RESEARCHERTRAINING

PROGRAMME2013/14

GRADUATE SCHOOL

Academic Research (Research Questions and Objectives) 1

Academic Writing Skills for International Postgraduate Students 1

An Introduction to Person-Centred Interviewing Techniques for Qualitative Researchers 1

Being and Becoming an Academic Writer 2

Enhancing your employability during your PhD 3

Ethnography 3

Getting the Most from your PhD Studies 3

Getting Published 3

Grammar and Language 4

Job hunting strategy and practice 4

Leadership 4

Learning and Teaching in Higher Education - An Introduction 5

Learning and Teaching in Higher Education - Postgraduate Certificate 5

Networking 6

NVivo 6

Marketing Yourself: Creating CV’s (academic and non-academic) 6

Marketing Yourself: Interview skills 7

Perfect Powerpoint Posters 7

Postgraduate Academic Skills and Writing Sessions 7

Poster Presentations 8

Presentation Skills 9

Project Management/Time Management 9

Qualitative Research Methods 9

Research Funding Applications: Where to Begin and What to Look Out for? 9

Research Supervision 10

Social media for career advancement 10

Statistics: An Introduction 10

Statistics 11

(Systematic) Literature Review 11

The Final PhD Hurdle: Preparation for the Viva 11

The Transfer Event 12

Working with your Supervisor and Research Student Progression 13

Writing and Publishing in Science and Technology 13

Contents

Research Training Programme 2013/14

Academic Research (Research Questions and Objectives) 1

Academic Writing Skills for International Postgraduate Students 1

An Introduction to Person-Centred Interviewing Techniques for Qualitative Researchers 1

Being and Becoming an Academic Writer 2

Enhancing your employability during your PhD 3

Ethnography 3

Getting the Most from your PhD Studies 3

Getting Published 3

Grammar and Language 4

Job hunting strategy and practice 4

Leadership 4

Learning and Teaching in Higher Education - An Introduction 5

Learning and Teaching in Higher Education - Postgraduate Certificate 5

Networking 6

NVivo 6

Marketing Yourself: Creating CV’s (academic and non-academic) 6

Marketing Yourself: Interview skills 7

Perfect Powerpoint Posters 7

Postgraduate Academic Skills and Writing Sessions 7

Poster Presentations 8

Presentation Skills 9

Project Management/Time Management 9

Qualitative Research Methods 9

Research Funding Applications: Where to Begin and What to Look Out for? 9

Research Supervision 10

Social media for career advancement 10

Statistics: An Introduction 10

Statistics 11

(Systematic) Literature Review 11

The Final PhD Hurdle: Preparation for the Viva 11

The Transfer Event 12

Working with your Supervisor and Research Student Progression 13

Writing and Publishing in Science and Technology 13

Contents

Research Training Programme 2013/14

1Research Training Programme 2013/14

IntroductionThe research training programme has been extended to include opportunities that are more explicitly targeted at both research students and research staff.

New training sessions for 2013/14 include:- Enhancing your employability during your PhD- Job hunting strategy and practice- Marketing Yourself: Creating CVs (academic and non-academic)- Marketing Yourself: Interview Skills- Social media for career advancement

As will be clear, sessions may be of benefit to students only, to staff only or to both. The programme is flexible enough to meet the demands of researchers throughout the University. It aims to be comprehensive although it is also responsive and evolves according to the needs of its participants.

Any recommendations or requests are welcome and should be emailed to Charlie Fielding in IRO.

Reserving your PlaceEmail IRO to reserve a place on any training session. Please note some training sessions will be limited and you should email promptly to ensure you have a place.

What happens if I just don’t turn up?

If you do not turn up we will contact you to find out why. You must try and let us know however, as if you fail to attend you may be refused places on future training courses and/or your supervisor or line manager will be informed and the School charged.

UpdatesUpdates to the training programme, including any dates which are not yet in place, will be provided by email.

Suitability Courses are highlighted with a level 1,2,3 symbol to indicate which stage of a student’s research they are appropriate for or with an ‘S’ to indicate suitability for staff. This is for guidance only and you need not be confined by the indicative level.

CateringCatering will be supplied for full day courses only. Catering including tea/coffee will not be supplied for half day sessions.

Research Training Programme 2013/14

Academic Research(Research Questions and Objectives) This one-day session considers different types of academic research, hypotheses, research questions and approaches to your research. It will help you to identify your research milestones and how to plan effectively in order to complete your project successfully.

The session also covers the literature review, questions and objectives, the concept of an original contribution to knowledge, attainment of subject-specific skills, research design, pilot studies, and the importance of keeping up-to-date with new developments (attendance at seminars, conferences etc).

Academic Writing Skills for International Postgraduate Students International students often feel that they can’t express themselves in English in the same way that they can in their own language, and added to this is the problem that academic writing conventions are different around the world. This 12-week course addresses these problems and helps international postgraduate students become more confident in using the English language for their research work. The course starts with sessions on critical reading, identifying key points and summarising. This is followed by an analysis of what plagiarism is and how to avoid it. We then look at how different sources can be combined together, for example, in a literature review, followed by a look at the structures used in different types of academic writing. The rest of the course concentrates on various aspects of language – academic vocabulary and grammar, as well as formal and informal language.

