Copy
Research Futures Academy Newsletter 
February 2020
View this email in your browser
Calling all academic staff and postgraduate research students at Heriot-Watt University!
 
Looking to develop your research ideas and further your career? Wondering how to widen your professional network and make links across other disciplines? Aspiring to enhance your research-related skills and make the most of training opportunities at HWU?
 
Successful researchers at all stages of their careers will devote some of their time to CPD – continuous professional development.  Why not follow their lead and make space in your diary over the next weeks to focus on your own training and development? Whether you are just starting out on your research as a new PhD student (sign up for the Getting Started programme), preparing to go to your next conference (try the Designing effective slides webinar), looking to win additional research funding (e.g. courses on Getting grant funding and Managing a research grant), wanting to more effectively promote your research outputs (Getting cited and Communicate with impact) or considering your various career options (e.g. Career management beyond academia), there are free courses on the Research Futures staff and student programmes you can register for via our online booking system, PDMS. 
 
Particular highlights coming up this coming month include, the Seven Secrets of Highly Successful Research Students workshops for staff and students on 28 February 2020 and the new Ethics Briefing for academic staff on 19 March 2020.
 
And why not register to attend the University’s Inaugural Lectures delivered by new Professors and organised by the Research Futures Academy (register for a free ticket at: www.eventbrite.co.uk)? Plus come along to the final of our Three Minute Thesis competition where 18 of our top PhD students will each showcase their research in just 3 minutes. 
 
More details of these and other development opportunities for the research community at Heriot-Watt University are presented within this edition of the RFA Newsletter.  And if you supervise PhD students or manage research staff, please encourage them to consider their professional development plans too.
 
We look forward to seeing you soon!
 
To request a place and for more details on our 2020 workshops as they are announced see our online booking system PDMS .
Share
Tweet
Forward
Share

Research Futures Academy:
Postgraduate Researcher Programme


Getting Started series for new PGR students


This series is tailored specifically for new PGR students starting their research degree – please advise any new students in your group to attend to develop key skills they require at this stage of their research degree (NB. Students at all stages can attend). Dates below are for Edinburgh campus – please check PDMS for dates available at our other campuses.

Introduction to critical thinking – Thursday 27 February 2020– 09.30-12.30
Strategic reading of the literature (ONLINE) – enrol by Monday 2 March 2020 – 11.00
Essential skills for researchers – Tuesday 10 March 2020– 13.30-15.30
Citing and referencing (ONLINE) – enrol by Monday 16 March 2020– 11.00
Managing your research data (ONLINE) – enrol by Monday 23 March 2020– 11.00
 

*Not to be missed* 7 Secrets of Highly Successful Research Students – Friday 28 February 2020– 13.15-16.15 

 

Limited places are left for Hugh Kearns’ popular lecture on the 7 Secrets of Highly Successful Research Students. Based in Australia, Hugh is an internationally recognised expert in self-management, work-life balance and creativity.  He has more than 25 years’ experience in training and professional development over multiple sectors. Book now to avoid disappointment.

Applying Critical Thinking to Your Own Research Thursday 27 Feb 2020 13.00-15.45
This workshop focuses on the implementation of critical thinking in your own research, using practical resources to help you.


*NEW* Designing effective slides (WEBINAR) – Tuesday 3 March 2020 – 10.00-11.00
Learn how to design clean and simple slides to support your presentations in this short webinar.  Most of us use slides in our presentations, whether these are for short departmental meetings or major presentations at international conferences. Using lots of examples, the workshop facilitator, Allan Gaw, will introduce delegates to the acronym SWIPE and show how its component parts can be used to help us design clean, simple slides that will serve us best as great visual aids. If you are completely new to making slides, or if you feel that that slides you have been making for the last twenty years could be better, you will find this workshop useful and relevant to your work.
 

Career Management: Careers Beyond Academia Thursday 5 March 2020 13.15-16.15
There are a number of options outside academia open to PhD graduates. Not everyone chooses to climb the academic ladder and throughout your PhD you will have developed a number of key skills that can be utilised in a variety of other positions. This workshop aims to highlight a number of careers outside academia and to explore what particular options might be compatible to you.  The workshop will include overviews of different job types, case studies of researchers who have moved into different careers and provide resources to help you explore your options. You will also undertake exercises to help you reflect on your own skills and experience, to enable you to communicate these effectively in written applications and interviews.

Keep checking back on PDMS as well as our External Opportunities webpage for more opportunities.  We tap into wide and varied networks to keep you updated about other events, training and funding you can access to enhance your skills and career development.

Research Futures Academy:
Academic CPD

This year we have introduced a brand new academic CPD programme for aspiring and established academic research leaders called ‘Supporting our Researchers’.  This provides new opportunities on grant writing, publishing and improving citations, managing a grant and research group, public engagement, PhD supervision and growing your influence. 

Getting Grant Funding

On Wednesday 26 February 2020 we will run Getting Grant Funding: Budgeting and Costing your Proposal.  Come along to hear specialist advice from the Research Development team, as they take you through the process for costing up your proposals and developing your research plan.  This interactive session will also include activities to provide you with practical experience in costing a proposal.

