Category Archives: News

Events, News

PDRA Network Catch-up and Updates: ‘10 days and more …’

Are you a PDRA, RA or Research Associate looking to find out about all that is going on in researcher development at Kent? Then join us for our first face-to-face networking and update event for two years, which will be held in Cornwallis East Seminar Room 1 on Wednesday, 06 April from 10.30-11.45am.

Catch-up with coffee and cake with your peers from across the University and meet professional services colleagues working to support your professional and career development.

Learn about important developments affecting staff who research and get involved with the discussion about how to make 10 days’ professional development pro rata per year a reality at Kent.

Dr Alison Charles, Researcher Developer (Academic), said:

“This is a great opportunity to get up-to-speed with the wide-ranging work that is going on to support you, as well as to network with colleagues from beyond your Division in a relaxed environment. All PDRAs, RAs and Research Associates are very welcome, and coffee and cake etc. will be provided to enhance the conversation.”

There is no need to book but please email acresdev@kent.ac.uk to indicate your intention to join us. Thank you.

News, Training

Summer Vacation Research Competition 2022 postdoc winners announced

The Graduate and Researcher College is pleased to announce the postdoc winners of the Summer Vacation Research Competition 2022:

  • Dr Amira Abood, School of Biosciences
  • Dr Patrick Doheny, School of Physical Sciences
  • Dr Jessica Fisher, School of Anthropology and Conservation
  • Nathan Keates, Tizard Centre
  • Dr Mohammad Yasir Malik, School of Biosciences
  • Dr Manuel Marques, School of Physical Sciences
  • Dr Giuseppe Silvestri, School of Biosciences
  • Dr Brianne Wenning, Kent and Medway Medical School.

This event, now in its fifth 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 addressed a range of topical issues including ‘the nature-wellbeing relationship in the face of climate change’, ‘implications of functioning labels for autistic people’ and ‘students’ perceptions on the behavioural and social sciences in the medical curriculum’. The projects selected reflect the University’s role as a leading ‘dual intensity’ institution which equally values research and education, believing that one enhances the other, and strives to find answers to diverse challenges by exploring relevant questions for the benefit of the local, national and international communities it serves.

Dr Jennifer Leigh, the competition’s co-founder, said:

“The Summer Vacation Research Competition goes from strength to strength and this year is no exception. Our competition winners all submitted strong and compelling applications, which demonstrated how their projects will benefit all participants, as well as the wider world. The research to be undertaken aligns with all three of the University’s Signature Research Themes, with five of the projects contributing to Kent’s essential work on ‘Environment, Food Systems and Natural Resources’. I look forward to working with all involved to encourage the best possible research outcomes and project experiences.”

Now that the projects have been identified, we will soon start recruiting the second- and third-year undergraduates to carry out the research. This process is being managed by the Careers and Employability Service, and will begin on 21 March 2022. 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.

Please note that a new Summer Vacation Early Career Research Competition has just launched for eligible ECRs and Black second-year undergraduates – the closing date for ECR applications is 20 March 2022.

News

Introducing GRC Insights

The Graduate and Researcher College is delighted to announce the launch of ‘GRC Insights’. The focus of this first edition is the international postgraduate student experience here at Kent. Learn about Huda Elsherif’s fieldwork in Sudan and read the articles ‘Mixed Roots’ written by Grace Ingram and ‘Virtual Reality to Support People with Mild to Moderate Dementia in Care Homes,’ by Hiba Jawharieh. Students please check your inboxes to view the new GRC Insights publication!

In this edition, you can also learn more about upcoming events and PhD scholarships that are open to applications. Next term’s edition will focus on ‘wellbeing’. If you are a Postgraduate student that would like to share your experience of wellbeing at Kent, we would love to hear from you. Please contact us regarding anything in this edition by emailing us at KentGRC@Kent.ac.uk. We hope you enjoy reading about the fascinating work of our postgraduate students, and about the international student experience.

Funding, News, Training

Summer Vacation Early Career Research Competition 2022

Are you an Early Career Researcher (ECR)* interested in boosting your career? Would you like to support an enthusiastic and motivated Black second-year undergraduate student wishing to acquire research experience?