An Introduction to Person-Centred Interviewing Techniques for Qualitative Researchers When researchers conduct qualitative interviews, their aim is to describe and understand aspects of the “lifeworld” of the interviewee (Kvale, 1996). Based on the premise that the quality of data generated from a research interview will reflect the quality of the interaction between interviewer and interviewee, this session will introduce person-centred interviewing techniques developed in counselling and helping contexts. It will consider their practical relevance in the research context.

The session will introduce techniques which facilitate• effective relationship building: exploring interviewees’ personal experiences• non-directive interaction: developing “deeper” understandings • developing shared understanding: clarifying meaning during the research conversation

This session should be of interest to novice researchers and to more experienced researchers willing to share their own experiences of conducting qualitative interviews!Reference Kvale, S. (1996) InterViews: An Introduction to Qualitative Research Interviewing. California: Sage.

1Research Training Programme 2013/14

IntroductionThe research training programme has been extended to include opportunities that are more explicitly targeted at both research students and research staff.

New training sessions for 2013/14 include:- Enhancing your employability during your PhD- Job hunting strategy and practice- Marketing Yourself: Creating CVs (academic and non-academic)- Marketing Yourself: Interview Skills- Social media for career advancement

As will be clear, sessions may be of benefit to students only, to staff only or to both. The programme is flexible enough to meet the demands of researchers throughout the University. It aims to be comprehensive although it is also responsive and evolves according to the needs of its participants.

Any recommendations or requests are welcome and should be emailed to Charlie Fielding in IRO.

Reserving your PlaceEmail IRO to reserve a place on any training session. Please note some training sessions will be limited and you should email promptly to ensure you have a place.

What happens if I just don’t turn up?

If you do not turn up we will contact you to find out why. You must try and let us know however, as if you fail to attend you may be refused places on future training courses and/or your supervisor or line manager will be informed and the School charged.

UpdatesUpdates to the training programme, including any dates which are not yet in place, will be provided by email.

Suitability Courses are highlighted with a level 1,2,3 symbol to indicate which stage of a student’s research they are appropriate for or with an ‘S’ to indicate suitability for staff. This is for guidance only and you need not be confined by the indicative level.

CateringCatering will be supplied for full day courses only. Catering including tea/coffee will not be supplied for half day sessions.

Research Training Programme 2013/14

Academic Research(Research Questions and Objectives) This one-day session considers different types of academic research, hypotheses, research questions and approaches to your research. It will help you to identify your research milestones and how to plan effectively in order to complete your project successfully.

The session also covers the literature review, questions and objectives, the concept of an original contribution to knowledge, attainment of subject-specific skills, research design, pilot studies, and the importance of keeping up-to-date with new developments (attendance at seminars, conferences etc).

Academic Writing Skills for International Postgraduate Students International students often feel that they can’t express themselves in English in the same way that they can in their own language, and added to this is the problem that academic writing conventions are different around the world. This 12-week course addresses these problems and helps international postgraduate students become more confident in using the English language for their research work. The course starts with sessions on critical reading, identifying key points and summarising. This is followed by an analysis of what plagiarism is and how to avoid it. We then look at how different sources can be combined together, for example, in a literature review, followed by a look at the structures used in different types of academic writing. The rest of the course concentrates on various aspects of language – academic vocabulary and grammar, as well as formal and informal language.

An Introduction to Person-Centred Interviewing Techniques for Qualitative Researchers When researchers conduct qualitative interviews, their aim is to describe and understand aspects of the “lifeworld” of the interviewee (Kvale, 1996). Based on the premise that the quality of data generated from a research interview will reflect the quality of the interaction between interviewer and interviewee, this session will introduce person-centred interviewing techniques developed in counselling and helping contexts. It will consider their practical relevance in the research context.

The session will introduce techniques which facilitate• effective relationship building: exploring interviewees’ personal experiences• non-directive interaction: developing “deeper” understandings • developing shared understanding: clarifying meaning during the research conversation

This session should be of interest to novice researchers and to more experienced researchers willing to share their own experiences of conducting qualitative interviews!Reference Kvale, S. (1996) InterViews: An Introduction to Qualitative Research Interviewing. California: Sage.

2 3Research Training Programme 2013/14 Research Training Programme 2013/14

Being and Becoming anAcademic Writer This series of workshops will enable new and developing academic writers to consider writing for publication as a ‘process’ and to develop writing projects as they do so. Participating in the workshops will enable participants to find time to refine their writing through both interaction with other writers and reflection on their own emerging processes, as well as enabling them to engage in, and benefit from, pre-peer review. The content of the workshops will be based around the strategies devised by Dr Rowena Murray and will be guided by the following key principles:

} Writing is a social act that benefits from discussion with peers.

} Feedback can be helpful at different stages in the writing process.

} Working in a group can motivate writers to initiate and progress writing projects.

} Goal-setting and monitoring help writers create and stick to their deadlines.

Participants may attend the first session with a piece of writing they have already begun working on, or may draw upon the content of the first session as a means of identifying a new area of work they could begin working on. Participants should bring along a piece of writing that can be viewed as a ‘work in progress’ to each subsequent session, and use this as the focus for participation in the workshops. They will be expected to work on their academic writing in the intervening weeks between sessions, and also to engage in writing consultations with a ‘critical friend’. Participants will leave the series of workshops with a completed project, in the form of a draft peer-reviewed journal article, thesis chapter, article for a professional periodical or media article (depending on the particular experience of individual participants and the goals that they bring with them).

