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ECR Newsletter - January 2025
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ECR Town Halls - Cornwall and Exeter
ECR Town Hall - Cornwall - Tuesday 28 January 2025 (11.30 am - 1 pm) - Exchange Building, Exchange Red (2nd Floor), Penryn campus.
ECR Town Hall - Exeter - Wednesday 29 January 2025 (10 am - 11.30 am) - Old Library Training Room 4, Streatham campus.
Town Hall Theme:
Responsible Research Assessment, Impact & University Rankings – what it means for you (Early Career Researchers).
With specialist speakers on Responsible Research Assessment, Impact & University Rankings, space for forum discussion about the tensions and ways forward and what this means for early career researcher publications and research communication, plus time to network with ECRs from other faculties and departments.
Speakers : Prof. Rob Anderson, Chair of Responsible Metrics Champions Group and Alex Tiffany, Head of Insight.
The Early Career Researcher (ECR) Town Halls take place termly and provide an opportunity for ECRs to meet in-person to build community, share experiences and network. The Town Halls are open to any early career researcher (including research-only / education & research / education & scholarship staff & postgraduate researchers).
Anyone interested in attending must register beforehand.
Tea/Coffee and pastries will be served.
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Research Staff Development Programme
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Learning and Development Opportunities: University of Exeter and Beyond
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New Workshops for 2025 - Make your Mark series
Researcher Development & Resaerch Culture is excited to be launching a number of new workshops in 2025 as part of the Make your Mark series of peer-to-peer researcher development. Last year, we had a great response to our call for ideas for new workshops to benefit the researcher community and we encourage you to book on to these new additions to the Researcher Development programme. Your research staff colleagues are kindly sharing their expertise and time to run these sessions. The individuals and their sessions are summarised below however you can also find further details in the sections that follow.
Dr Anurag Roy – The Role of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in your Research – 14/01/2025 (1 pm - 2.30 pm)
Dr Amicia Phillips – Opening Doors - Tips on Creating your own Opportunities – 15/01/2025 (11 am - 12.30 pm).
Dr Bethan Treadgold – An Introduction to Internet-mediated Research - 12/02/2025 (11 am - 12.30 pm)
Creative Methods for Research (booking link soon available) - 24/02/2025 (1 pm - 2.30 pm)
Prof Neil Vaughan – Top Tips for Successful Literature Reviews - 27/03/2025 (10 am - 11.30 am).
Prof Neil Vaughan – Writing Journal Articles : The Need to Knows - 06/05/2025 (11 am - 12.30 pm).
With a few more in the pipeline so keep your eyes peeled for updates…..
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Exeter Impact Podcast virtual launch of Episode three "Impact and the Big Screen"
Tuesday 14 January 2025 (10 am - 11.30 am) Online.
Episode three is with Associate Professor Helen Hanson - who shares her valuable experience - and a live Expert Impact Panel!
The Exeter Impact Podcast hosts engaging conversations with research experts, sharing their insights, approaches, and solutions for advancing the impact of research at the University of Exeter and beyond. These episodes cover diverse, flagship research across academic departments and impact types. Viewers can tune in every month to learn about planning and embedding research impact and opportunities to develop their impact portfolio.
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The Role of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in your Research
'Make your Mark' Series - Dr Anurag Roy
Tuesday 14 January 2025 (1 pm - 2.30 pm) Online
This course aims to help researchers understand how sustainable development goals can shape and enhance the impact of their work.
Key areas covered include:
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Understanding the SDGs: A comprehensive overview of the 17 SDGs, their importance, and how they connect to different fields of research.
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Incorporating SDGs into Research: Methods and strategies for aligning your research with specific SDGs, ensuring that your work contributes to addressing critical global challenges.
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Interdisciplinary Approaches: Encouraging collaboration across fields to tackle the multi-dimensional nature of sustainable development.
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Measuring Impact: Tools for assessing and measuring how your research supports the achievement of SDGs and creates positive societal and environmental outcomes.
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Funding and Opportunities: Identifying funding sources, partnerships, and opportunities available to researchers focused on sustainability issues
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Opening Doors - Tips on Creating your Own Opportunities
'Make your Mark' Series - Dr Amicia Phillips
Wednesday 15 January 2025 (11 am - 12.30 pm) - Streatham Campus, Old Library, Training Room 4
This interactive session will foster open discussion on taking initiative for career advancement. Participants will explore strategies for identifying and pursuing employment and funding opportunities, including those not publicly advertised. The session will also delve into ways to initiate research stays, placements, and collaborations. Through real-world examples of successful and unsuccessful attempts to create career opportunities, the course will provide practical guidance while encouraging participants to share their experiences and insights in an open environment.
