Early Career Researchers Hub : ECR Training and Development : 

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

• ECR Researcher Development & Research Culture Programme.
• RS & IIB Essentials Programme.
• Learning & Development Opportunities : University of Exeter & Beyond.
• Research Grants, Funding & Competitions.
• Research & Researcher Networks.
• Research & Researcher Blogs.
• Organising an Event & Need Help?
• Health, Wellbeing & Support.

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

Previous copies of Newsletters can be viewed by clicking here.  If you have something that you'd like to share in future Newsletters, click here for copy deadline dates as well as submission guidelines.

Peer Reviewing Research Papers - 17/04/2023 (1 pm - 2.30 pm).
Writing Your Data Management Plan - 19/04/2023 (10 am - 11 am).
Introduction to Unix - 19 & 26 April (2-part course) (1 pm - 4 pm).
Introduction to Python - 21 & 28 April (2-part course) (1 pm - 4 pm).
Writing World Leading & Impactful Research Papers - 24/04/2023 (1 pm - 2.30 pm).
Writing Targeted Grant Proposals - 26/04/2023 (11 am - 12.30 pm).
Getting Stuff Done - 23/05/2023 (10 am - 11.30 am).
Sharing Research Data - 24/05/2023 (10 am - 11 am).

Following the success of the 'Launch of Focus Space' ... we would like to give you a warm welcome to our regular 'Focus Space' online sessions which run from 10 am - 12.30 pm Mondays and Thursdays - Click here for dates and details of how to join this group.

Participants do not have stay for the whole session - you can dip in and out as you please!

To make things easy, these sessions can be accessed via the same Teams link - click here.

We are looking to expand our team of facilitators so if you would like to find out more about becoming a facilitator please contact ResearcherDevelopment@exeter.ac.uk

Speaker Programme

Following on from the successful launch of ‘Focus Space’ back in February, we have been successful in obtaining funding to be able to invite further guest speakers, potentially once a month, leading up until July 2023.  Inspirational guest speakers will be tailored towards the ethos of the ‘Focus Space’ sessions.  More details to follow!

After a very competitive award process, we are very pleased to announce the 2023 Winning Initiatives and the Lead Award Holders, as follows:

• Keskows - Interaction - William Rees.
• Early Career Research Network Creative Workshop - Rebekkah Bernheim.
• Changing the Culture of Peer Review in the Preprint era - Luis Alberto Bezares Calderon.
• Empirical Methods in Economics Reading Group - Dercio de Assis.
• Creating Bee and Wildlife Friendly Garden: staff and students engagement initiative - Zhivko Zhelev.
• Presentations with PoGLSS - Isobel Cole.
• Researcher’s Wellbeing Through Creative Art - Shibani Das.
• ReproducibiliTea Exeter - Xinran Du.
• Women’s Health and Women’s issues Researcher Development Network - Luana Di Giorgio.
• University of Exeter - PGR Medical Humanities Conference Medical Humanities and (In)Justice: Crossing Disciplines and Contexts - Anya Ovcharenko.
• Developing Accessible Institutional Ethnography Research Skills Online - Elizabeth Ablett.
• Bioinform@exe: An Exeter University Cross-Faculty Bioinformatics Network - Jamie Harrison.
• Cornwall Inclusivity Matters - Megan Wallace
• Yoga @ LSI - Helen Eachus.
• Premodern Neurodiversity Workshop - David Parry.
• Tools for Image Based Researchers - Pia Leete.
• ‘Lunch and Learn’ Project - Chenguang Wei.

Congratulations to all  those whose applications were successful. These projects are now underway; keep an eye out for announcements and invitations from the project groups!

What are the RLI Awards all about? - to find out more about this annual fund click here.

Call For Papers: PGR Medical Humanities Conference- University of Exeter, 29th June (hybrid) and 30th June (online) 2023- "Medical Humanities and (In)Justice: Crossing Disciplines and Contexts"

We welcome contributions that address the general topic of (in)justice and medical humanities (intended as broadly construed) through engagement and practical experiences with, but not limited to, the following issues:
● Medical humanities and violence
● Disparities between global North and South (and unsettlements of these locations)
● Epistemic and testimonial injustice
● Disputes about medical humanities as a field
● Bioethics and justice

We welcome submissions from postgraduate, early career, and independent researchers:

● Papers: Abstract (up to 250 words),

● Creative work: a description (visual art, film, website, audio piece, or any other creative work).

Please include a short bio in your submission.  For accessibility purposes, we kindly ask that you send us your paper/script one week before the conference. Thank you.

Submissions or queries to Maria Teresa or Ana Lucia.

Deadline for submissions: Monday 24th April 2023.

This workshop will consist of two sessions on 15 May and 22 May 2023.
Registration Deadline : 30 April 2023.

