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 22 May.

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.

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.

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.

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.

NEW- The seven secrets of highly successful research students (Wednesday 29 May, 09.30-12.00 via Zoom)

What can you do to finish your doctoral research on time, to overcome isolation, doubt and writer’s block, and to enjoy the process? And just as importantly what do you do in order to spend guilt-free time with your family and friends and perhaps even have holidays? If this sounds appealing, then this session will be of particular use to you.

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.

NEW- Emotionally Sensitive Research (Wednesday 22 May, 14.00-15.30 via Zoom)

This course aims to increase your understanding of trauma and secondary trauma and how it can present in the context of your research and to learn some practical skills to help increase your awareness and manage signs of distress. You will be encouraged to adopt a self-care in community approach to help you feel more confident in developing ethically enhanced and emotionally sensitive research and to feel more equipped to support both participants as well as yourself throughout the process.

NEW- Emotionally Sensitive Research (Monday 3 June 10.00-12.30 via Zoom)

This course aims to increase your understanding of trauma and secondary trauma and how it can present in the context of your research and to learn some practical skills to help increase your awareness and manage signs of distress. You will be encouraged to adopt a self-care in community approach to help you feel more confident in developing ethically enhanced and emotionally sensitive research and to feel more equipped to support both participants as well as yourself throughout the process.

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.

NEW- Bystander Intervention (Wednesday 5 June, 10.00-13.00 in Old Library Training Room 4, Old Library, Streatham Campus)

What would you do if you saw someone being harassed or treated badly? How would you react? Do you know how to safely and calmly intervene when necessary? This workshop explores what it means to be an active bystander across a range of settings, but in particular, situations where sexism, sexual violence and racist behaviour could be seen. It provides a safe and inclusive space to explore these topics through encouraging a person-centred approach, whilst imparting skills and knowledge based on positive framing.

NEW- Bystander Intervention (Thursday 13 June, 11.00-13.00 in Daphne Du Maurier Masters Seminars 1 and 2, Daphne Du Maurier, Penryn Campus)

What would you do if you saw someone being harassed or treated badly? How would you react? Do you know how to safely and calmly intervene when necessary? This workshop explores what it means to be an active bystander across a range of settings, but in particular, situations where sexism, sexual violence and racist behaviour could be seen. It provides a safe and inclusive space to explore these topics through encouraging a person-centred approach, whilst imparting skills and knowledge based on positive framing.

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.

• 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
• NEW- Introduction to R, 10.00-13.00, Tuesday 4, Tuesday 11 and Tuesday 18 June, Training Room 4, Old Library, Streatham Campus
• NEW- Parallel Computing, 10.00-13.00, Friday 7 and Friday 14 June, Training Room 4, Old Library, Streatham Campus
• NEW- Introduction to MATLAB, 13.00-16.00, Thursday 13 & Thursday 20 June, Seminar Room 1, Digital Humanities, Streatham Campus
• NEW- Regression Analysis with R, 13.00-16.00, Tuesday 25 June, Training Room 4, Old Library, Streatham Campus

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

Doctoral Academic Writing, Term 3
Wednesdays, 14.35-16.25 from Wednesday 8 May – Wednesday 5 June.

These sessions are designed for students who have English as a second language and cover a range of aspects of academic writing including incorporating sources, developing flow in your writing. ensuring clarity , and correct academic style. During this term, some input will also be given on preparing for Vivas.

To sign up for the sessions please click here

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:

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 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.