Institute for Academic Development

University of Edinburgh

Preparing Future Academics

Jon Turner, Sheila Thompson, Gail

Honeyman, Miesbeth Knottenbelt
and Mary Bownes
Vice Principal Research Training,
University of Edinburgh
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

• Our view of the professional development

requirements of future academics
• Evidence of needs from PRES
• Approach to support at the University of
Edinburgh
• Examples of support at the University of
Edinburgh
• Principal’s Career Development Scheme
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

Professional Development
Requirements for Future Academics
• Research capability, creativity and originality
• Innovative
• Leadership and effective use of networks
• Teaching expertise and experience
• Knowledge Exchange, (possible business knowledge)
• Other high level professional skills e.g. communication
to a wide variety of audiences, management,
independence, finance, applying successfully for
funding, supervision of students and staff, team
working, course development, collaboration skills
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh
Evidence
• Everything we do should be evidence-based where possible

Examples of Evidence
• PRES results
• CROS results
• EU Charter and Code
• BIS – One Step Beyond: Making the most of postgraduate
education sector
• QAA Revised Code of Practice
• Vitae Researcher Development Framework
• UUK 2009, promoting the UK doctorate: Challenges and
opportunities
• VITAE 2009, what do researchers do?
• Joint Skills statement
• Roberts Report……(and lots more)…..
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

Summary of relevant national PRES findings

Overall, the national PRES findings show that research students have
generally very positive views about their experiences. For
example:
– Opportunities to develop research and transferable skills were the areas in
which research students’ expectations were most often met or exceeded.
Areas in PRES which were highlighted as requiring further attention
include:
– increasing the availability of opportunities for research students to
further develop their research and transferable skills, and finding
effective ways of making students more aware of the opportunities
available to them (skills development);
– introducing more effective ways of encouraging research students to
reflect on their professional and career development needs
(professional development and career);
– introducing more effective ways of increasing research students’
understanding of the range of career opportunities open to them
(professional development and career).
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

PRES: Intellectual Climate

PRES results: Intellectual Climate

70
my department provides opportunities
for social contact w ith other research
60
students
50 my department provides opportunities
for me to become involved in the
% agree

40 broader research culture

the research ambience in my
30 department/faculty stimulates my w ork
20
I feel integrated into my department's
10 community

0 my department provides a good

2009 seminar programme for research
UoE 2009 results students
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

PRES: professional & career development

Professional & career development: UoE PRES results 2009

40
% agree

35

30
I am encouraged to think I am encouraged to reflect on I am encouraged to reflect on
about the range of career my professional development my career development needs
opportunities that are needs
available to me
 Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

PRES: teaching opportunities

PRES: Teaching Opportunities
UoE results 2009

60

50

40
% agree

30

20

10

0
I have had adequate I have been given adequate I think the experience that I
opportunity to gain experience support and guidance for my have gained through teaching
of teaching whilst doing my teaching has been a worthwhile aspect
research degree programme of my research degree
programme
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

The Tight Link between PhD and Early Career Researcher

• The Majority of Edinburgh responses to CROS 2009 indicated:
- there was a positive working environment at Edinburgh:
- the support available for research staff training & development was highly
rated (73% had participated in internal T&D activities) – most popular
topics: grant writing, career management, project management,
supervising students;
- we have work to do to encourage engagement in appraisal & induction

• Data collected by CROS 2003, 2005 and 2009 has resulted in:
- development of our Code of Practice for the Management of Research
staff
- 1:1 career interviews available to all researchers
- research staff mentoring programme open to all
- ‘Career progressions in Academia’ workshops
- increased number of leadership and management workshops incl.
Managing People
- encouragement of Research Staff Society formation
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

• Key activities over the last 18 months linked to CROS

recommendations include:
- embedding of our Code of Practice to support Concordat implementation
- CoP clarifies responsibilities and sets out Edinburgh expectations
- it provides encouragement, guidance, practical advice and links to
resources, (should we have an equivalent for PhD students?)
- re-development and re-launch of our Research Developmental Portal
website to:
- further promote our support for researchers
- provide more career management resources
- provide clear links to advice/information/resources
- http://www.ed.ac.uk/researcher-development
- development of an online mechanism for researchers to record and
access their career and professional development activities and history –
‘My Career’ – launching soon
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

Edinburgh Approach
• Consider the progression of development needs –
everyone starts with different skill sets
– Institute for Academic Development
• Academia is just one of several exciting career options
• Embed support and training
• Focus on flexibility and range of options
– “one size fits all” is not a good approach
• Remember that an academic requires many skills
needed in business, industry and the public sector
 Graduate School of Engineering and Electronics
Institute for Academic Development
PhD monitoring, milestones and training
University of Edinburgh
Science Communication in Action UK GRADschool (optional, 18-36 months)
(optional, months 3 to 4 or 15 to 16)
(Compulsory or Strongly
recommended courses)
Thesis
PhD TRAINING

Writing a Workshop
Induction Scientific Paper (month
Event (month 17) 26)
(Roberts
Research Posters
Funded)
• Preparing a Poster
• Getting Your Message Across
Searching Research • Graduate School Poster Day
Literature (month 2 or 3) (months 16 to 18)