Enhancing your employability during

your PhD Career management should be an on-going process throughout your PhD studies. This session will highlight strategies for planning ahead and steps you can take in enhancing your long term career/career prospects whether seeking a career in academic research or in the wider job market.

Ethnography Although ethnography is usually referred to as a non-intrusive, naturalistic method, in fact it involves a reasonable amount of cautious and thoughtful manipulation on the part of the ethnographer. In this session, we will discuss a few deceptions involved in ethnography, namely in the issues of impression management, reciprocity and ethical situationism. Through sharing insights from ethnographic work conducted with youth offenders and police officers in Scotland and the United States, the session will also present illustrations of the way in which participant observation can be used, the type of data it can produce and how that data can be analysed to create an assortment of ‘tales of the field’.

Getting the Most from your PhD Studies This workshop is designed to support you as you embark upon your doctoral studies. It will help you to identify your personal and professional aims and objectives, and with these in mind will focus on short, medium, and long-term goal-setting, and upon helping you to establish your priorities for your time as a research student. It will explore some of the myths and assumptions about being a research student and will help you to plan and map out the journey ahead of you. You will be encouraged to consider your training and development needs, the different sources of support available to you, and the process of becoming an independent researcher.

Getting Published This seminar is aimed at research students who have ambitions to turn aspects of their PhD theses into publications. It will explore the way in which students can build time for writing into their daily schedules through techniques such as ‘snack writing’, and will examine the way in which they can become scholars of their target academic journals. The importance of the ‘critical friend’ will be highlighted, both as a source of support in the pre-peer review stage and as a mentor or coach in the process of goal-setting and formulation of writing targets. By examining peer review comments from prestigious academic journals in Sociology and Criminology, students will have the opportunity to consider how best to prepare for the peer review process and how to respond to the feedback they receive.

2 3Research Training Programme 2013/14 Research Training Programme 2013/14

Being and Becoming anAcademic Writer This series of workshops will enable new and developing academic writers to consider writing for publication as a ‘process’ and to develop writing projects as they do so. Participating in the workshops will enable participants to find time to refine their writing through both interaction with other writers and reflection on their own emerging processes, as well as enabling them to engage in, and benefit from, pre-peer review. The content of the workshops will be based around the strategies devised by Dr Rowena Murray and will be guided by the following key principles:

} Writing is a social act that benefits from discussion with peers.

} Feedback can be helpful at different stages in the writing process.

} Working in a group can motivate writers to initiate and progress writing projects.

} Goal-setting and monitoring help writers create and stick to their deadlines.

Participants may attend the first session with a piece of writing they have already begun working on, or may draw upon the content of the first session as a means of identifying a new area of work they could begin working on. Participants should bring along a piece of writing that can be viewed as a ‘work in progress’ to each subsequent session, and use this as the focus for participation in the workshops. They will be expected to work on their academic writing in the intervening weeks between sessions, and also to engage in writing consultations with a ‘critical friend’. Participants will leave the series of workshops with a completed project, in the form of a draft peer-reviewed journal article, thesis chapter, article for a professional periodical or media article (depending on the particular experience of individual participants and the goals that they bring with them).

Enhancing your employability during

your PhD Career management should be an on-going process throughout your PhD studies. This session will highlight strategies for planning ahead and steps you can take in enhancing your long term career/career prospects whether seeking a career in academic research or in the wider job market.

Ethnography Although ethnography is usually referred to as a non-intrusive, naturalistic method, in fact it involves a reasonable amount of cautious and thoughtful manipulation on the part of the ethnographer. In this session, we will discuss a few deceptions involved in ethnography, namely in the issues of impression management, reciprocity and ethical situationism. Through sharing insights from ethnographic work conducted with youth offenders and police officers in Scotland and the United States, the session will also present illustrations of the way in which participant observation can be used, the type of data it can produce and how that data can be analysed to create an assortment of ‘tales of the field’.

Getting the Most from your PhD Studies This workshop is designed to support you as you embark upon your doctoral studies. It will help you to identify your personal and professional aims and objectives, and with these in mind will focus on short, medium, and long-term goal-setting, and upon helping you to establish your priorities for your time as a research student. It will explore some of the myths and assumptions about being a research student and will help you to plan and map out the journey ahead of you. You will be encouraged to consider your training and development needs, the different sources of support available to you, and the process of becoming an independent researcher.

Getting Published This seminar is aimed at research students who have ambitions to turn aspects of their PhD theses into publications. It will explore the way in which students can build time for writing into their daily schedules through techniques such as ‘snack writing’, and will examine the way in which they can become scholars of their target academic journals. The importance of the ‘critical friend’ will be highlighted, both as a source of support in the pre-peer review stage and as a mentor or coach in the process of goal-setting and formulation of writing targets. By examining peer review comments from prestigious academic journals in Sociology and Criminology, students will have the opportunity to consider how best to prepare for the peer review process and how to respond to the feedback they receive.