Peer reviewing of the rapidly increasing number of preprints is becoming crucial to inform society and funders about the quality of the work. ECRs could spearhead this effort and at the same time gain valuable reviewing skills. To encourage ECRs to get started in peer reviewing, The NGO PREreview will offer to UoE researchers in Biosciences an online workshop centered around preprint peer review, touching on the biases that come in the process, and the steps to achieve a constructive review. 

Researchers with little experience in peer-review are specially encouraged to join, but more experienced researchers are also welcome. The workshop is limited to 30 participants. Register your interest in this form by 30 April 2023.

This is a Researcher-Led Initiative funded by the University of Exeter Researcher Development and Research Culture team.

For further inquiries please email Luis Bezares Calderon: lab239@exeter.ac.uk.
Image credit : Vanessa Fairhurst.

In this workshop, you’ll hear from academics and artists who use creative ways to communicate research and have a go yourself. Refreshments and lunch will be provided. Sign up via Eventbrite is required as spaces are limited.

When: Wed, 17 May 2023 10:00 - 16:00 BST
Where: Baring Court, 202 St Luke's Campus, University of Exeter Heavitree Road Exeter EX2 4TH
Who: This event is open to Early Career Researchers (ECR), PhDs, or anyone else who identifies as an ECR

This activity is a Researcher-led Initiative that has been funded by the University of Exeter Researcher Development and Research Culture team.

For more information, please contact Bekkah Bernheim (r.bernheim@exeter.ac.uk), Sian de Bell (s.c.de-bell@exeter.ac.uk), or Becky Whear (r.s.whear@exeter.ac.uk).

We are currently updating and developing the ECR Hub webpages so that we can improve the information and support we provide you. Our aim is to make the Hub a one-stop-shop to help reduce the time you spend searching for key information and support, along with streamlining our communications to you.

To assist us with this we are asking you to submit your feedback and are keen to receive your responses.

The Research and Innovation Essentials Series was created to distil essential information that researchers need to know about the research grant lifecycle, from application to grant management, including what support researchers can draw upon to get the best possible outcome. The Series was created to meet the requirements of various career stages and offers an opportunity to meet members of Professional Services and Academics that specialise in specific areas of the research lifecycle to discuss how they can support you.

Upcoming Live Webinars:-

Open Research - Publications, data and beyond - 27/09/2023 (12.30 pm - 2 pm)

SWDTP Webinar Series: The Many Faces of Activist Research

Wednesday 19th April, 2-4pm online.

This seminar series explores theoretical, methodological, and practical tools for conducting what can be broadly defined as “activist research”. This is a form of research that challenges the traditional separation between theory/action, academy/society and is committed to producing knowledge grounded in and generative of social and material changes in particular places. There are many ways in which the intersection between these domains is understood and practiced: from “scholar-activism” and “militant research”, to “community experiments” and “participatory-action-research” and more.

Each Zoom webinar will feature short presentations from three speakers and will have a chance for audience questions and answers. Please join us for what we hope to be a set of stimulating and generative discussions.

For full information and speakers, please check out EventBrite. Register via EventBrite.

For any questions please contact Mary Pearson-Fearns.

------

Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship (PPF) scheme - Nanyang Technological University (NTU Singapore).
Submission Deadline:  30 April 2023, 2359hr (Singapore Time, UTC/GMT+8).
NTU invites outstanding early-career researchers to apply for appointment as a NTU Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow. The PPF aims to provide the opportunity for outstanding early career researchers from Singapore and around the world, to conduct independent investigations in any discipline at NTU. This Fellowship provides research funding over two years. There are personal development opportunities coupled with mentorship in an established research group. These conditions will empower the Fellows to strive for research excellence and impact and enable them to meet their ambitions as global research leaders.  To find out more and to apply, click here.

------

Public Engagement with Research (PER) Community SharePoint Site

If you have an interest in public engagement with research (PER), please check out the PER Community SharePoint site: Public Engagement with Research (PER) Community.
 

Dreolin Fleischer, Engaged Research Manager, manages the site. You can contact her with questions or to become a member of the site.

                                                                           -----

The Health & Resilience Project - Call for Submissions

• Do the words health & resilience mean something important to you?
• Would you like to share your experiences in a creative online space?

The Health & Resilience Project has created a virtual scrap-book for women and gender non-binary people to share their stories of wellness, illness, challenge, and resilience. We welcome all forms of creative expression and would love to hear from you!  To find out more click here.

------

Finding your stage persona

Presenting your research publicly is a core researcher skill, whether this be to an audience of your peers at University, at international academic conferences or to the public during outreach talks. Researchers often learn these skills through practice, feedback and training, but very little training is targeted at developing the confidence to perform on a stage. This proposed session* will run for at least half a day and feature training in how to step into a ‘stage persona’ that can help you find the confidence to stare into the lights and deliver a confident representation of yourself and your research.

Dr Lucy Hawkes and Dr Andrew Griffiths are soliciting interest from the wider ECR/PGR communities to make the case for organising this training, planned to take place before the end of July 2023. Let us know if you are interested (and in what capacity): https://www.menti.com/al81o3qais2w

*Pending a successful funding application

UKRI Policy Fellowships 2023
Closing Date : 20 April 2023 (4 pm)
Apply for funding to collaborate with a UK or devolved government host or What Works Network centre on research activity to address pressing national and global challenges.  You must be based at an organisation eligible for UKRI funding have a PhD or equivalent experience. To find out more and to apply click here.

------

Public Engagement with Research (PER) Springboard Fund

Closing Date: 16 June 2023

The Public Engagement with Research (PER) Springboard Fund is open to University of Exeter academic and professional staff at all career levels. The aim of this fund is to support and amplify PER and participatory research at the University through a variety of methods. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until Friday 16th of June or until the funds available are committed. You can access the fund announcement here, which has a link to the application. Within the application there is a link to the review criteria for the application. Please contact per@exeter.ac.uk with questions.

                                                ------

Future Leaders Fellowships: Round Eight
Closing Date : 4 July 2023 (4 pm)
Apply for funding to support ambitious research and innovation across UKRI’s remit.  You must be an early career researcher or innovator who is either looking to establish or transition to independence or developing their own original and ambitious plans within a commercial setting.  To find out more and to apply click here.

Exeter University - Early Career Researcher Networks (ECRNs)

Action Notes from the last meeting held on Wednesday 11 January 2023, are now available - click here.

Please note the next meeting will take place on:-
Thursday 25 May 2023 (10 am - 11 am).

The Network Meetings are designed to help support our Early Career Researchers in the beginning stages of their career. The ECRNs are designed to help raise awareness of new developments in a particular field: new tools, processes, leaders, training programs, and services. They are also an opportunity for collaborative problem solving and to get advice from your peers. To find out more about the Networks and who your Network Rep is click here.

------

Exeter University - ECR Liaison Forum

Action Notes from the last meeting held on Tuesday 28 March 2023 will soon be available - click here.

Next meeting for your diary:-
Tuesday 1 August 2023 (10 am - 11.30 am).

All ECRs can attend an 'ECR Liaison Forum' (ECR LF).  The LF's continue to develop and now act as a formal route for PGRs and ECRs within the ECR Networks to feed into University strategy. Dedicated ECR Reps feed ‘to and from’ the ECR Liaison Forums from several strategic boards, steering and working groups, including the Research and Impact Executive Committee (RIEC), the Exeter Academic Steering Group, the Concordat Steering Group, the Positive Working Group and the Equality and Diversity Board. If you'd like to come along, simply email researcherdevelopment@exeter.ac.uk asking to be added to the ECR LF list and you will be invited to future meetings.

------

BA Early Career Network - Whose responsibility is social welfare? Interdisciplinary approaches to community welfare and social justice (for South West ECRs only)
Friday 21 April 2023 (10 am - 4 pm). University of Gloucester.
The purpose of this event is to bring together ECRs in the South West and potential community stakeholders to establish links for future collaboration. Throughout the day, ECRs will hear from guest speakers, engage in table discussions with academic and community stakeholders and have networking opportunities. The goal is to produce themed working groups (themes to be decided on the day) that can take forward further collaborative activity. To find out more and to register, click here.

------

Call to ECRs: join Children and Young People’s Wellbeing @ Exeter

Friday 5th May, (09:00-3pm). Reed Hall (Streatham Campus)

Are you an early career researcher whose research interests impact or involve children and young people’s health and wellbeing? Join the Children and Young People’s Wellbeing @ Exeter research network to meet new colleagues, form new collaborations and discuss your research. To join or find out more, contact cypwellbeing@exeter.ac.uk. Or simply come and meet us at our annual symposium in Reed Hall on May 5th, where we will have a dedicated session for short introductions from ECRs and newly arrived staff. For registration and to find out more about the symposium, visit the Eventbrite page.

------

Nature, Outdoors and Wellbeing: ECR Research Symposium and Networking Day

Friday 14th June, (09:30-4pm). Reed Hall (Streatham Campus)

Are you an ECR at the University of Exeter and does your research focus on how outdoor and natural environments impact people's health and wellbeing?

Come and join other ECRs from across the University of Exeter to share your research and network.
The event is being held at Reed Hall, on the University of Exeter Streatham campus, on the 14th June 2023, 9.30 am – 4.00 pm. Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

For more information, and to sign up please see the following event link.

We are looking for PhD and Early Career researchers to contribute to Exeter’s Research & Innovation blog and write posts that are based on three questions about your work. If you would like to find out more please email digitalteam@exeter.ac.uk.

If you're organising an event and don't know where to start, take a look at the Corporate Events webpage where you will find lots of useful information and advice including an Events Planning Toolkit!  If you would like to contact the Events Team for further advice email eventenquiries@exeter.ac.uk.

Staff Wellbeing

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