Postgraduate researchers
York Researcher Festival
The York Researcher Festival celebrates the contribution that postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers make to research, culture and community at York. The programme is researcher-led, with the majority of sessions devised, designed and delivered by researchers - with input from academic and professional support staff. Lasting for a week and with over 20 sessions on offer, the Festival enables researchers to take stock and focus on personal goals and career aspirations, learn from each other and academic staff and develop and enhance skills. In 2022 over 400 researchers took part and gave an overall satisfaction rating of 93%; 95% would recommend the event.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Research and teaching staff Managers of researchers
Stakeholders: Researchers Professional staff
Concordat principles: Environment and culture Professional and career development
Keywords: Training Professional development Research culture
The Assistant Supervisor role: enabling and recognising PGR supervision by research staff
The Assistant Supervisor role at Queen’s University Belfast enables the official appointment of postdoctoral researchers involved in supervising PhDs alongside academics, within healthy boundaries set to manage their level of responsibility and workload. For recognition, they get an appointment letter and are added to the students' system. They learn by doing, through mentoring and workshops. The role is popular across disciplines and feedback from postdocs, students and academic supervisors has been positive. Some Assistant Supervisors have received Postdoc Awards and/or AF-HEA as a result.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Managers of researchers
Stakeholders: Researchers Managers of researchers Professional staff Senior/executive team
Concordat principles: Environment and culture Professional and career development
Keywords: Mentorship Career development Supervision Recognition
Integrated Knowledge Translation Toolkit for Open Research
The Integrated
Knowledge Translation (IKT) is an approach to knowledge translation that emphasises
working in an engaged and collaborative partnership with stakeholders
throughout the research cycle in order to have positive real-world impact.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Research and teaching staff Clinicians Managers of researchers Professional support staff
Stakeholders: Researchers Professional staff
Concordat principles: Environment and culture Professional and career development
Keywords: Citizen Participation Education Participatory Planning Collaboration Inclusion
Early career research conference in the School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences
We wanted to reinvigorate our early career research (ECR) community
after the detrimental impact of lockdown. We hosted a whole school conference
for ECRs which included short ‘blitz’ and longer research talks, giving ECRs
valuable experience and CV material. It also included a ‘Dragons Den’ style
grant application process, where pre-written grant applications were critiqued
by senior leadership (‘Dragons’) and then defended by the applicants in a panel
interview. The event was an enormous success and reached capacity for
attendance. Four novel projects were created and sustained to this day.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Research and teaching staff Teaching-only staff
Stakeholders: Researchers Managers of researchers
Concordat principles: Environment and culture Professional and career development
Keywords: ECR Career development Professional development Research identity Research culture Career progression Equality, diversity and inclusion Wellbeing Researcher voice Working conditions Leadership development Research assessment Recognition Community building Multidisciplinary Grants Conference Dragon's Den
Kingston University's 'Rise' Research Leadership Academy
The Kingston University’s Rise Research
Leadership Academy programme runs on Wednesday lunchtimes from January to June.
The content of the programme is designed to align with Kingston University’s
commitment to the national Concordat framework. Each week a series of 16 core
lectures was delivered by esteemed research leaders from across Kingston
University’s faculties and research disciplines. Action learning set (peer
mentorship) group work and individual peer mentorship activities are also
integral to the Academy.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Research and teaching staff Clinicians Managers of researchers Professional support staff
Stakeholders: Researchers Managers of researchers Professional staff Senior/executive team Funders
Concordat principles: Environment and culture Professional and career development
Keywords: Training Professional development Research identity Research culture Career progression Equality, diversity and inclusion Research integrity Researcher voice Career management Diverse careers Leadership development Research assessment Recognition
Skill-up! Research Skills Development Fund
The Skill-up! Research Skills Development Fund at the University of
Hertfordshire promotes bespoke researcher development through a researcher-led
mechanism for managing and distributing funding. It enables researchers to
apply for training that is not offered within the university, through a
competitive application process. Early career researcher (ECR) representatives
from each School work together to design the process, assess the bids and
distribute the funding. The scheme is well received by researchers and provides
a useful developmental opportunity for the ECR representatives.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Research and teaching staff Managers of researchers Professional support staff
Stakeholders: Professional staff Senior/executive team
Concordat principles: Environment and culture Professional and career development
Keywords: Research culture Training
Module on the Researcher Development Concordat
This open-access
development module explores the Principles of the Concordat and the
resulting responsibilities for staff. The module serves to foster conversations
that nurture a positive and inclusive culture in which researchers take
responsibility for the development of their personal and professional practice.
