We are delighted to announce that the Annual Postgraduate Conference,  taking place on Wednesday 3 July, in Sibson and Kennedy is NOW OPEN for bookings.

Book your spot now via your Target Connect account!

This year, the Graduate and Researcher College (GRC) will be collaborating with the Division of Arts and Humanities, the Division of Computing, Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, Kent Business School and the Division of Natural Sciences to celebrate our postgraduate researcher community.

This is an excellent opportunity to attend talks, take part in interactive workshops, learn from colleagues, a chance to view research posters – there are even GRC prizes to be won too!

There will be an awards ceremony and buffet lunch provided – an excellent opportunity to network.

Further session information and programme to follow, keep your eyes peeled for our emails.

Don’t delay, book your place here today!

The Graduate and Researcher College are delighted to announce that this year’s GRC Prizes competition is now open, and we are accepting nominations for 2024!

The GRC Prizes were established to recognize and encourage the exceptional efforts and achievements of the university’s graduate researchers.

This initiative not only highlights the outstanding contributions made by these talented individuals but also serves as a testament to the university’s commitment to fostering a vibrant and supportive research community.

This year’s winners will receive a £200 prize, and the two runners up will each receive a £75 prize!

More information on the website and nomination forms are here.

I attended this excellent event for two days of stimulating activities designed to help finishing PhD students at the University of Kent work out their next steps in employment outside academia. We were hosted by the Graduate and Researcher College and the Careers Department, as well as an external facilitator, who all kept us literally on our toes from the first morning session of the conference.

We started with group interactive sessions that helped break down any initial nerves and introduce us to each other in a light-hearted way. Then we were asked to challenge our conventional thinking and reflect on how this had shaped our own approaches to our lives and careers. After that we set about recognising and converting the skills we had acquired during our PhDs so that we might become more desirable employees.

There was plenty of team work during the day, an important work-related skill, as well as an increasing focus on our ideals and values for the perfect job. We were invited to set ourselves big challenges for the future, stretching our imagination. All this hard work was topped off with pizzas and one-to-one sessions with advisors – mine helped me tailor my CV better to the needs of future non-academic employees, who don’t want pages of detail (like mini theses), but focused messages.

On the second day of the conference some of us first relaxed in a yoga session, while the rest joined them afterwards to reflection on our collective achievements on Day 1, which seemed considerable! We then examined our transferable skills in more detail to see how they could be highlighted in job applications, particularly covering letters, using the STAR(R) method (situation, task, action, result and reflection). This was followed by sessions on:

• making the most of Linked In as a search tool for career opportunities;
• assessing model CVs and cover letters to understand better the employer perspective, and;
• networking approaches to connecting more and building closer relationships with key people who might have a decisive impact on your career.

Having been an engaged student member of my own specialist international associations for the length of my doctoral studies, I would certainly recommend this as a good way of networking widely, even globally if that fits your career needs.

But for me one of the simplest but stand out features of the whole conference was having to write a letter to myself which would be posted to my home address. What would I tell my other self in three months? What was I expecting to have changed as a result of all this new knowledge gradually seeping in over time?

Nick von Behr, Doctoral Researcher, University of Kent School of Architecture, Design and Planning

When I did my Psychology undergrad here, I said I never wanted to do research because I’m an aspiring Clinical Psychologist. I never had a burning passion for any particular area of my degree. I just knew I loved clinical psychology and wanted to help people.

Then came my Masters, I met a transman friend the summer before, and I started getting interested in transgender individuals. I didn’t realise at the time, part of my interest stemmed from I was trans myself, but I didn’t know the language to describe what I had always felt.

My Masters gave me a chance to research a clinical population I was interested in, because I knew there were a lot of negative mental health outcomes for transgender individuals. Not because of them or something being “wrong” with them. That isn’t true at all. Instead, the negative outcomes come from societal and social factors typically more than the gender dysphoria itself.

This is why supporting trans people, affirming their gender identity and just being a good human being is so important.

That’s why I research transgender mental health through how Chosen Names (so how using a name that reflects your gender identity) and wearing gender-wearing clothing improves mental health. I have compassion for trans people considering how demonised, discriminated, and targeted they are in the media for no fault of their own. Trans people just want to live their lives in peace and have their gender on the outside reflect how they feel on the inside.

My research, my exploration of my own gender as non-binary and continuing to meet so many amazing trans people inspired me to keep researching and supporting trans people. I want to produce good, high-quality research that can make a positive impact on their lives. Since that’s the point of clinical psychology and my results have given me hope.

Hope for a better future where trans people can get more support, understanding and acceptance.

And that’s because of a passion for research, so if you have a passion you want to explore, don’t deny it.

Express it, enjoy it and carry it out. You never know where it’s going to lead you on your postgrad journey.

GradPost article written by Octavia Whiteley.

This summer, the Annual Postgraduate Conference returns and will exhibit exceptional work carried out by our research community at the University of Kent.

Join us on Wednesday 3 July at the Annual Postgraduate Conference to celebrate postgraduate research and our community at Kent.

This year, the Graduate and Researcher College (GRC) will be collaborating with the Division of Arts and Humanities, the Division of Computing, Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, Kent Business School and the Division of Natural Sciences to celebrate our postgraduate researcher community.

The Annual Postgraduate Conference is an excellent opportunity for all postgraduate students to attend talks, take part in interactive workshops, learn from colleagues, a chance to view research posters – there are even GRC prizes to be won too!

There will be an awards ceremony and buffet lunch provided – an excellent opportunity to network.

Further details and booking information will be shared on our Annual Postgraduate Conference webpage.

We are thrilled to announce that the GRC are now accepting articles for The GradPost Online. The GradPost Online is a publication written by postgraduates for postgraduates, to celebrate the postgraduate community at Kent. The GradPost Online serves as a valuable resource for sharing knowledge, fostering collaboration, promoting the exceptional work being done by postgraduate students at the University of Kent and celebrating their success and achievements.

We invite you to contribute to this online publication, whether you consider yourself a journalist, an artist, an expert in your field or just feel you want to share something more individual. These publications will be visible to the entire postgraduate community at Kent, and it is therefore an excellent opportunity to showcase your ideas/research/writing to a large audience.

We are eager to receive submissions from all corners of the University in a variety of formats. Whether you prefer to write an article on your research, review events/news that has interested you, celebrate yours or others postgrad successes, examine a book/film/play or art piece, we want to hear from you.

In addition to articles, we are also looking for artwork for The GradPost Online. If you are writing an article, and have some ideas for artwork too, we would love to hear from you about this. And if you would like to show off your creative style and design the cover artwork for this edition, please get in touch!

Why Contribute? We want to showcase your expertise to a broad audience. This is also a way to connect you with like-minded individuals as well as a way for your words and images to inspire and educate others.

We look forward to receiving your articles and artwork. If you have any questions, please contact the GRC and we will be happy to assist you in your queries.

Guidelines:

• Longer articles (300-350 words)
• Shorter submissions (150-200 words)
• Send artwork in PDF format.

Guideline Sidenote:

• There is a small leeway on word counts. We can support with editing if required.
• Submissions must be in line with University values and represent the postgraduate voice and experience as a whole. All submissions will be considered against this criteria.

How to Submit:

Email submissions for The GradPost Online to kentgrc@kent.ac.uk with the headline “GradPost Article” or “GradPost Artwork.”

Looking for inspiration?

Check out previous GradPost articles on our GradPost Online webpage for some topic ideas.