The Summer Vacation Early Career Research Competition is a new initiative for 2022 which has been designed to address the lack of diversity in research, a commonly recognised problem. The aim is to encourage Black undergraduates in all disciplines to consider potential postgraduate study, whilst giving ECRs the chance to run their own independent project with funding worth up to £2500 to work with an undergraduate intern for 4-7 weeks on their research.

This competition builds on the success of the University’s Summer Vacation Research Competition, which encourages Postdoctoral Research Associates, Research Assistants and Research Associates to develop their project and people management skills, and enables undergraduate students to gain valuable experience of working on real-life projects, thus learning more about the world of research whilst simultaneously enhancing their CVs.

Commenting on this innovative scheme to improve access to and participation in research, including postgraduate research for people from currently under-represented groups, Dr Jennifer Leigh, the competition’s lead organiser, said:

“Our new competition will be a win-win for both our ECRs and the undergraduates they will manage on their projects. Participation is likely to broaden their horizons and skills sets in a structured and supportive environment, and should encourage and inspire them to achieve great research outputs. I strongly encourage all eligible staff and students to apply for this interesting and rewarding opportunity which has been generously funded by Research England.”

Details of how to apply, including the application form for ECRs, are available on our ‘Internal Opportunities’ SharePoint page (Kent staff login required and VPN access if working remotely).

The closing date for ECR applications is 20 March 2022.

Good luck with your application – and please email svrc@kent.ac.uk with any queries.

* Please refer to the competition webpage for details of ECR eligibility criteria. (Postdoctoral Research Associates, Research Assistants and Research Associates are not eligible to apply for this competition but are encouraged to apply for the Summer Vacation Research Competition instead.)

News, Training

New careers guidance for staff who research

Looking to kickstart your career in 2022? Use our new Researcher Career Guidance to consider your progress to date and plan your next steps.

As part of the Graduate and Researcher College (GRC)’s ongoing work to support the professional and career development of the University’s researchers, introductory guidance has been developed on the following topics:

This information is available on the GRC’s new KentNet pages, which also signpost details of relevant training and development opportunities for staff who research.

These careers pointers should be viewed along with the professional and career development content in our new Central Researcher Induction module, which is recommended for all academic and research staff. This includes information about career planning and training frameworks, especially the Academic Career Map (ACM) and the Vitae Researcher Development Framework (RDF), together with suggestions for activities you can undertake as part of your recommended 10 days of development pro rata per year.

Other related GRC KentNet content includes a repository of current Kent resources housing recordings of previous training sessions, which can be viewed on demand, as well as new information exploring our progress to implement the Concordat principles across Kent, including that of professional and career development.

Professor Paul Allain, Dean of the Graduate and Researcher College, said:

“I hope this short and simple content will encourage you to reflect on your career journey thus far and to refocus on where you would like to go and, crucially, how you are going to get there. Use this and other relevant resources available to researchers to steer your development in the right direction.”

GRC staff will now collate content to be included in forthcoming digital ‘handbooks’ for researchers and research managers to be launched in the summer. We welcome your feedback on our new careers content and encourage you to suggest any specific topics relating to your professional and career development, which you would like us to consider covering in future outputs.

Please email acresdev@kent.ac.uk with your comments – all feedback and suggestions welcome!

News

Concordat webinar: 15 February 2022

Professor Paul Allain and Dr Alison Charles, with Divisional and central colleagues, will be holding a webinar on ‘Responding to the challenge of the Researcher Development Concordat at Kent’, on 15 February from 2-3pm.

As a signatory of the Researcher Development Concordat since June 2020, the University supports its principles as part of our commitment to create the very best culture for our researchers.

The session will consist of a short overview of the context, progress to date and our current plans, followed by a discussion and Q&A about how we might implement the Concordat principles, including 10 days’ professional development pro rata per year for staff who research.

Dr Alison Charles, Researcher Developer (Academic), said:

“Please join us to learn about the wide-ranging work which is being undertaken to realise the Concordat aims. This is also an opportunity to contribute to the debate about how best to implement the Concordat principles across Kent.”

