ESRC Wales DTP Newsletter

The October 2022 edition of the ESRC Wales DTP newsletter

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October 2022

Your student reps: TBC (Aberystwyth University), TBC (Bangor University), Megan James (Cardiff Metropolitan University), Rachel Phillips and Tracey Rosell (Cardiff University), Rosie Watts (Swansea University) and Aimee Morse (University of Gloucestershire)

Induction for new students

In October, the Wales DTP held an induction for the 56 new ESRC-funded students joining us this year across our pathways. During the induction, students learnt about the opportunities open to them as an ESRC-funded student, and attended talks and discussions on getting to grips with the Master's year and how to create research impact. Presentation slides and recordings from the induction are now available via the Wales DTP Student Teams space.

Wales DTP Small Grants

Twice a year we welcome applications from ESRC Wales DTP funded students and their supervisors for small amounts of funding (up to £1,000 per application) under our Small Grants schemes. The next deadline for applications is 3 February 2023. Further information and an application form can be found on the DTP website.

ESRC Festival of Social Science

The 2022 ESRC Festival of Social Science runs from 22 October to 13 November. There are over 200 events to choose from, in a mixture of online, in-person and hybrid formats, led by 34 higher education institutions across the UK. The Festival is an annual celebration of research and knowledge about humans and society and is ESRC’s flagship public engagement initiative. A key theme as part of the 2022 Festival is ‘my local area’. These events celebrate social science research that relates to the areas in which partner institutions are based, from their social and economic history to their dialect, political landscape and high streets. However, there will also be events on a huge range of other topics relating to social science – from health and wellbeing to crime, equality, education and identity.

The full range of events is on the Festival website. For most events, a place can be booked in advance online, and all are free to attend.

Internships Information session for Wales DTP Students

In October, the Wales DTP held an online information session about the benefits of undertaking an internship and how to go about applying for one. In the session, DTP student Rosie Moore talked about her own experience of undertaking an internship with the Wales Centre for Public Policy (WCPP), and DTP Deputy Director, Dr Caroline Jones, gave advice and tips on applying. A recording of the talks and Q&A session is now available through the Wales DTP Student Teams space.

Wales DTP Postdoctoral Fellowship Opportunities

The Wales DTP is offering seven Postdoctoral Fellowships commencing in October 2023. The Fellowships last one year (or part-time equivalent) and come with a salary. They are open to applicants from across the UK who have completed a PhD within the last 12 months at an institution that is part of an ESRC DTP or CDT. Applicants will need to identify a mentor who will be a senior colleague in the research organisation that hosts the fellowship. The initial point of contact in identifying your mentor should be the convener for the pathway that best fits your proposal. For full information about the Fellowships and how to apply, visit the Wales DTP website.

The closing date for applications is 23 March 2023, and applicants should contact pathway conveners by no later than 1 February.

Engagement with Future Data Services

The ESRC’s Data & Infrastructure Team is undertaking a programme of work to make a long-term strategic decision about how to invest in ESRC’s data services infrastructure from 2024 onwards. The Future Data Services (FDS) programme is now in the stakeholder engagement phase, where the team is gathering the views and experiences of the social science community to help inform its vision. The team is running a survey which aims to capture the experiences of users of social science data (record-level data, such as survey response data, administrative records, mobile phone data, interview transcripts, etc), particularly but not exclusively using ESRC funded data services (UK Data Service, Urban Big Data Centre, Consumer Data Research Centre, etc.).

A 'Student and Early Career Researcher Users of Social Science Data workshop', will be held on 16 November. To register, and for a full list of workshops on offer, visit the Future Data Services webpage.

Dates for the Diary

November
2nd Social Network Modelling in R
2nd Introduction to quantitative time-diary analysis
8th Using Creative Research Methods
9th Trans in Translation: Multilingual practices and local/global gender and sexuality discourses in Polish transition narratives
15th Emotions and the role of reflexivity in qualitative research
16th Student and ECR Users of Social Science Data workshop
16th Collaboration and Connectivity student conference, UWE Bristol
16th It's like we are not human: Discourses of humanisation and otherness in the representation of trans identity in British newspapers
17th Time-Use Data and Research
22nd Introduction to Impact Evaluation
23rd Data Wrangling in R
29th Transparency in Qualitative Research

Keep an eye on the DTP online diary for updates

DTP Buddy Scheme

The Wales DTP Buddy Scheme places students into a buddy group which can help you get to know fellow researchers across the DTP, supporting each other through sharing best practice and discussing any issues related to your research. Students who sign up to the scheme are placed in a group according to their pathway area, and each group is ideally made up of students across a range of years of study.

Keep an eye out for more information about the Buddy Scheme and how to join it in the next edition of the newsletter.