4 5Research Training Programme 2013/14 Research Training Programme 2013/14

Grammar and Language Grammatically correct writing aid comprehension and means that your writing will be taken more seriously. Even at PhD level, students often feel they have been provided with little in the way of guidance on what constitutes ‘good grammar’. This session attempts to address this and covers consistent use of tenses, what students find most challenging about grammar and spelling and common errors. It also provides an overview of further resources and includes an exciting grammar quiz!

Job hunting strategy and practice This session will examine current techniques for job searching in a competitive market especially for academic jobs, highlighting the resources and sources of support available

Leadership This three hour workshop will equip participants with personal leadership skills to facilitate their capacity to influence others, both in terms of gaining cooperation for research purposes and in terms of influencing the wider research community.

The skills you will learn in this workshop are transferable to post-doctoral research, to teaching in Higher Education, to management in Higher Education and to future employment in other sectors.

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

} Critically analyse the impact and applicability of thought leadership and expert power within the academic community

} Evaluate their current level of capacity to lead and influence

} Develop strategies to enhance their capacity

Learning and Teaching inHigher Education - An Introduction This three day induction programme will provide new research students with an introduction to teaching and learning in Higher Education. The course is open to all, and no previous experience of teaching is necessary. Participants will have the opportunity to learn about methods for teaching small and large groups, as well as about assessment, feedback and the evaluation of teaching. Current issues in teaching and learning in Higher Education such as inclusivity, quality assurance and the student experience will also be explored. Participants will have an opportunity to gain practical teaching experience by delivering a short microteaching session, and will obtain valuable feedback on their teaching from peers and tutors in a supportive and collegiate environment. Participants must attend all three days of the course. The course runs in December and May of each year.

Learning and Teaching in Higher Education - Postgraduate Certificate The Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (PG Cert TLHE) is a professional qualification for those who have a Higher Education teaching role. It consists of three 20-credit modules at SCQF Level 11, normally completed over an 18-month period. The programme is available internally to all UWS academic staff. Arrangements can be made to enrol external programme members and other UWS staff who have an appropriate level of teaching as part of their role. In addition to degree level qualifications, applicants must have a teaching commitment of a minimum of 100 hours across the duration of the programme (33 hours per module), at least half of which must be in direct teaching contact time. The overall schedule of assessment (both formative and summative) is focussed on teaching practice and the preparation of learning materials. Upon successful completion of the PG Cert TLHE, graduates are eligible to apply for Fellowship of the UK Higher Education Academy.

4 5Research Training Programme 2013/14 Research Training Programme 2013/14

Grammar and Language Grammatically correct writing aid comprehension and means that your writing will be taken more seriously. Even at PhD level, students often feel they have been provided with little in the way of guidance on what constitutes ‘good grammar’. This session attempts to address this and covers consistent use of tenses, what students find most challenging about grammar and spelling and common errors. It also provides an overview of further resources and includes an exciting grammar quiz!

Job hunting strategy and practice This session will examine current techniques for job searching in a competitive market especially for academic jobs, highlighting the resources and sources of support available

Leadership This three hour workshop will equip participants with personal leadership skills to facilitate their capacity to influence others, both in terms of gaining cooperation for research purposes and in terms of influencing the wider research community.

The skills you will learn in this workshop are transferable to post-doctoral research, to teaching in Higher Education, to management in Higher Education and to future employment in other sectors.

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

} Critically analyse the impact and applicability of thought leadership and expert power within the academic community

} Evaluate their current level of capacity to lead and influence

} Develop strategies to enhance their capacity

Learning and Teaching inHigher Education - An Introduction This three day induction programme will provide new research students with an introduction to teaching and learning in Higher Education. The course is open to all, and no previous experience of teaching is necessary. Participants will have the opportunity to learn about methods for teaching small and large groups, as well as about assessment, feedback and the evaluation of teaching. Current issues in teaching and learning in Higher Education such as inclusivity, quality assurance and the student experience will also be explored. Participants will have an opportunity to gain practical teaching experience by delivering a short microteaching session, and will obtain valuable feedback on their teaching from peers and tutors in a supportive and collegiate environment. Participants must attend all three days of the course. The course runs in December and May of each year.

Learning and Teaching in Higher Education - Postgraduate Certificate The Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (PG Cert TLHE) is a professional qualification for those who have a Higher Education teaching role. It consists of three 20-credit modules at SCQF Level 11, normally completed over an 18-month period. The programme is available internally to all UWS academic staff. Arrangements can be made to enrol external programme members and other UWS staff who have an appropriate level of teaching as part of their role. In addition to degree level qualifications, applicants must have a teaching commitment of a minimum of 100 hours across the duration of the programme (33 hours per module), at least half of which must be in direct teaching contact time. The overall schedule of assessment (both formative and summative) is focussed on teaching practice and the preparation of learning materials. Upon successful completion of the PG Cert TLHE, graduates are eligible to apply for Fellowship of the UK Higher Education Academy.

6 7Research Training Programme 2013/14 Research Training Programme 2013/14

Research students who meet the admissions criteria may apply to complete the first module of the PG Cert TLHE as a standalone module (with the agreement of their Head of School). Upon successful completion of the first module, research students will be eligible to apply for Associate of the UK Higher Education Academy. For more information see www.uws.ac.uk/postgraduate/teaching_and_learning_in_higher_education

Networking The Networking session aims to equip participants with the skills required to effectively network for the purposes of knowledge exchange and career development.

