Blog Archives
Research Skills Workshops Coming Up!
The Graduate School is running a series of generic workshops in the next couple of months covering a wide range of skills. These workshops are for all postgraduate research students and booking is open through the Gateway Calendar. Just click on the green button to book your place.
Smarter Speed Reading 22 Nov 2017, from 10:00 to 13:00
Researcher careers: CV Workshop 04 Dec 2017, from 13:30 to 14:30
Word: Working with Long Documents 06 Dec 2017, from 09:45 to 12:00
Risk Assessing your Research 06 Dec 2017, from 12:30 to 14:00
Nvivo intermediate level Workshop 07 Dec 2017, from 09:30 to 12:30
SPSS 1 beginnner’s workshop 11 Dec 2017, from 14:00 to 16:00
Systematic literature searching 13 Dec, from 10:00 to 13:00
Images of Research: deadline extended to 29th November
If you haven’t entered Images of Research yet but wanted to, then we are pleased to announce that we have extended the deadline for submitting your image, summary and title. Don’t miss out on your chance to raise your research profile, engage a public audience and disseminate your research in an annual event that challenges all researchers, including postgraduate research students and academics, to illustrate their work with just one unique image. The submission deadline has been extended to Wednesday 29th November 2017. For all details about the competition, please visit the IOR link, and if you have any query, please get in touch with Simone.
Workshops for Research Degree Supervisors
New for this year, we are running a series of workshops for research degree supervisors related to the stage that your student has reached. These workshops will be a mix of information about the formal procedures with a discussion about how to support the student through this phase of their programme. The two ‘early stages’ workshops are timed to coincide with student induction when you may have a student starting their research degree programme. All workshops are equally appropriate for those new to supervision and for those experienced supervisors who need a refresher.
Supervising the early stages of a research degree
David Watson and Ian Livingstone
This workshop is intended for supervisors who are supervising a research degree student who is just starting. We will cover the formal requirements of the student and the supervisory team between initial enrolment and transfer. We will ensure that you are aware of the university’s but we will also have some discussion about how we can supervise students in these early stages. This workshop is equally appropriate for those new to supervision and for those experienced supervisors who need a refresher. The workshop will run again on Wed 14 March 2018.
Date: Thursday 19 October 2017 12:00-14:00 ( Lunch provided)
Venue: MY120 Avenue Campus
To book, please see the link
Maintaining your research degree student’s momentum
Jeff Ollerton and Ian Livingstone
This workshop will consider your strategies as a research degree supervisor for supporting your students through the middle stages of their research degree programme when some students run out of steam or lose focus. We’ll consider how you can help them to keep going, and we’ll think about the priorities for you and the student. This workshop is equally appropriate for those new to supervision and for experienced supervisors.
Date: Wednesday 24 January 2018 12:00-14:00 ( Lunch provided)
venue: Top Lodge Conservatory, Park Campus
To book, please see the link
Supervising the early stages of a research degree
Ian Livingstone and David Watson
This workshop is intended for supervisors who are supervising a research degree student who is just starting. We will cover the formal requirements of the student and the supervisory team between initial enrolment and transfer. We will ensure that you are aware of the university’s procedures but we will also have some discussion about how we can supervise students in these early stages. This workshop is equally appropriate for those new to supervision and for those experienced supervisors who need a refresher.
Date:Wednesday 14 March 2018 12:00-14:00 ( Lunch provided)
Venue: L5 (Leathersellers)
to book, please see the link
Supervising the end game
Chris Roe and Ian Livingstone
This workshop will consider how you as a research degree supervisor can support your student through the final stages of writing up, submission and viva. We’ll provide a reminder about the university’s formal requirements but we will also have some discussion about how we can supervise students in these final stages. This workshop is equally appropriate for those new to supervision and for experienced supervisors.
Date: Thursday 10 May 2018 12:00-14:00 ( Lunch provided)
Venue MY120, Avenue campus (Lunch provided)
To book, please see the link
Call for Images – Graduate School’s Images of Research 2017-18
The call for the Graduate School’s Images of Research 2017-18 is now open! If you are a researcher (staff or student) at the University of Northampton, and would like to participate, all you need to do is to come up with a unique image that you can either create or photograph, the image should capture the essence of your research or an element of it, in a visual, artistic or photographic way, with a 150 word summary and a title. Entries for IoR 2017-18 must be emailed to Simone by November 10th 2017. Please see the rules and guidelines. Images of last year IoR competition can be found in IOR 16-17 catalogue. Read the rest of this entry
An invitation to “Connected Communities”, the Graduate School’s conference for new researchers on 14th September
Book now to attend The Graduate School’s annual research conference for postgraduate and early career researchers, which will be held on Thursday 14th September in Holdenby Lecture Theatre 3, Park Campus,
We’re holding our first 3MT with a £25 prize, plus 5 panel sessions of papers from our postgraduate researchers. For more information see the conference page.
