Graduate School Development Days on campus have all been finalised for the 2023-24 academic year. You are invited to browse through the days and topics below and plan ahead to set aside time for the ones that you would like to attend to meet up with other PGRs and attend some development workshops. Here is a brief overview with links for more information and to book.

Development Days are full days on campus, with lunch, based on a particular stage of study or theme. They are designed to be experiential, discussion-based and involve networking with other PGRs  Face to face opportunities are proven to decrease feelings of isolation amongst research students and will allow you to make new friends with fellow PGRs for future support and connections.

13^th November 2023 Finishing stage – Editing, proof reading and viva ‘experiences’

Strategies for managing the final editing & proofreading of your thesis. Hear from visiting alumni on their viva experiences and ask all those tricky questions.

15^th December 2023 Unlocking the World of Quantitative Research: Philosophy and Practice: (Half day)

Join us for a comprehensive workshop designed to demystify the art and science of quantitative research, equipping you with essential knowledge and skills to conduct meaningful research in your field. This workshop will be for about 3h, immersing you in the philosophy, questionnaire design, and data analysis using SPSS.

16^th January 2024 ‘Reading’ Development Day

Improving your reading skills will also improve your writing skills. This development day will involve a reading retreat and will feature links between good reading skills and writing at Level 8.

16^th February 2024 ‘Writing’ Development Day

Dr Alison Hardy is back with her legendary writing retreat, where she will first introduce 90 minutes of good writing strategies, followed by dedicated writing slots to enable you to get on with your doctoral writing tasks.

7th March 2024 Presenting and disseminating your research with impact

This day will focus on impactful research, methods of dissemination, improving your presenting skills and getting your research out there by building your digital presence.

15th April 2024 Progressing from the middle stage of your doctorate

Maintaining momentum, managing your supervisor and their feedback, overcoming procrastination and improving productivity – just get your thesis done! Here are lots of tips and tricks that will help you achieve progression in this latter stage.

22^nd May 2024 Publishing Day

Writing your first article and increasing your chances of getting published in journals, with ‘expert’ academics talking about their experiences and giving tips.

18^th June 2024 Building a Research Career

This day will focus on what it takes to build a successful research career, whether you would like to work in or outside of academia. PhD to Prof or another exciting career outside of academia – what is it to be?

As well as our Development Days on campus we are also offering a couple of online days on qualitative research.

Part 1: Qualitative research methods: an interactive guide 14^th March 2024

Part 2: The collection and analysis of qualitative data 5^th June 2024

We have a variety of short webinars and workshops on offer in the Gateway calendar, so take a look to find what you need. If you would like help deciding what to sign up to then please contact Simone Apel for a 1-1 session on Teams.