The Doctoral College Newsletter provides you with fortnightly updates for events, opportunities and news specifically relevant to postgraduate researchers.

Here are just some of the highlights this week:

• Get involved in the Festival of PGR Research, happening throughout May 2026. Check out the Events section for more details.
• Three Minute Thesis (3MT) launches today (Wednesday 1 April) as part of the new PGR Festival of Research happening! Head to the News section for the key information.
• We hope you are looking forward to the upcoming Bank Holidays; please check the News section for information on closure days.
• Enjoy the sunnier weather by going on a 'Wild Wednesday' nature walk- find out more in our Events 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

External Events

Reminders

Community

Careers Support

Wellbeing Support and Sessions

Enquiries

The next newsletter will go out on Tuesday 14 April 2026. Please submit items for the next newsletter by Wednesday 8 April 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.

We are delighted to announce that the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) is now open for entry!

Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is a National competition for postgraduate research students, run by research organisation Vitae. 3MT® challenges doctoral candidates to present a compelling spoken presentation on their research topic and its significance in just three minutes.

Are you up for the challenge? Head to the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) webpage to find out more.

Last year's winner Anh Ngo has written a blog post all about her experience of 3MT and useful advice and tips for preparing and delivering your 3MT presentation.

Deadline for entries: 5pm on Monday 11 May

Friday 3 April and Monday 6 April are Bank Holidays so many offices at the University- including Researcher Development and Research Culture Team and PGR Support Teams- will be closed on those days.

If you have an urgent Wellbeing concern, please check out our Urgent support for Wellbeing webpage for Devon and Cornwall.

The Easter opening hours for the Exeter libraries can be found on the Library's webpages. Please note that the enquiry desk will not be staffed on Friday 3 or Monday 6 April.

Do not forget your Uni card to swipe in, to borrow print and please download the SafeZone app.

Penryn Campus Library Easter Vacation

The library will remain OPEN 24/7 over the Easter Holidays, with a reduced staff presence as detailed below:
Saturday 28 – Sun 29 March: Unstaffed
Monday 30 March – Thu 2 April: Staffed 9am–5pm
Friday 3 – Monday 6 April (Easter weekend): Unstaffed
Tuesday 7 – Friday 10 April: Staffed 9am–5pm
Saturday 11 – Sunday 12 April: Unstaffed

Opening hours for the Penryn library can be found here.

Term-time hours resume from Monday 13 April. Card required for swipe access after 20:00

You still have access to e‑resources, 24/7 chat support, and can apply for SCONUL Access to use other university libraries.

This new festival is an opportunity for you to build community, showcase and develop communication, presentation and impact skills and to take part in a variety of competitions, workshops and interactive activities.

Festival of PGR Research will take place across Streatham and Penryn campuses from Wednesday 6 May until Thursday 4 June 2026. The Festival of PGR Research is a platform for celebrating the diverse and inspiring research that you, our postgraduate researchers, are conducting at the University of Exeter.

As well as the Three Minute Thesis, don't forget that the Poster Competition is also open for entries. Both of these competitions have been the highlights of the year for the PGR community and we can't wait to find out what research will be presented this year, whether as an oral presentation in the Three Minute Thesis competition, a poster in the Poster Competition- or both!

Keep checking Festival of PGR Research over the next few weeks as more events and activities will be added.

Join us for the second meeting of the Emotionally Demanding Health Research PGR/ECR Network! PGRs and ECRs working on health related research from all disciplines and faculties welcome!

If you are a PGR or ECR at the University of Exeter working on emotionally demanding or sensitive health related research, and would like a chance to chat with peers from across the university over a cup of tea and cake, join us between 11.00-12.30 on Friday 10 April. This time we will be meeting at the Centre for Cultures and Environments of Health in Queens Building on Streatham Campus (with the option to join remotely).

Note: there is no need to have attended previous meetings to join, and there is no expectation to contribute to sessions. If you have any questions please feel free to email Hayley (hlrr202@exeter.ac.uk) or Ellie (eh728@exeter.ac.uk).

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

Join the Wild Wednesdays group on a series of walks through Streatham campus. Everybody welcome- please let Clara Kleininger-Wanik know if the group can support your access in any way.

The upcoming events are:

• 'What's wrong with being a tree-hugger?', Wednesday 22 April, 15.30
• Botanical History and Tree Walk, Wednesday 6 May, 12.30 - 13.15

Wild Wednesdays are a collaborative, inclusive HASS-led initiative to support and inspire creative and community engagement with the natural environment of the Streatham Campus. In a series of seven walks from February to September, they will explore the campus together from diverse perspectives, gathering impressions, notes, words, leaves and photos. These will be made into seven illustration-maps by our two artists, Sam Godfrey and Rebecca Lockyear, which we will be able to share, leaving a trace of our paths and encounters.

Image by Clara Kleininger-Wanik.

Date: Tuesday 28 April
Time: 12.00-15.00
Venue: Reed Hall, Streatham Campus

The Regional Engagement team are pleased to announce their upcoming event, Creating a Healthy Community: Matchmaking for Researchers and VCSE Sector. This is a collaboration with Devon Community Foundation, and invites researchers and members of the VCSE sector with a shared interest in health and wellbeing to network over lunch, and through a series of interactive activities, stands, and introductory talks. You can find out more details and register for your free place via EventBrite.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact  regionalteam@exeter.ac.uk.

Worldwide Universities Network (WUN) invites you to its next session ECR Webinar Series that will be held on Monday 13 April 2026. This session is titled ‘Measuring and Evaluating Research’ and is open to early career research staff and postgraduate researchers. See here for your local session time.  A full description of the topic that will be covered, along with the link to register, can be found here. You can also register directly here if you wish.

The webinar series is free of charge for early career researchers/postgraduate researchers from WUN member universities, including the University of Exeter. Your university email address is required for registration confirmation. Please register as soon as possible, as the session is expected to fill up quickly.

In October 2025 we launched the Guidance on the Use of AI in PGR Research to help you determine if, why, and how to use AI – including GenAI – in your research. Feedback has indicated that this is helpful, but that some of you are struggling to find the guidance.

To help, we have linked the Guidance on the Use of AI in PGR Research directly from the ‘Current Students’ page of the revamped Doctoral College website. It’s also linked in the Quick Links section on the PGR Training & Development Resources SharePoint.

We know that AI and its use in research is evolving rapidly, so we are monitoring the guidance and will update it in response to developments. If you have any feedback or suggestions of where we need to update or extend the guidance, please let us know. Emma Weaver, one of our fantastic Doctoral College Policy Interns is investigating this on your behalf, and you can leave feedback on this PGR Views on Gen AI Padlet.

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.

A relaxed, informal singing group to promote positive wellbeing and a sense of community and connection across our lovely campus. No experience necessary! Open to all staff and postgraduate students from Exeter, Falmouth, FX Plus, the SU, and any other organisation that is based on Penryn campus. If you know someone who might like to join, please encourage them to fill out this interest form.

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.