These skills are transferable to post-doctoral research, to teaching in Higher Education, to management in Higher Education and to future employment in other sectors.

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

} Evaluate the importance of effective networking to academic development and career progression

} Identify their current networks in terms of span and range

} Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of their current approach to networking

} Develop strategies to enhance their capacity

NVivo NVivo is one of the leading software tools used by qualitative researchers to analyse structured, semi-structured or unstructured interview transcripts of individual or focus groups; literature reviews; online documents or government reports; diaries; audio and video recordings; emails; customer feedback or comments; case and field notes; and photographs.

If you are seeking an in-depth understanding of any or all of the data sources mentioned above or plan to explore issues, understand phenomena, gain an insight into attitudes or behaviours then you need to know about NVivo. This two day course will provide an invaluable overview on how to use NVivo. You will learn how to efficiently and effectively manage; code and analyse your semi-structured and unstructured interview data; structure your thematic node system supported by your chosen methodology; to set-up the demographic information to aid profiling the data; to use queries to seek answers to research questions as well as formulate new questions and explore new ideas; to use the NVivo modelling facility to capture the big picture of your data.

Marketing Yourself: Creating CVs (academic and non-academic) A CV is a universally accepted document and everyone should have one but how should a PhD student adapt their CV for an academic research position compared to one aimed at a commercial research position? How could you present your PhD experience in a CV for a non research job? This seminar looks at these topics as well as covering the essentials for CV writing.

Marketing Yourself: Interview skills This session will provide an overview of how to perform well at an interview. It will examine the questions that can be expected (based on evidence gathered from employers who recruit PhDs) and some techniques for answering them. Role play exercises and feedback will help you examine how you come across in an interview situation and how you respond to the pressure of questioning.

Perfect Powerpoint Posters This session is suitable for both beginners and improvers and covers the most important aspects of poster design and software operation.

Topics will include:

} Page formatting and backgrounds

} Establishing main sections using coloured shapes, borders and dividing lines

} Formatting text and ensuring consistency of font

} Grouping and arrangement of objects

} Successful integration and manipulation of images, tables and graphs

During the second half of the session, participants will have the opportunity to produce their own individual poster layout on an A0 size page which can be saved to a memory stick.

Postgraduate Academic Skills and Writing Sessions Length of Course: Ten sessions

Topics covered are likely to include: Basics of Postgraduate academic writing; Style and language; Writing and maintaining motivation; Advanced academic writing for thesis; Research questions/hypotheses; Structure of thesis; Academic Integrity - referencing, bibliography and plagiarism; Advanced resources; Searching; Information management software; Social media and web based resources for academic writing; Contribution to knowledge; Criticality – critical thinking, critical reading and critical writing; Doing a critical review ; Theoretical underpinnings and paradigms; Conduct of research; Research ethics; Supervision; Clinic with academic panel on issues and problems; Research design and process; Transfer events – requirements, report, presentation, and issues; Writing for transfer event report and writing for posters and presentations; Presentation skills.

Format: The course will be interactive and participatory in nature – and will range from lecture/talk led segments and an academic panel designed to answer student questions and issues - to group discussion and hands on activities. Most weeks the sessions will be split into two segments - one of which will focus on aspects of postgraduate academic writing.

Presenters: The course will be led by Gordon Asher and Marcella Kean from the Effective

6 7Research Training Programme 2013/14 Research Training Programme 2013/14

Research students who meet the admissions criteria may apply to complete the first module of the PG Cert TLHE as a standalone module (with the agreement of their Head of School). Upon successful completion of the first module, research students will be eligible to apply for Associate of the UK Higher Education Academy. For more information see www.uws.ac.uk/postgraduate/teaching_and_learning_in_higher_education

Networking The Networking session aims to equip participants with the skills required to effectively network for the purposes of knowledge exchange and career development.

These skills are transferable to post-doctoral research, to teaching in Higher Education, to management in Higher Education and to future employment in other sectors.

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

} Evaluate the importance of effective networking to academic development and career progression

} Identify their current networks in terms of span and range

} Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of their current approach to networking

} Develop strategies to enhance their capacity

NVivo NVivo is one of the leading software tools used by qualitative researchers to analyse structured, semi-structured or unstructured interview transcripts of individual or focus groups; literature reviews; online documents or government reports; diaries; audio and video recordings; emails; customer feedback or comments; case and field notes; and photographs.

If you are seeking an in-depth understanding of any or all of the data sources mentioned above or plan to explore issues, understand phenomena, gain an insight into attitudes or behaviours then you need to know about NVivo. This two day course will provide an invaluable overview on how to use NVivo. You will learn how to efficiently and effectively manage; code and analyse your semi-structured and unstructured interview data; structure your thematic node system supported by your chosen methodology; to set-up the demographic information to aid profiling the data; to use queries to seek answers to research questions as well as formulate new questions and explore new ideas; to use the NVivo modelling facility to capture the big picture of your data.

Marketing Yourself: Creating CVs (academic and non-academic) A CV is a universally accepted document and everyone should have one but how should a PhD student adapt their CV for an academic research position compared to one aimed at a commercial research position? How could you present your PhD experience in a CV for a non research job? This seminar looks at these topics as well as covering the essentials for CV writing.