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Apply for a Funded Ticket to AIUK 2025 with IDSAI
Application Deadline : Tuesday 21 January 2025 (4 pm)
The Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (IDSAI) is offering a limited number of funded tickets for AIUK 2025 for Early Career Researchers (ECRs), the UK’s national showcase of data science and artificial intelligence, hosted by The Alan Turing Institute.
The IDSAI apologise for the short notice. Please be aware that tickets are still subject to Turing's availability, as a fixed cut-off date has not yet been confirmed.
What’s included?
- Full event ticket (for either day 1 or 2 or both days – please specify in your expression of interest).
- Travel and subsistence expenses (in line with the University's expenses policy).
Requirements for selected attendees.
- Submit a brief report to IDSAI following the event.
- Prepare a blog post summarizing your experience for publication on IDSAI’s social media channels.
Assessment of Applications.
Applications will be assessed by the IDSAI Management Team based on the alignment of your goals with IDSAI's objectives and your proposed plan for promoting IDSAI at the event.
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The Emotionally Intelligent & Agile Researcher - 2 spaces left!
Wednesday 22 January 2025 (9.15 am - 1 pm) - Online
This Zoom workshop provides information about the different components of emotional intelligence along with research-based activities to enhance emotional agility and grow self-awareness. Join this practical and interactive personal development session. This course is recommended for all research staff who are interested in maximising potential and growing self-awareness and the ability to connect well with others.
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Business Engagement for Early Career Researchers
Thursday 30 January 2025 (9 am - 4 pm) - Penryn Campus, ESI Building
Funders and universities increasingly recognise the value of academics demonstrating impact and engaging in collaboration, opening valuable pathways for researchers to apply their expertise in innovative and impactful ways. This in-person event is designed to help you seize these opportunities, equipping you with the skills to collaborate effectively with businesses, develop partnerships, and position yourself as a leader in your field.
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Failspace – Creative Sessions for Staff Exploring Failure
Tuesday 4 & 18 February & Tuesday 4 March 2025 (all sessions 6 pm - 7.30 pm)
The Workshop Studio Space, Exeter Phoenix, Gandy St, Exeter EX4 3LS.
Join freelance director and creative facilitator, Katie Villa, for a series of sessions exploring the complexities of failure. Alongside Katie, participants will delve into what failure means, uncover new perspectives, and spark creativity through shared stories and interactive activities. Each 1.5-hour session will feature an Exeter-based “artist in the corner,” who will share their own journey with creative failures, capture participant stories, and reflect them back through performance moments and artistic expressions. This is a great opportunity to embrace vulnerability, celebrate growth, and reimagine failure as a catalyst for creativity. The sessions are free to attend and open to all University of Exeter staff (both academic and professional services) from across all disciplines, faculties, divisions, and campuses.
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An Introduction to Internet-mediated Research
'Make your Mark' Series - Dr Bethan Treadgold.
Wednesday 12 February 2025 (11 am - 12.30 pm) Online
Internet-mediated research involves the remote acquisition of data from or about human participants using the Internet and its associated technologies (British Psychological Society, 2017). Such research can include a variety of methodologies and can take place in a range of settings, such as social media, email, web pages, chat rooms, and instant messaging. Conducting Internet-mediated research can present several ethical challenges. This course aims to provide an interactive introduction to Internet-mediated research, in terms of its evolution, methods, use in different disciplines, and ethical concerns.
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Entrepreneurial Researcher Programme 2025
Application Deadline : Friday 14 February 2025
The ERP is designed to support participants generate impact through commercialisation in all it’s forms including licensing, social enterprises and for-profit spinouts.
The online programme is delivered via four facilitator led sessions over a 7-8 week period for a small cohort of UoE peers.
The online sessions will introduce a series of key principles and tools for developing an idea into viable, sustainable proposition. You’ll dig into a real world problem you've identified, outline the solution that addresses this need and start to piece together the key components to take it forward: identify key users and customers, plan how you will engage and seek to better understand them, and build potential routes to fund your proposed solution.
