Monthly Archives: March 2021

Awards, News

Summer Vacation Research Competition 2021 winners announced

The Graduate and Researcher College is pleased to announce the winners of the Summer Vacation Research Competition 2021:

  • Dr Miyoung Ahn, Centre for the Study of Higher Education
  • Dr Francesca Cavallo, School of Arts
  • Dr Christopher Dunmore, School of Anthropology and Conservation
  • Ioannis Galanakis, School of Economics
  • Aino Petterson, School of Psychology
  • Suzi Sapiets, Tizard Centre

This event, now in its fourth year, attracts PDRAs, RAs and Research Associates looking to gain additional project and line management experience through an established scheme in which they are supported by central and Divisional University colleagues.

Applications in this atypical year addressed a range of topical issues including understanding inequality in UK HE, assessing the economic impact of the recent ‘eat out to help out’ scheme and educating about climate change in Brazil. Their national and global focus reflect Kent’s role as an innovative research-intensive institution which strives to find answers to diverse challenges by exploring relevant questions for the benefit of the local, national and international communities it serves.

Professor Shane Weller, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research & Innovation, said:

“I am absolutely delighted to support this year’s Summer Vacation Research Competition, which was promoted across the Divisions as part of our strategy to enable our students actively to participate in research. The competition benefits both our early career researchers and our undergraduate students. It is particularly pleasing to see that the approved projects align so well with two of the University’s new Signature Research Themes (‘Environment, Food Systems and Natural Resources’, and ‘Future Human’), whilst a third reflects another proposed theme (‘Inequalities and Diversity’). I wish all competition participants every success in their endeavours and very much look forward to reviewing the project outcomes and discoveries.”

Applications for this innovative opportunity for second- and third-year undergraduates to gain research experience are being managed by the Careers and Employability Service, and will open on 22 March. We look forward to receiving applications from enthusiastic and motivated students who are interested in learning more about the world of research through active participation in a real-life project.

News, Training

New web resource for academic and research staff

Kent’s commitment to supporting colleagues who research is further demonstrated with the launch of a new section of the Graduate and Researcher College (GRC) website. The ‘Academic and Research Staff‘ webpages provide a wealth of information for academic researchers and are designed to showcase the wide range of information, resources and support available to them.

Divided into four sections comprising 27 pages, this online portal includes information about the University’s strategy to support staff who research and emphasises our efforts to build a supportive and inclusive research culture. Highlights include details of forthcoming central and Divisional training and development sessions, as well as recordings of and material from previous sessions which can be viewed on demand via the relevant GRC SharePoint pages.

Professor Paul Allain, Dean of the Graduate and Researcher College, commented: “The recent expansion of the GRC to enable us to support staff as well as postgraduates marks the start of an exciting journey for researcher development at Kent. Our new webpages are one of a series of steps on the road to increasing awareness about the services and support which are provided by the University for our academic and research colleagues.”

A further phase of web development is planned for Summer 2021, which will focus on the three areas covered in the  Researcher Development Concordat: environment and culture, employment and professional and career development. In the meantime, we trust that our new digital resource will become your first port of call for information relating to academic and research staff development.

News

Kent Union Student Leadership Elections – PG Voting

Posted on behalf of Patrick Stillman, Kent Union VP Postgraduate Experience

Postgrads!

I’m sure you’ve all heard by now, its election season at KU, and this Thursday you have a chance to shape your student leadership team for next year! The VP Postgrad position was introduced in 2019, and in the last two years it has been essential in ensuring that the voices of PGTs and PGRs are heard within the Union, in terms of events and campaigns we run, and that PGs have a seat at the table at all levels of University governance as well.

With the challenges that this year has thrown up, it’s more important than ever that PGs show up to vote in these elections, as your votes help give the officers the backing they need to make change and ensure your voices continue to be heard.

Every candidate is determined to improve the PG experience, when asked for their main reason for standing, here’s what they said:

“Hi, my name is Laura and I’m running to be your VP Postgrad Experience Officer because your voices need to be heard.

I’m the person who has the passion and drive to make sure that you are not forgotten about.”

 

“Hi, I am Atchana and I am running as your next VP Postgraduate Experience in this year’s election. I am aiming to break the stigmas around PG students and make sure these students are full incorporated into student life!  Whether it is Canterbury, Medway or one of our European location, PG students should get the attention we need!”

 

“Hey, I’m Tobi-Temple and I’m running for your next VP Postgraduate Experience. I desire to create better engagement between postgraduates (including international students and part-time students) and the SU. Great steps have already been taken by previous officers and I want to take things to the next level!”

 

“Hi, my name is Nelly and I’m running to be your next VP Postgrad Experience because I’m really passionate about making a difference to the student experience, be these tiny but annoying issues or wider national campaigns.”

 

All voting will be online on the KU website on Thursday 11th March, and you can find out more about all of the candidates standing in the leadership elections here.