YEAR 1 YEAR 2 YEAR 3

AND MILESTONES
PhD MONITORING

Research Research Thesis Submit Thesis

Project Project Report Poster Paper Plan (36 months, 48 month
Plan (6-8 months) (18 months) (24 months) (27 final deadline)
(2 months) months)

1st Year 2nd Year 3rd Year

Review Review Review

Training Needs Assessment during induction and annual review points students towards
appropriate elective courses including:
Effective Presentations (1), Effective Writing (any), Communicating Science to Non-Specialists (1 or 2), Scientific Computing
Tools (usually 1), Computing Toolbox (any), Web Page Production (any), Research Grant Applications (3), Developing a
Successful Career (3), Interviewing Skills (3), Entrepreneurship (any), IPR (any), Tutoring & Demonstrating (1)
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

Teaching and Learning

• Local orientation and links to teaching organisations
that map onto our schools
• Central WebCT resources and advanced workshops
• Opportunities for support to apply for HEA
accreditation. We have 165 full fellows and 7
associates. Many more take a course on
Documentation and Accreditation than actually apply to
HEA
• Research staff tend not to attend this course even
though future academics will usually teach as well as
research
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh
Support for
The Development of Teaching (1)
Underpinnings
The University of Edinburgh Code of Practice on Tutoring
and Demonstrating which established the main
responsibility for supporting tutors and demonstrators
should be located locally (i.e. with course organisers at
School-level)
• Experience and research informs us that some forms
of support are best provided locally (and some generic
courses with mixed disciplines can also be valuable)
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh
Support for
The Development of Teaching (2)
On this basis, Edinburgh has developed:
• Initiatives to strengthen the development of local forms of induction:
• Local (School or course-level) orientation for large cohorts
• Robust central orientation as back-up:
Core set of generic courses repeated twice annually, as safety
net for local courses
Online generic materials for all to access
• Central induction for enhanced development for all tutors and
demonstrators (that candidates can tap into)
• 44% of our researchers in CROS have undertaken some teaching
• We have 1,443 tutors and demonstrators at Edinburgh, (but they are
not all are PhD students)
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

The Link between PhD Students

and Researchers
• CROS results show that 50% of research staff have
supervised PhD students at Edinburgh
• Over time, more supervisors will become experienced
and will have received a broad range of training which
will lead to even more support of the agenda
• The University has explicitly linked PGR and early career
researchers in its governance structure by setting up a
Senatus Researcher Experience Committee
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

Research Communication in Action

• Sandwich style approach to skills development
• Run with individual Graduate Schools
• Training in communication,
working with children and a
specific workshop
• Teams of PhD students and/or
research staff take workshops
to local schools
• Review day
• Variation with focus on policy development for social science
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

Researcher-led initiatives fund

• Applications are invited from researchers for
projects which
– Have a training &
development focus
– Are organised/led
by researchers
– Are of direct benefit to
groups of researchers
– Complement existing
University-wide training
– Demonstrate creative
and proactive approaches
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

Examples from researcher-led fund

•‘Political Studies Association Northern Postgraduate Conference’ organised by
PhD students in Politics drawing researchers from across Europe and supporting
participants with the writing of abstracts, asking questions, engaging in
discussions, and networking opportunities.
•‘The Art Collective’ supports collaborations between scientific and artistic
communities with the aim of fostering creativity and communication of knowledge.
PMARC Seminars comprise a monthly seminar series organised by researchers
working in the multidisciplinary field of perception-action systems.
•‘Researching the Public Interest’ is an initiative driven by PhD students and
research staff to create a cross-College interdisciplinary networking forum to
increase knowledge development and exchange, to promote interdisciplinary
working, networking and research collaborations.
•‘Encounters - An Intercultural CD of New Music’ is a professional CD of new
music created by PhD students in Music that has allowed them to develop an
array of transferable skills beyond music creation, for example, managerial,
financial, accounting, computing, marketing, administrative, and editorial skills
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

Outcomes of Researcher-led Fund

• Award recipients have identified interesting and important
benefits from their funded activities which include:
• promoting student and staff interaction;
• building and engaging research communities and
networks;
• professional skills development by researchers;
• interdisciplinary work and awareness;
• potential research collaborations;
• developing ideas and projects with potential for wider
public engagement.
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

Outcomes of Researcher-led Fund

“The formation of research societies has
encouraged research staff to shoulder the
responsibility for their own career
management. The obvious benefits of this have
been: to promote pro-active career
management, to increase interaction between
junior staff; to provide a means for individuals
to obtain advice from their contemporaries;
and to increase the visibility of research staff
to senior management.“
(Paddy Hadoke; Research Fellow)
Institute for Academic Development
University of Edinburgh

University of Edinburgh Principal’s Career

Development PhD Scholarships
• 55 new scholarships, open to all
applicants & fields of study
• Include additional career
development opportunities:
– University teaching
– Public engagement
– Enterprise
• First scholarship holders arrive in
September

www.scholarships.ed.ac.uk/postgraduate/development.htm