Also on Wednesday 4 March 13.00 - 14.30 we will run Getting Grant Funding: introduction to Research Engagement.  This short introductory session will give researchers an overview of the HWU Research Engagement Directorate, within the new Research Engagement Hub. The session specifically covers how the Research Development Team support researchers from grant application preparation to submission. This includes a short presentation on funding database 'Research Professional' and a practical 'how to' guide to 'Worktribe.' The session is relatively informal with plenty of opportunity to ask questions.

Tick Tock , Time Management for Researchers (Online) - Thursday 27 February 2020 10.00 - 11.00  

Conducting research requires us to assume many roles - administrator, manager, technician, IT specialist, statistician, writer - all of which are often piled on top of other tasks, maybe even a whole other job. How can we manage this process effectively and bring a research project to a successful conclusion?  With the clock ticking, we only have one choice and that is to get organised. However, that's easier said than done, especially if you are new to research or you have many professional commitments. This online session will teach the basics of effective time management and how to apply these principles.

*NEW* Designing effective slides (WEBINAR) – Tuesday 3 March 2020 – 10.00-11.00


Learn how to design clean and simple slides to support your presentations in this short webinar.  Most of us use slides in our presentations, whether these are for short departmental meetings or major presentations at international conferences. Using lots of examples, the workshop facilitator, Allan Gaw, will introduce delegates to the acronym SWIPE and show how its component parts can be used to help design clean, simple slides as great visual aids. If you are completely new to making slides, or if you feel that that slides you have been making for the last twenty years could be better, you will find this workshop useful and relevant to your work.

Career Management: Careers Beyond Academia Thursday 5 March 2020 13.15-16.15

There are a number of options outside academia open to PhD graduates. Not everyone chooses to climb the academic ladder and throughout your PhD you will have developed a number of key skills that can be utilised in a variety of other positions. This workshop aims to highlight a number of careers outside academia and to explore what particular options might be compatible to you.  The workshop will include overviews of different job types, case studies of researchers who have moved into different careers and provide resources to help you explore your options. You will also undertake exercises to help you reflect on your own skills and experience, to enable you to communicate these effectively in written applications and interviews.

*NEW* Promoting your work: Getting cited Thursday 12 March 2020 12.00-13.00 Part of the
Research Futures Academy's brand-new academic CPD programme, 'Supporting our Researchers'. This workshop has been developed to provide academic and research staff with the latest advice and tactics for promoting your work, to ensure you become a highly cited researcher.  It will also include a round table discussion on how to raise your profile, using the many tools available, to help increase your citations.The workshop will be led by an internal expert, Linda Kerr and academic lead, Prof. Vicki Stone.

*NEW* Heriot-Watt University Ethics Briefing Thursday 19 March 2020 10:15-11:15

This brand-new workshop has been designed to cover the essential information on ethical responsibilities and specific Heriot-Watt University policy and procedures.

Save the date - *NEW* Managing a Research Grant:Research Contracts to Benefit You-  25 March 12.30-13.30. 

Come along to find out about the legal aspects of managing a contract with different funders.  Booking opening soon.

 

Book for all of these sessions on PDMS where we will also advertise any new opportunities.  

Last minute places available for PhD Students and Supervisors


What do doctoral students do to finish on time, to overcome isolation, doubt and writer’s block, and to enjoy the process? And just as importantly what do they do in order to spend guilt-free time with their family and friends and perhaps even have holidays? If this sounds appealing, then this session will be of particular use to you.
This workshop describes the key habits that our research and experience with thousands of student’s shows will make a difference to how quickly and easily you complete your PhD. Just as importantly, these habits can greatly reduce the stress and increase the pleasure involved in completing a doctorate.
 

Aims and objectives


The workshop helps you to understand how to increase your effectiveness and outcomes in the following key areas:
  • how you deal with your supervisor
  • how you structure your study time
  • your attitude (or lack thereof!) in relation to your research
  • dealing with writer’s block or having difficulty writing
  • getting the help you need when you are stuck
  • juggling multiple commitments and never having enough time
  • keeping on going when the going gets tough
PhD Supervisors Workshop Friday 28 February 2020 09.15-12.15
PhD Student Workshop Friday 28 February 2020 13.15-16.15


Both sessions to be streamed live to Orkney and Scottih Borders campuses

To book and for further information see PDMS
 

Public Engagement Development Opportunities for Researchers

 

Communicate with Impact: for Researchers - Monday 24 February 2020 10.00 - 12.00

This interactive and applied workshop helps researchers ‘connect the dots’ between effective communications, successful funding applications, societal impact and career success. Researchers learn impactful communication tools and techniques used in academia, business and the dramatic arts. You can then apply the tools to your own research, crafting compelling communications for a range of audiences. You will also be able to practice communicating your research and why it matters, through the use of storytelling, metaphors, shared experiences and without confusing jargon in order to quickly connect with all types of audiences.
 

Let’s Get Hands On - Wednesday 4 Mar 2020 12.00-14.00

How can you develop hands-on, participatory activities to explore your research and spark meaningful conversations with diverse audiences? Join this workshop with the award-winning public engagement consultant Lewis Hou to develop ideas to "gamify" your research in time for Edinburgh Science Festival.