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Software Engineering Workshops
Computational Thinking (2 part):
28 January & 4 February 2025 (10 am - 1 pm) - In-person (Streatham Campus only).
Introduction to Unix (2 part):
5 & 12 February 2025 (1 - 4 pm) - In-person (Penryn Campus only).
Python for Data Analysis (2 part):
6 & 13 February 2025 (1 - 4 pm) - Online.
Introduction to R (3 part):
25 February, 4 & 11 March 2025 (10 am - 1 pm) -In-person (Streatham Campus only).
Introduction to Version Control (2 part):
28 February & 7 March 2025 (10am - 1 pm) - Online.
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Creative Methods for Research
'Make your Mark' Series - Dr Cordelia Freeman
Monday 24 February 2024 (1 pm - 2.30 pm)
Streatam Campus, Creative Quadrant.
This in-person workshop will introduce participants to theories, examples, and the practical experience of using creative methods as part of their research practice. Notably, it will focus on creative methods as supporting the understanding of research, data, and analysis itself, rather than simply as a non-academic format to disseminate research findings. The workshop will be a mix of presenter-led discussion but with an opportunity for hands on experience to have a go at thinking about your own research through a variety of creative methods on offer.
The workshop will be run by Cordelia Freeman, a senior lecturer in human geography who researches abortion and reproductive justice in Latin America. Cordelia has worked on a number of co-produced creative projects as part of her research practice including graphic novels, a children’s book and a documentary.
Booking link soon available - contact researcherdevelopment@exeter.ac.uk to register.
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Top Tips for Successful Literature Views
'Make your Mark' Series - Prof Neil Vaughan.
Thursday 27 March 2025 (10 am - 11.30 pm) Online
This training will focus on essential skills to conduct effective and impactful literature reviews. These key skills can be applied in various disciplines within academic and professional research.
The course includes various types of literature reviews, such as systematic and narrative, covering the unique purposes and applications and aims to enable participants to efficiently identify and source relevant literature using search strategies and academic databases. This includes critically evaluating sources for credibility, relevance, and quality and also synthesizing and organizing information is included to identify key themes, trends, and gaps in the literature.
The course provides practical guidance on citation and referencing with accuracy and integrity and aims to provide a robust framework and practical skills to produce high-quality literature reviews that advance research goals.
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Writing Journal Articles : The Need to Knows
'Make your Mark' Series - Prof Neil Vaughan.
Tuesday 6 May 2025 (11 am - 12.30 pm) Online
This course will cover the essential skills to write and publish academic journal articles. This will include a thorough breakdown of the key sections of a journal article - abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion, and conclusion - and their specific functions.
The course will cover adhering to journal submission guidelines and formatting references in styles such as APA, MLA, or Chicago and will include techniques for presenting and interpreting data effectively using tables and figures to enhance the clarity of their findings.
Additionally, the course provides practical insights into navigating the peer review process, including strategies for responding constructively to reviewer feedback. To enhance productivity, participants will explore approaches like time management and dedicated writing sessions.
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DIGIT Lab’s Year in Review: 12 Days of Christmas Showcase
DIGIT Lab is thrilled to present a virtual showcase for their “12 Days of Christmas”! This highlights a wonderful collection of case studies, films, and outstanding work produced by DIGIT Lab over the year.
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Research Grants, Funding & Competitions
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GW4 Searching for an ECR to be a PI on a Small Project
Deadline for submission is 22 January 2025 for a March 2025 decision.
GW4 is seeking a small research grant (up to £6,000) from the CIPD's Professor Mick Marchington Research Grant to address the lack of consistent data on postgraduate students with childcare responsibilities. Current research highlights that many Universities do not collect or record such data, or do so inconsistently. The project will involve gathering data from universities on the extent of this issue and identifying barriers to uniform data collection. The final report will provide an overview of current data, challenges faced by university administrators, and recommendations for improvement.
GW4 is looking for an Early Career Researcher (ECR) to serve as the Principal Investigator (PI) for this project. This is an excellent opportunity for an ECR with an interest in social sciences, human resources, data analysis, or childcare. Interested applicants must submit a Narrative CV by 22 January 2025. For more details, contact Billy Davis, GW4 Public Affairs Lead b.davis@gw4.ac.uk.
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Glaucoma UK 2025 Grants Programme
Application Deadline : Tuesday 1 April 2025 (9 am)
Glaucoma UK has updated their research grant programme for 2025! Here's what's new ...