All academic and research staff and professional services staff who support them are very welcome.

There is no need to book – access the Microsoft Teams link via SharePoint (Kent staff login required.)

We look forward to seeing you there.

News

New information about the Concordat principles at Kent

The Graduate and Researcher College (GRC) is pleased to publish expanded information about the principles of the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, which is available via our Concordat web page and new KentNet page (Kent staff login required).

The content includes a description of each Concordat principle, which is accompanied by:

  • details of recent developments
  • highlights of current work
  • practical information and links for each one.

Dr Alison Charles, Researcher Developer (Academic), said:

“Our newly released information about each Concordat principle is one example of the wide-ranging work, which is being undertaken to realise the aspirational aims of the Researcher Development Concordat. We trust this new content will further demonstrate how we are responding to the challenge of the Concordat at Kent.”

To learn more about the Researcher Development Concordat, including how we are interpreting it at Kent, please join our Concordat webinar on 15 February 2022, from 2-3pm. This will include a discussion and Q&A about how we might implement the Concordat principles, including 10 days’ professional development pro rata per year for staff who research. All staff interested in researcher development are welcome – access the Microsoft Teams link via SharePoint (Kent staff login required).

This new Concordat material is being supplemented by guidance to support your professional and career development, and details will be communicated to academic and research staff shortly. Please email acresdev@kent.ac.uk with any queries in the meantime.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

News

GRC PhD Top-Up Fund

Examples of activities that might be supported include: specialised training, the presentation of papers at national or international conferences, fieldwork or data collection costs, or visits to archives. It is not designed to cover day to day costs or research consumables.

If you would like to apply, please complete the application form.

To be eligible to apply, you must have used up all other funding available, including divisional/school PGR allocation, any scholarship RTSG funding and/or additional Covid RTSG support (offered by divisions recently). Please complete the form in discussion with you supervisor before passing it onto the PGR divisional Professional Service team for confirmation that all available funding has been utilised. Once the PGR team has provided this confirmation, it will be passed directly onto the Dean of GRC for final review/approval.

Events, News, Training

Summer Vacation Research Competition 2022 Q&A Session

Are you considering applying for the Summer Vacation Research Competition 2022 but unsure where to start? Or do you have a great idea but also practical concerns? Then come along to the Summer Vacation Research Competition 2022 Q&A Session, which will be held online on Thursday, 03 February 2022 from 1-2pm.

Participating in this competition, which is now in its fifth year, is a great way to boost your career and the initiative is being generously supported by the Careers and Employability Service, the Centre for the Study of Higher Education, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor – Research & Innovation, the Divisions, the Graduate and Researcher College, Research and Innovation Services, and the Signature Research Theme Leads. Use this virtual get-together to hear about the skills you will develop through managing your own project and intern. You’ll also discover what makes a successful submission and pick up some practical tips for your application.

Dr Jennifer Leigh, the competition’s co-founder with Dr Helen Leech, said:

“Please join us for an informal chat about how the competition works and the various ways in which participation can support your professional development. With contributions from event organisers and previous competition winners, it’s a great way to learn more about this fantastic opportunity.”

No need to book. To join the session, please access the Teams link via SharePoint (Kent staff login required).

We look forward to answering your questions at the session or please email svrc@kent.ac.uk in the meantime. (The closing date for 2022 postdoc applications is 11 February 2022.)

News

GRC Prize Winners Afternoon Tea at the Falstaff Hotel, Canterbury

Congratulations, once again to our winners of this year’s Graduate and Researcher College Prizes! The GRC prizes were created for our postgraduates and postgraduate staff members to spotlight the fantastic work that both groups undertake each year.

To celebrate our GRC Prize winners, we treated them to a ‘Winners Afternoon Tea’ hosted by Professor Paul Allain and Dr Tim Hopthrow. Meeting at the historic Falstaff Hotel in Canterbury, we certainly celebrated the success of our winners in style!

Falstaff Hotel, Canterbury

It was fantastic to see our GRC Prize Winners – thank you for joining us and for all your excellent work. We look forward to reopening the GRC Prizes next year, and to receiving your nominations.