As role-related training, the module will be available to new and existing
staff as needed, allowing them to refresh their understanding of the Researcher
Development Concordat.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Research and teaching staff Teaching-only staff Technicians Clinicians Managers of researchers Professional support staff
Stakeholders: Researchers Managers of researchers Professional staff Senior/executive team
Concordat principles: Environment and culture Employment Professional and career development
Keywords: Training Professional development Research identity Research culture Induction Career progression Policy Equality, diversity and inclusion Research integrity Wellbeing Researcher voice Bullying and harassment Flexible working Job security Working conditions Performance management Career management Diverse careers Leadership development Research assessment Recognition Open Transparent and Merit-based (OTM) recruitment and progression
Researcher Development Roadmap for Researchers
The Academy’s Researcher Development Roadmap (RD Roadmap) provides diverse opportunities for
research and research-related staff to create bespoke development pathways in
support of their professional practice. The searchable RD Roadmap has been
designed for individuals to navigate the wealth of online content available in
a range of accessible formats to support career development and progression.
The RD Roadmap is updated on a regular basis and is designed around 4 key
topics: Career Confidence and Progression; Engagement and Influence; Research
Impact; and Personal Effectiveness.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Research and teaching staff Teaching-only staff Technicians Clinicians Managers of researchers Professional support staff
Stakeholders: Researchers Managers of researchers Professional staff
Concordat principles: Environment and culture Employment Professional and career development
Keywords: Training Professional development Research identity Research culture Career progression Policy Equality, diversity and inclusion Research integrity Wellbeing Researcher voice Performance management Career management Diverse careers Leadership development Research assessment Recognition
Advancing in Academia - Career Planning and Thinking for PGRs and Research Staff
'Advancing in Academia' at King’s College London (KCL) is a four-week blended learning course for PGRs (doctoral researchers) and Research Staff who are considering or planning a career in academia. The course is designed and run in partnership with the researcher careers team at KCL and the College Centre for Doctoral Studies. The most recent version, in 2022, was run for people with dual academic and clinical careers. The course has run since 2017 focussing on different academic disciplines each time, and in 2022 it focussed specifically on clinical academics. Although the general principles described below apply to all iterations, the course run in 2022 represented the most challenging and also the most rewarding.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Research and teaching staff Clinicians Managers of researchers
Stakeholders: Researchers Managers of researchers Professional staff
Concordat principles: Employment Professional and career development
Keywords: Training Professional development Research identity Research culture Career progression Equality, diversity and inclusion Career management Diverse careers Clinical
Research and Knowledge Exchange Development Framework
The Research and Knowledge Exchange Development Framework (RKEDF) aims to ensure Bournemouth University researchers have access to the support required to make a step change in their research activity and performance, strengthening the opportunities for career progression, retention of high-performing staff, and acceleration of research income. The RKEDF offers a range of standalone workshops, structured courses, and online resources. These are delivered by BU staff with topic expertise or external facilitators. In addition to many individual events, the RKEDF includes several targeted and cohort-based courses each year.
Beneficiaries: Research staff Postgraduate researchers Research and teaching staff Managers of researchers
Stakeholders: Researchers Managers of researchers Professional staff Senior/executive team
Concordat principles: Professional and career development
Keywords: Training Professional development Research culture Career progression Leadership development Recognition