To book and for further information see PDMS


Research Futures Academy is delighted to announce the Heriot-Watt University 3 Minute Thesis (3MT) Final Competition will be held on Thursday 2 April 2020 10.00 - 13.00.

3 Minute Thesis is an exciting global academic competition celebrating the innovative research undertaken by PGR students, which was originally developed by the University of Queensland, Australia. 3MT participants present their research to a non-specialist audience in just 3 minutes using one slide, developing students’ academic, presentation and communication skills.  18 of our students will be taking part in the Heriot-Watt final with the winner progressing to the UK semi-final.

Booking will open soon via PDMS 
 
Other Opportunities
Every year the RSE offers early career engineers the opportunity to apply for John Moyes Lessells Travel Scholarships, so they can pursue a 2-6 month research project of their own choosing with a collaborator from another country. All areas of engineering are considered, including computer programming and software developing.

Value
Successful awardees will receive up to £1,250 a month during their visit
 
Eligibility of applicants
These Scholarships are open to individuals who are pursuing their PhD or postdoctoral research and/or are already in employment, but wish to pursue a research project to further their Engineering career.
 
To be eligible for the scholarship, you must have Graduated with Honours or Higher Degree in Engineering from a Scottish Higher Education institution (HEI), or be currently pursuing PhD research in Engineering at a Scottish HEI.
 
Deadline
The deadline for applications is 5th March at 5pm. For more information and how to apply, please visit the RSE website.
 

 



The UK council for Graduate Education offers resources and development opportunities to support the postgraduate community.  Their mission is to champion and enhance postgraduate education by providing world-class learning and professional development events, commissioning cutting-edge research, sharing best-practice developments and peer-to-peer learning opportunities, and making policy recommendations to promote a strong and sustainable postgraduate sector.

Forthcoming opportunities:
Safeguarding Researchers: Preparing & Supporting PGR Fieldwork — 18 March 2020. University of Glasgow
7th International Conference on Professional & Practice-Based Doctorates— 31 March 2020. York Racecourse, York, UK.

For more information and how to apply visit:

UKCGE Events Programme
 

IP for Research - Live Lecture
Thursday 2 April 2020 14.30 - 16.00


Bookings for the IP for research live lecture are now open. The booking form is here: https://www.vitae.ac.uk/events/ip-for-research-events/booking-form
 
Open to anyone interested in learning the basics of IP for researchers, from PhD candidates, to postdocs, to those who support researchers. Participants just need a secure internet connection, an internet enabled device, and a quiet location from which to listen in. The session is free to join but the log in details will only be provided to those who register using the link above.
 

 
 

European Crucible

Luxembourg, 6-7 May 2020

Creating a new interdisciplinary Scottish–European Network of Research Leaders

Calling early/mid-career research leaders from life, physical, engineering, computational, mathematical, environmental and social sciences, arts and humanities in Scotland and Europe.

On behalf of Scottish Crucible, the University of Luxembourg, Scottish Research Pools and partner institutions, you are cordially invited to apply for a place on the forthcoming ‘European Crucible’ which will gather Scottish future research leaders with their counterparts from across Europe.

This European Crucible will stimulate new international research collaborations between Scottish and European researchers. The meeting will create a new network for research leaders between Scotland and Europe, and enable international collaboration on interdisciplinary research and innovation topics with additional engagement with policy-makers and industry. This first European Crucible event will have an emphasis on innovative collaborations at the interfaces between Life Sciences and other disciplines.

The two-day event is an intensive, interactive, workshop for selected participants, each day comprising a range of inspiring speakers, collaborative discussions, site visits and networking sessions. The expert facilitator is writer and broadcaster Vivienne Parry, OBE, a UKRI Board member; keynote speakers include Prof Rory Duncan, Director of Talent and Skills, UKRI.

This inaugural European Crucible event is organised by the Research Futures Academy of Heriot-Watt University (home of Scottish Crucible), and the University of Luxembourg on behalf of the network of Scottish Research Pools and their institutional partners. Research Pooling has created research alliances of Scottish universities and research institutes with the aim of enhancing world class research competitiveness and advanced training through strategic cooperation.

The deadline for applications from academic staff based in Scotland is 10:00am on Monday 9 March 2020

For more information and guidance on how to apply visit
https://scottishcrucible.org.uk/european-crucible/
 
Research Futures Academy contact details
 
If you’d like to contact us, please email or telephone as shown below or pop in to the new Research Engagement Hub in the Hugh Nisbet building to see us.  We look forward to hearing from you!  

 
Email:
ResearchFutures@hw.ac.uk - for general enquiries
ScottishCrucible@hw.ac.uk - for enquiries about Scottish Crucible programme

EuropeanCrucible@hw.ac.uk - for enquiries about European Crucible 2020
 
 
Telephone:  0131 451 3789






This email was sent to <<Email Address>>
why did I get this?    unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences
Centre for Academic Leadership and Development · Lord Balerno Building · Heriot-Watt University · Edinburgh, EH14 4AS · United Kingdom

Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp