your research.

• A 3-hour online ‘Evaluation of Engagement Workshops’ over Zoom on Tuesday, 21st of May 13:00-16:00.

Successful public engagement can benefit research, researchers and the public - but how do you go about demonstrating this change? This workshop will guide you through the best evaluation processes showing you When, Why and crucially How to use evaluation to give you reliable and clear data. Demonstrate success to funders; record Impact for REF; learn how to improve your processes and have a better understanding of the people you are connecting with.

Email per@exeter.ac.uk with questions.