From academic year 2020/21, the Graduate School will become the Graduate and Researcher College (GRC). This will build on the Graduate School’s previous decade of successful activity (it was founded in 2008), focused until now on postgraduate students, both taught and research Master’s and PhD, and their supervisors. The GRC will have an expanded remit to support students and also staff across the whole academic career span, including but not only our Early Career Research Staff. It will play a lead role in implementing the principles of the new Researcher Development Concordat, ensuring that researchers will be ‘equipped and supported to be adaptable and flexible in an increasingly diverse global environment and employment market.’ It will aim to improve induction, training and guidance for our research staff, particularly Early Career Research Staff who have been identified as ‘falling between the cracks’. By joining up PhD support with that for academic research staff, we will be able to encourage greater collaboration, ensure strong research management and leadership, assist staff through a range of mechanisms, and improve our research ambition.
In order to achieve this plan, the Graduate School has been reviewing its activities and focus, whilst ensuring it can work effectively across and with Divisions and the newly formed Research and Innovation Services. The Graduate School is drawing on views gathered through a commissioned report, focused surveys and in particular the Careers in Research Online Survey, networking lunches for our Early Career Research Staff and a forum which welcomed a wide range of academic and professional services staff and managers from across the university. We are now ready to take our plans forward and involve you all in this exciting endeavour.
Professor Paul Allain
Dean of the Graduate and Researcher College