Marketing Yourself: Interview skills This session will provide an overview of how to perform well at an interview. It will examine the questions that can be expected (based on evidence gathered from employers who recruit PhDs) and some techniques for answering them. Role play exercises and feedback will help you examine how you come across in an interview situation and how you respond to the pressure of questioning.

Perfect Powerpoint Posters This session is suitable for both beginners and improvers and covers the most important aspects of poster design and software operation.

Topics will include:

} Page formatting and backgrounds

} Establishing main sections using coloured shapes, borders and dividing lines

} Formatting text and ensuring consistency of font

} Grouping and arrangement of objects

} Successful integration and manipulation of images, tables and graphs

During the second half of the session, participants will have the opportunity to produce their own individual poster layout on an A0 size page which can be saved to a memory stick.

Postgraduate Academic Skills and Writing Sessions Length of Course: Ten sessions

Topics covered are likely to include: Basics of Postgraduate academic writing; Style and language; Writing and maintaining motivation; Advanced academic writing for thesis; Research questions/hypotheses; Structure of thesis; Academic Integrity - referencing, bibliography and plagiarism; Advanced resources; Searching; Information management software; Social media and web based resources for academic writing; Contribution to knowledge; Criticality – critical thinking, critical reading and critical writing; Doing a critical review ; Theoretical underpinnings and paradigms; Conduct of research; Research ethics; Supervision; Clinic with academic panel on issues and problems; Research design and process; Transfer events – requirements, report, presentation, and issues; Writing for transfer event report and writing for posters and presentations; Presentation skills.

Format: The course will be interactive and participatory in nature – and will range from lecture/talk led segments and an academic panel designed to answer student questions and issues - to group discussion and hands on activities. Most weeks the sessions will be split into two segments - one of which will focus on aspects of postgraduate academic writing.

Presenters: The course will be led by Gordon Asher and Marcella Kean from the Effective

8 9Research Training Programme 2013/14 Research Training Programme 2013/14

Learning Team (within the Centre for Academic Practice and Learning Development – CAPLeD) and delivered alongside a range of guest speakers and presenters from across the Schools and Departments of the University.

Venue: The course will take place in the Classroom of the Future, Room H324, Elles Building South, on the Paisley campus.

To facilitate our research students commencing in February and April 2014 a four week course will take place in April. This course will provide a taster and students commencing in February and April 2014 are encouraged to attend the 10 week course in academic session 2014/15.

Poster Presentations The poster is a commonly used format for conference presentations. It must be effective in attracting delegates’ attention and summarising work to date. This session gives an overview of factors you should consider when creating your poster and is followed by a session on how to use Powerpoint to design your poster (see page 7).

Note: It is compulsory for all second year full-time students to present a poster at the annual research student poster event. The best posters receive prize money!

Presentation Skills This highly effective and practical course provides an overview of what makes a presentation good or bad, provides practical hints and tips to help hold your audience’s attention and makes presenting fun. It is vital for all who will be presenting at conferences in the near future.

Project Management/Time Management In this seminar, the techniques and tools required to enhance the successful management of the research process will be explored. Participants will be introduced to the principles of project and time management, explore the use of strategies such as mind mapping and drill-down and the use of tools such as Gantt Charts and ‘to do’ lists. They will gain the opportunity to explore their own interpersonal styles of working and to draw upon new techniques for enhancing their efficiency with managing paperwork and task completion. Participants will leave the course with practical insights and useful references that will enable them to enhance their efficiency with managing their research project.

Qualitative Research Methods In this seminar, you will explore the research philosophies, strategies and methods associated with qualitative research. Various traditions will be explored, focusing on the inductive nature of the qualitative research paradigm and the methods associated with it. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss and interrogate existing research papers where the authors have drawn upon qualitative methods, and to apply the insights emerging from these studies to their own research. They will also engage in practical workshops, where they participate in the process of qualitative data analysis. Participants will leave the course with practical insights and useful references that will enable them to approach their own research projects with renewed confidence.

Research Funding Applications: Where to Begin and What to Look Out for? This session introduces the process of grant applications and in particular an insight into the peer review process. It will detail the basic structure of research grants, evaluation and review process, based on experiences from a range of funding bodies. The insight should be applicable to most research funding bodies and will provide an opportunity to discuss experience from the audience as well as that of the presenter - experienced applicant, unsuccessful more than successful and with both RCUK peer review college and moderating panel membership.

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Learning Team (within the Centre for Academic Practice and Learning Development – CAPLeD) and delivered alongside a range of guest speakers and presenters from across the Schools and Departments of the University.

Venue: The course will take place in the Classroom of the Future, Room H324, Elles Building South, on the Paisley campus.

To facilitate our research students commencing in February and April 2014 a four week course will take place in April. This course will provide a taster and students commencing in February and April 2014 are encouraged to attend the 10 week course in academic session 2014/15.

Poster Presentations The poster is a commonly used format for conference presentations. It must be effective in attracting delegates’ attention and summarising work to date. This session gives an overview of factors you should consider when creating your poster and is followed by a session on how to use Powerpoint to design your poster (see page 7).

Note: It is compulsory for all second year full-time students to present a poster at the annual research student poster event. The best posters receive prize money!

Presentation Skills This highly effective and practical course provides an overview of what makes a presentation good or bad, provides practical hints and tips to help hold your audience’s attention and makes presenting fun. It is vital for all who will be presenting at conferences in the near future.