Please book your place here on our Eventbrite booking page. We look forward to seeing you there.
Graduate School Update Day
On Thursday 29th June, Graduate School Update Day was held on Park Campus with an attendance of over fifty PGR students and supervisors. Every year The Graduate School hold this event to provide a space for both PGRs and supervisors to get together, discuss one or two topics of relevance to them via workshops and provide an opportunity for both parties to feed back on the year’s Graduate School provision and service. This year, the event started with a one hour session on research ethics, during which Professor John Horton, Chair of Research Ethics Committee provided an update on changes to research ethics processes for research degree students at the University of Northampton including the new proforma for ethics applications. The second workshop of the day was led by Clare Jones, an expert in researcher careers for research staff and PhD students from the University of Nottingham. Clare started her workshop providing an overview of the PhD landscape with examples of some career related issues and challenges that postgraduate students encounter in their PhD journey.
Read the rest of this entry
YES Competition 2017
Take part in YES17 this autumn and spend three days immersed in developing enterprise skills; thinking creatively to produce innovative solutions to major challenges; and discovering how to communicate research with impact.
YES is an opportunity for postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers wishing to:
- Enhance CVs
- Develop transferable skills
- Cultivate business acumen
- Become career-wise
- Collaborate with peers and network with industry experts
- Pitch for a share of the £7,500 prize fund
The application deadline is the 9 July 2017.
For more information, please see the link
Supervisor Development Programme ~ 2017/18
The university runs a development programme for supervisors who are new to research degree supervision, co-ordinated by Professor Ian Livingstone, Head of the Graduate School. It is a validated university postgraduate course and it is delivered as two modules – Workshops and Observation. It is a requirement of our research degree regulations that everyone who is new to supervision takes the first module – the workshops. The second module is optional but if you complete both you are awarded the Postgraduate Certificate in Research Degree Supervision which you can count as one completion when putting together supervisory teams. Even if you have previously supervised research students, there may be some elements of the programme that you would find useful.
In 2017/18 the workshops will be delivered on:
Tuesday 20th, Wednesday 21st and Thursday 22nd February 2018 at The University of Northampton;
Tuesday 10th, Wednesday 11th and Thursday 12th July 2018 at The University of Northampton
Staff from both The University of Northampton and Regent’s University London plus staff delivering our research degrees as international partners are welcome to join either delivery. You only need to join one three-day course, not both. No fees are paid by participants on this programme, but if you will be travelling away from your own university you will need to discuss travel and subsistence expenses with your line manager.
If you are intending to join this programme for either delivery and have not yet contacted Ian Livingstone, please do so now. (01604 893362; email: ian.livingstone@northampton.ac.uk). He will be happy to answer any questions you have about the programme.
Nominations for the Times Higher Education Outstanding Research Supervisor of the Year 2017 are NOW OPEN!
Nominations for the outstanding research supervisor of the year award are now open. Sponsored by the Times Higher Education, this award will be given to the individual who has created the most supportive, stimulating and inspirational research environment for doctoral students. Entries will be accepted from institutions, supervisors themselves or their students or colleagues, but in all cases the institution must support the submission and student testimonies must be included in the supplementary documentation. Entries are open online until Wednesday 28th June 2017. Read the rest of this entry
Call for Papers from PGRs – September 2017 Conferences
The East Midlands Doctoral Network (EMDoc) would like to invite PGR students to submit an abstract for a paper or poster to their Postgraduate Research Conference. This year conference will be hosted at the University of Nottingham and is a great opportunity to promote students’ research, and meet and network with other postgraduate research students from around the East Midlands. The conference will be held on the 13th September which is the day before the University of Northampton PGR/ ECR conference. So, aiming at encouraging our students to communicate their research both in internal and external settings, and seeking to help them improve their presentation skills, the Graduate School is offering PGR students the opportunity of covering the expenses of their trip to Nottingham if they are also planning to present in the PGR/ECR conference in Northampton. Read the rest of this entry