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Amalgamated funding rounds for project grants: one round of applications, opening in January. A total of £250,000 is available, for individual projects worth up to £100,000.
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Funding for a PhD studentship, worth up to £120,000 over three years.
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Greater consideration of the impact on and involvement of people with glaucoma, and the aims of Glaucoma UK, within our award process.
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Deadline : Wednesday 14 May 2025 (4 pm)
Decision : November 2025
Each prize is worth £100,000!
For researchers at an early stage of their careers whose work has had international impact and whose future research career is exceptionally promising - to use for any research purpose.
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Andrew Cunliffe has created this Funding Finder platform which signposts hundreds of funding opportunities that will be of interest to current community members looking to undertake research, fieldwork, conference visits or exchanges with our partner organisations worldwide. It has easily searchable listings and awards ranging from £100 to £10,000,000.
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Research & Researcher Networks
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Calling All Humanities and Social Sciences ECRs for a Winter Writing Warm up!
Online: 9, 16, 23, 30 January 2025.
In-person Bath Spa: 17 January 2025.
Please note that you will need to join the Network to participate in events. Contact Linda Lanyon (l.lanyon@exeter.ac.uk) for more information.
The British Academy Early Career Researcher Network (BA-ECRN) invites you to participate in a Winter Writing Warm Up, a series of online and in-person writing events throughout January. These events are designed to provide a flexible and structured environment where you can work on your writing projects alongside your peers, fostering a supportive and collaborative community of practice.
Objectives:-
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Provide a structured and accountable space for ECRs to focus on their writing.
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Offer optional resources and tools to support participants' writing goals.
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Facilitate connections among ECRs within and across clusters (Exeter leads the Southwest and South Wales cluster).
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Inspire new ideas and fuel the passion for research through shared experiences and discussions.
The BA-ECRN brings together ECRs across the humanities and social sciences*, regardless of their funding source or background.
* SHAPE disciplines: Social Sciences, Humanities & the Arts for People & the Economy.
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Early Career Researcher Network Enhancement Awards - Final Call!
Closing date : Wednesday 22 January 2025 (12 noon)
Funding is available from a pool of £15,000 (maximum of £3,000 per Award).
The Researcher Development and Research Culture team has funding to support the development and enhancement of research culture related activities across the University of Exeter.
The ECRN Enhancement Awards provide funding for current ECRNs to enhance, promote or re-establish network activities. The Awards are also available to create new ECRNs in or across departments/faculties that do not yet have an established ECRN. Although the Award can support a social or community-building element, the bulk of the funding must be focused on learning and development activities and will need to align with one or more specific themes.
We are excited to share a blog post from Dr Melika Janbakhsh who won an ECRN Enhancement Award in 2024 to revive the Psychology ECRN. This post by Melika is part of our revived ECR blog and we look forward to sharing more posts about previous winners. This ECR blog is also designed for you to showcase your work, share insights and experiences, and connect with peers. If anyone is interested in blogging for us, get in touch researcherdevelopment@exeter.ac.uk
Stay tuned for updates and get involved in this exciting opportunity to elevate your researcher journey!
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Research Development Support for Early Career Researchers
Friday 24 January 2025 (10 am – 11 am) hybrid
ESI Trevithick Room and online
This session will serve as an introduction to the support that the Cornwall research services team offer to Early Career Researchers (ECR’s) for fellowship applications and grants. They will encourage discussion and questions, so do think about any queries you might have in advance. This event is being organised by the ESI ECR network and is open to all the ECRs across campuses.
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Bid-generating Sandpit: Interdisciplinary Research towards Sustainable Development Goals - South West South Wales British Academy ECR Network
26 – 27 March 2025 - Bournemouth
Application Deadline : Friday 24 January 2025
Please note that you will need to join the Network to participate in events. Contact Linda Lanyon (l.lanyon@exeter.ac.uk) for more information.
Two days of sparking ideas, discovering new project partners, and developing interdisciplinary funding bids!
Travel + 1 night’s accommodation to participate in this event is provided by the BA ECR Network.
The British Academy Early Career Researcher Network and Bournemouth University’s Centre for the Study of Conflict, Emotion, and Social Justice invite applicants for a two-day research collaboration, networking, and grant development event to develop innovative research concepts addressing any of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs). Your goal is to form an interdisciplinary project team and build a funding proposal in two days, supplemented with two online follow-up sessions to share your project progress
and experiences.
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Health, Wellbeing & Support
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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.
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