Whatever your discipline, poster presentations are a powerful and widely used means of disseminating research in both academic and non-academic contexts. Distilling your research into a poster that is engaging and visually appealing is an excellent way to stretch your creativity and demonstrate the impact of your work.

You are warmly invited to showcase your research in our Poster Presentation Competition at our Postgraduate Festival launch on Monday 18 June 2018 in the Sibson building, Canterbury campus.

If you wish to display your poster please contact Felicity Clifford, Postgraduate Experience Officer at f.clifford-254@kent.ac.uk. In your email please state the following information:

• Your full name and subject of study
• School/faculty and supervisor name
• Title of poster
• Whether you are attending the PG Festival launch event (attendance is not required, however you will not be eligible for our event poster competition).

Poster Guidelines

• Only one poster allowed per entrant. Posters must relate to an aspect of the entrant’s research.
• Posters can be landscape or portrait orientation.
• Printed posters do not have to be laminated.
• Entrants attending the PG Festival launch event must set up their poster presentation between 11:00 and 12noon on the day.
• Entrants attending the PG Festival launch event must present their poster to fellow students and judges throughout the PG Festival networking lunch.

Judging Criteria

• Posters will be assessed according to two criteria:
• Poster design – presentation and visual communication
• Research content – how easily this can be understood by non-subject specialists

The University of Kent has been shortlisted in both the Postgraduate and International categories of the Whatuni Student Choice Awards (WUSCAs) 2018. The WUSCAs celebrate the best in higher education, and universities are selected based on student feedback submitted via Whatuni.com. This year marks the awards fifth year, and the winners will be announced in April 2018.

Congratulations to the University of Kent for being shortlisted for two of the fifteen categories!

Read the news article here: https://www.kent.ac.uk/news/kentlife/17324/university-shortlisted-for-two-student-choice-awards

Deborah Molloy, a member of the Graduate School team, has been named the International Women’s Day competition winner by the Transatlantic Literary Women team for her ‘fascinating and informative piece on Canadian author, Margaret Atwood.’

You can read the official announcement and Deborah’s piece here: https://transatlanticladies.wordpress.com/2018/03/08/international-womens-day-competition-winner/

Deborah joined the Graduate School in November 2014 and began a part-time PhD in 20th Century American Women’s Literature in September. Congratulations to Deborah on this accomplishment from the Graduate School team!

The second round of the Postgraduate Experience Award is now open for this academic year.  If you have an idea for an event or project which will share your expertise to build the postgraduate community then now is the time to submit an application.  Funding is available, up to £1500, to cover materials, room hire, publicity etc.  If you need a little inspiration take a look at the webpage for details of previous winning projects.

The deadline is Thursday 29th March, for project to take place during the summer.

More details and the application form are available here

Paul Allain, Dean of the Graduate School, recently visited the University of Kent at Athens to welcome the new cohort of MA in Heritage Management students in Elefsina. In addition to extending a warm welcome to the students at their induction, the dean gave a lecture on his latest research, spoke with students about the specifics of their course and detailed the various means of support provided by the Graduate School to all Kent postgraduates.

“I was pleased to see what a diverse international cohort we have from a range of backgrounds and experiences…it was very helpful to see the centre and the facilities as well as the nearby historic excavation site and ruins.”

To find out more about what is offered by the University of Kent at Athens, please visit: https://www.kent.ac.uk/locations/athens/

Congratulations go to Rev Norma Stewart, after successfully defending her thesis.  Full details of her achievement against the odds can be found here

The Kent Tree Ogham Trail, a Postgraduate Experience Award project led by Joana Canelas, will be opened this weekend.  This is a new nature trail around campus, inviting walkers to consider the ancient significance of the tree species we have around us.

The Tree Ogham is an ancient bardic alphabet where each letter is named after a tree.  During this open weekend the team will ask why trees are so important to us, walking through their stories, flavours and shapes to discover the ethnobotany, ecology and folklore of our Ogham trees.

Walks along the trail will start at 2pm on Saturday and Sunday, meeting at the Labyrinth beside Eliot on Saturday, and behind the School of Arts on Sunday.  Warm clothing and outdoor footwear is advisable.  Jams, teas and cordials will be available along the way.

Deborah Molloy, a member of the Graduate School team, has been awarded the Elsa Nettels Prize for a Beginning Scholar from the Edith Wharton Society. She won the prize for her paper entitled: “In the Cave of the Oracle: Feminine Tragedy in The House of Mirth and Mrs Manstey’s View.” In addition to winning the £250 prize, the essay will be considered for publication in the Edith Wharton Review. Deborah begins a part-time PhD in 20th Century American Women’s Literature in September 2017, and the Graduate School would like to congratulate Deborah on this incredible accomplishment as she continues her postgraduate education!

The Dean of the Graduate School, Professor Paul Allain, is delighted that the university has been awarded Gold in the UK Government’s Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF). He commented that he was very pleased to hear that although the TEF focused on undergraduate experience exclusively, postgraduate Master’s students are also being taught in such a positive well resourced environment by staff with excellent teaching abilities.

More on the story is available here.

Congratulations to Ruth Augur, the winner of the first Graduate School Prize for Public Engagement.  After a hotly-contested public vote, Ruth was awarded the £400 prize to carry out her project, which will involve working closely with the Canterbury-based charity, Catching Lives, to create and restore a garden plot for the homeless to nurture, develop, and enjoy.

Professor Paul Allain hosted the event on Thursday evening, which gave three University of Kent PhD students the opportunity to showcase their work.  They each identified a topical social issue and gave their proposed solution to the problem.  Forty members of the public attended to discuss the potential merits and difficulties of each solution with the students over coffee, tea and cake in the beautiful La Trappiste in central Canterbury.  They then had the opportunity to vote on which proposal they thought had the greatest potential to make an impact.

Hannah Newman (an interdisciplinary PhD in the Schools of Arts and Psychology)presented on autism and discussed how drama can be a powerful and positive tool in the growth and development of autistic children.  Surej Mouli (a PhD in the School of Computing) spoke about the uses of medical robotics. Ruth Augur (a PhD in the School of Anthropology and Conservation) discussed homelessness in Canterbury.  They all spoke very well about their research, but there could be only one winner.

One of the aims of the competition was to introduce the University of Kent to local residents, by demonstrating the real world impact of academic research and to empower the public to feel that they can influence the future of research.  The entire event was the brainchild of Kent PhD student Laura Thomas-Walters, who submitted her original idea to the Postgraduate Experience Award panel, and went on to plan the whole thing  – well done Laura!