Project Management/Time Management In this seminar, the techniques and tools required to enhance the successful management of the research process will be explored. Participants will be introduced to the principles of project and time management, explore the use of strategies such as mind mapping and drill-down and the use of tools such as Gantt Charts and ‘to do’ lists. They will gain the opportunity to explore their own interpersonal styles of working and to draw upon new techniques for enhancing their efficiency with managing paperwork and task completion. Participants will leave the course with practical insights and useful references that will enable them to enhance their efficiency with managing their research project.

Qualitative Research Methods In this seminar, you will explore the research philosophies, strategies and methods associated with qualitative research. Various traditions will be explored, focusing on the inductive nature of the qualitative research paradigm and the methods associated with it. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss and interrogate existing research papers where the authors have drawn upon qualitative methods, and to apply the insights emerging from these studies to their own research. They will also engage in practical workshops, where they participate in the process of qualitative data analysis. Participants will leave the course with practical insights and useful references that will enable them to approach their own research projects with renewed confidence.

Research Funding Applications: Where to Begin and What to Look Out for? This session introduces the process of grant applications and in particular an insight into the peer review process. It will detail the basic structure of research grants, evaluation and review process, based on experiences from a range of funding bodies. The insight should be applicable to most research funding bodies and will provide an opportunity to discuss experience from the audience as well as that of the presenter - experienced applicant, unsuccessful more than successful and with both RCUK peer review college and moderating panel membership.

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Research Supervision This session allows participants to:

} Consider the university’s arrangements for the supervision of research students

} Consider aspects of the roles of director of studies and of the other members of the supervisory team, namely the second supervisor and additional supervisor or external collaborator

Review their approaches and attitudes to:

} the role and challenges of the research student

} the student/supervisor relationship

} Discuss key interpersonal competencies

} Sensitivity to Others

} Effective Communication Skills

} Active Listening Skills

} Developing Appropriate Relationships

} Handling Conflicts

} Influencing Others

} Participating in Groups

} Consider different approaches to academic supervision, comparing face-to-face with online support

} Experienced scenarios of research student supervision from which to reflect on the pros and cons of different approaches

All supervisors of research students are required to undertake this training session every 3 years.

Staff who are new to supervising research students are required to undertake this training in their first year of supervising a student.

Social media for career advancement Social media can be a great tool for information, networking, finding jobs & work experience opportunities. This workshop will help you to understand how you can maximise social media for your future career success.

Statistics: An Introduction This course is suitable for all those who have collected survey data and are about to summarise and analyse or those who want to know how to use SPSS and also want to explore,

analyse and test hypotheses for evidence in their data.

Day-1 : Introduction to SPSS course is designed to help you to acquire the skills necessary to create SPSS files from scratch, from paper based questionnaires or import from Excel or Access database, ready for descriptive statistics and graphical summaries. You will also learn basic data manipulation techniques such as compute, recode, select if, count, split file and merge files. Day-2 : Statistics Part-1 is designed to develop the skill and confidence needed to select the correct statistics to analyse your data and to draw informed conclusions; to understand when and how to use Chi-squared, Ttest, Correlation and Regression - linear, simple, multiple and logistic.

Little or no previous knowledge of Statistics or SPSS is required. Knowledge of Windows environment is however, essential. Participants are encouraged to bring a questionnaire or an Excel data file they wish to analyse.

Statistics This four week course will cover descriptive statistics, data types, probability, hypotheses testing, chi-square, regression, power and sample size considerations and surveys. There will also be a drop-in session where you can get advice on your statistical issues!

(Systematic) Literature Review (Systematic) literature reviews have become more important, last but not least caused by the wide availability of electronic resources and increased recognition of these appraisals in academic literature; at the same time, expectations have raised about the quality of literature reviews. This workshop does not only cover the basics of a literature review (sourcing literature, databases, etc.), it also explains how to convert the findings of a systematic literature review into publications (theses, journal submissions). Besides methods, examples and tips for a high-quality review, the workshop also covers how to connect the literature review to empirical research.

The library will also deliver an interlude on specialist databases. More details on this will follow once a date has been set.

The Final PhD Hurdle: Preparation for the Viva With the viva voce coming close, this workshop supports your preparation for this final milestone of your doctoral study. While it relates the preparations to the procedures of UWS, most of the interactive workshop examines what you can do to prepare yourself for this event. The workshop also covers the viva itself and how to respond to questions by the assessors. Examples are taken from the real-life experiences of recent graduates and video-clips make this workshop worthwhile for anyone preparing for this final step in their doctoral study.

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Research Supervision This session allows participants to:

} Consider the university’s arrangements for the supervision of research students

} Consider aspects of the roles of director of studies and of the other members of the supervisory team, namely the second supervisor and additional supervisor or external collaborator

Review their approaches and attitudes to:

} the role and challenges of the research student

} the student/supervisor relationship

} Discuss key interpersonal competencies

} Sensitivity to Others

} Effective Communication Skills

} Active Listening Skills

} Developing Appropriate Relationships

} Handling Conflicts

} Influencing Others

} Participating in Groups

} Consider different approaches to academic supervision, comparing face-to-face with online support

} Experienced scenarios of research student supervision from which to reflect on the pros and cons of different approaches

All supervisors of research students are required to undertake this training session every 3 years.

