The Crew is a new group for thinkers who want to challenge traditional thinking strategies! For this reason, The Critical Challenge, funded by the Graduate School, promises to deliver a fun and dynamic afternoon at Kent!

The challenge is for Masters and PhD students at the University of Kent, taking place at 2pm on the 19^th of September in Keynes Lecture Theatre 4.

During the event you will be meeting and networking with new creatives, rebels, explorers and well-reasoners, while working in teams and developing your own critical thinking skills – thinking skills that are important not only for your academic success but also for your future career!

During the event there will be free refreshments available, and for those who register and attend the event you will receive a free t-shirt for daring to #JoinTheCrew!

You can register to attend this FREE event by visiting jointhecrewsite.wordpress.com

Special note: There are limited spaces available, so please register to #JoinTheCrew early to avoid disappointment.

Want to write but feeling unmotivated, or have writer’s block?  Come along to Shut Up and Write!  Graduate School Training Room, 2.30 – 4.30, 27th July 2016.

The idea behind Shut Up and Write is that you bring your notes and writing implements (whether pen and paper or laptop), and write in focused, concentrated bursts with short breaks for chats and refreshments.  It’s a great way to get writing!  Even if you edit your words “into oblivion” later (to quote Hannah Perrin, 2014), it’s a great way to be inspired and to feel gratified by the achievement of getting words on paper.

Our rules are:

• Mobile phones must be switched off and stashed away!
• Wifi/Internet access must be switched off.
• Silence during writing.

Come along, get your ideas down on paper, and feel fabulous!  Any queries please contact skills@kent.ac.uk.

The Autumn 2016 issue will have dual themes, welcoming new postgraduates to Kent and exploring creativity.

The editors, Lucy Farndale and Mylene Branco, are looking for the following contributions:

• Articles written on the topic of “Creativity in Academia” (600 – 800 words)
• Articles introducing your School, or any project or research which you have been involved in with your School (300-500 words)
• Any ideas from all disciplinary or personal perspectives. If you feel  you have something novel or interesting to contact, please do get in touch.

Please submit all ideas for articles by Monday 11th July, emailed to lf294@kent.ac.uk. If your idea is chosen you must follow these submission guidelines:

• Article titles should be short and snappy, with a subtitle
• The style should be as accessible as possible, avoid jargon
• Include a word count, your name, course studied, school and campus at the end of the piece
• Submit it in.docx format
• Include an image to go with the article, this must have a DPI value of 300+ and any necessary credits
• Submit by the 24th July at the latest to lf294@kent.ac.uk

Lucy and Mylene look forward to hearing from you!

www.kent.ac.uk/graduateschool/news/gradpost.html

The Postgraduate Student Surveys are your chance to provide valuable feedback on your academic experiences at Kent.

We want to hear what you have enjoyed, areas in which the University has done well and where you think improvements might be made.

All participants will receive a £10 Amazon voucher code! 

The PG Student Surveys close on Thursday 16th June so you have one day to complete the survey and claim your £10 Amazon voucher if you haven’t already done so.  You will be emailed directly with your own link to the survey to please check your emails

The postgraduate Student Surveys are your chance to provide valuable feedback on your academic experiences at Kent.

We want to hear what you have enjoyed, areas in which the University has done well and where you think improvements might be made.

All participants will receive a £10 Amazon voucher code!

Please check your emails as you will be emailed directly about completing the survey, and see https://www.kent.ac.uk/graduateschool/pgsurveys.html for more information.

Our annual Postgraduate Festival was a big success. We would like to thank all the participants from across the faculties who came to showcase their research, it was a fascinating day.

For the attention of (FAO):  2nd and 3rd year PhD students

^9th Cumberland Lodge Doctoral Students Conference, 30^th August – 2nd September 2016

The Graduate School is pleased to be able to offer one funded place at the above conference for a second or third year doctoral student.  Please see further details here: www.cumberlandlodge.ac.uk/PhD

The conference is open to students of all disciplines at any stage in their doctorate, and is designed to help both those embarking on doctorates and those considering what they will do in the longer term. During the conference, students will:

• explore common concerns
• have opportunities to present their research to those in different disciplines and institutions
• engage with those with doctorates with careers within and outside the academic world.
• receive training in communication and successful application writing

Students will also have the unique experience of staying at Cumberland Lodge, a charitable foundation with over sixty years’ experience of working with students from across the world, and which each year hosts approximately 180 academic visits from universities across Britain.

The Graduate School is offering one funded place, to a second or third year PhD student, in single accommodation which includes all meals and refreshments.  We will also refund reasonable travelling expenses to and from the Lodge i.e. rail or mileage from Kent or the South East.

If you are interested in attending this event please email Carla Doolan, Postgraduate Development Coordinator at skills@kent.ac.uk by 5pm, Friday 27th May, explaining briefly what you would hope to gain from the experience.  Applications will then be considered by the Dean of the Graduate School.

There will be a Research Cafe taking place at the following times, at the Canterbury Campus, in the Graduate School Training Room, Cornwallis East, 3rd floor:

Wednesday 18th May, 10-11am

Tuesday 31st May 10-11:30am

Coffee/tea and biscuits provided.

Each café features one or two 20 minute talks from postgraduate researchers from different disciplines, with a chance to ask questions, debate and network.  If you would like to contribute, or have and idea/theme in mind for an upcoming Research Café session, please contact Hannah Huxley at: hh318@kent.ac.uk.

The 2016 Postgraduate Festival is taking place on Friday 20th May in Woolf and promises to be a great celebration of postgraduate research at Kent.

The Festival will feature a BBC style ‘Question time’ with a panel of top Kent academics, so if you have a question on any topic relating to academic study then register online now to submit your question!

If your question is chosen, you will be asked to deliver the question to the panel, BBC style, on the day.  Register here:http://www.kent.ac.uk/graduateschool/news/pgfestival-presenters-registration.html

The Cumberland Lodge Scholarship is a two year programme for doctoral students studying at universities in the UK, designed to fit around their studies.

The scholarship offers a unique opportunity for students from any discipline to develop skills in communication, public engagement and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Six scholarships are available each year and applications are now invited for the third group of scholars, to start in September 2016.

The closing date for applications is 12 May 2016.  Shortlisted candidates will be notified by 26 May 2016 and interviewed by Skype on 8 June 2016.

For further information and application form please visit: www.cumberlandlodge.ac.uk/scholarships2016