Staff who are new to supervising research students are required to undertake this training in their first year of supervising a student.

Social media for career advancement Social media can be a great tool for information, networking, finding jobs & work experience opportunities. This workshop will help you to understand how you can maximise social media for your future career success.

Statistics: An Introduction This course is suitable for all those who have collected survey data and are about to summarise and analyse or those who want to know how to use SPSS and also want to explore,

analyse and test hypotheses for evidence in their data.

Day-1 : Introduction to SPSS course is designed to help you to acquire the skills necessary to create SPSS files from scratch, from paper based questionnaires or import from Excel or Access database, ready for descriptive statistics and graphical summaries. You will also learn basic data manipulation techniques such as compute, recode, select if, count, split file and merge files. Day-2 : Statistics Part-1 is designed to develop the skill and confidence needed to select the correct statistics to analyse your data and to draw informed conclusions; to understand when and how to use Chi-squared, Ttest, Correlation and Regression - linear, simple, multiple and logistic.

Little or no previous knowledge of Statistics or SPSS is required. Knowledge of Windows environment is however, essential. Participants are encouraged to bring a questionnaire or an Excel data file they wish to analyse.

Statistics This four week course will cover descriptive statistics, data types, probability, hypotheses testing, chi-square, regression, power and sample size considerations and surveys. There will also be a drop-in session where you can get advice on your statistical issues!

(Systematic) Literature Review (Systematic) literature reviews have become more important, last but not least caused by the wide availability of electronic resources and increased recognition of these appraisals in academic literature; at the same time, expectations have raised about the quality of literature reviews. This workshop does not only cover the basics of a literature review (sourcing literature, databases, etc.), it also explains how to convert the findings of a systematic literature review into publications (theses, journal submissions). Besides methods, examples and tips for a high-quality review, the workshop also covers how to connect the literature review to empirical research.

The library will also deliver an interlude on specialist databases. More details on this will follow once a date has been set.

The Final PhD Hurdle: Preparation for the Viva With the viva voce coming close, this workshop supports your preparation for this final milestone of your doctoral study. While it relates the preparations to the procedures of UWS, most of the interactive workshop examines what you can do to prepare yourself for this event. The workshop also covers the viva itself and how to respond to questions by the assessors. Examples are taken from the real-life experiences of recent graduates and video-clips make this workshop worthwhile for anyone preparing for this final step in their doctoral study.

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The Transfer Event All students who are registered for an MPhil/PhD normally transfer their registration to PhD by successfully undertaking a transfer event. The purpose of the event is to ensure that the research is viable and that it will be likely to lead to an original contribution to knowledge. This training session involves an overview of the requirements for the event from both a student and staff perspective.

Working with your Supervisor andResearch Student Progression This workshop helps you to define your expectations and includes an academic and a student perspective. You will learn what supervisors want/expect from their students and vice versa. This is an important session in view of the importance of developing and maintaining a good working relationship to the success of your studies.

The session will also cover research student progression; which reports are required and when; research milestones and issues which might affect progression.

Writing and Publishing in Science and Technology Session will review the scientific approach to postgraduate research and the dissemination of research activities at all stages in a project. The reporting of progress, dissemination of background literature and external publication of important findings is critical to understand and become skilled in practice. The session will include a review of the scientific approach; structures for reporting, writing reports and reviews; a look inside the publication process at what the editor wants? Examples of bad practice and tips to improve success. The session will be presented by staff with a perspective from physical sciences and public health, experienced report writers, publishers and journal editors. Their approach will be factual as well as reflective and provide an opportunity for participant contributions across disciplines, to help demonstrate the wide variation in styles and approach.

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The Transfer Event All students who are registered for an MPhil/PhD normally transfer their registration to PhD by successfully undertaking a transfer event. The purpose of the event is to ensure that the research is viable and that it will be likely to lead to an original contribution to knowledge. This training session involves an overview of the requirements for the event from both a student and staff perspective.

Working with your Supervisor andResearch Student Progression This workshop helps you to define your expectations and includes an academic and a student perspective. You will learn what supervisors want/expect from their students and vice versa. This is an important session in view of the importance of developing and maintaining a good working relationship to the success of your studies.

The session will also cover research student progression; which reports are required and when; research milestones and issues which might affect progression.

Writing and Publishing in Science and Technology Session will review the scientific approach to postgraduate research and the dissemination of research activities at all stages in a project. The reporting of progress, dissemination of background literature and external publication of important findings is critical to understand and become skilled in practice. The session will include a review of the scientific approach; structures for reporting, writing reports and reviews; a look inside the publication process at what the editor wants? Examples of bad practice and tips to improve success. The session will be presented by staff with a perspective from physical sciences and public health, experienced report writers, publishers and journal editors. Their approach will be factual as well as reflective and provide an opportunity for participant contributions across disciplines, to help demonstrate the wide variation in styles and approach.

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Ayr Campus

Dumfries Campus

Hamilton Campus

Paisley CampusPaisleyPA1 2BEScotlandTel 0141 848 3000

Campus addresses

Dudgeon HouseDumfriesDG1 4ZNScotlandTel 01387 702100

University AvenueAyrKA8 0SXScotlandTel 01292 886000

Almada StreetHamiltonML3 0JBScotlandTel 01698 283100

www.uws.ac.uk

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