Hello Everyone,
Welcome to the August 2020 issue of the Sussex Researcher. We hope you all have been keeping well and safe in these times.
During the month of August, we have two online webinars that we would particularly like to draw your attention to - Thinking Creatively About Your Career and Preparing for Leadership.
Organisational Development have introduced a Manager's Toolkit containing workshops, webinars, online learning and other resources that you can undertake to develop your skills and knowledge on leadership and management. Also in this edition, you will find that we have collated a number of courses and tutorials on remote working found within LinkedIn Learning that you can access and browse through at your own time.
Best wishes and we hope that you have a great summer,
The Research Staff Office
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- Preparing for leadership & management
- Improving your communication & writing
- Personal effectiveness
- Career development
- Understanding the academic context
- Mental health & wellbeing
- Community events
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Events organised by other teams
Microsoft Teams Workshop - Webinar - Tuesday 4th August, 10:00-12:00
Microsoft Teams Workshop - Webinar - Wednesday 12th August, 14:00-15:15
TEL staff development symposium - Tuesday 18th August, 09:30-17:00 |
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Introducing Organisational Development's new Manager's Toolkit Organisational Development have recently introduced a new Manager's Toolkit, created to help managers to be as effective as possible. This toolkit brings key policies, procedures, support and development together in one place. The resources are for all managers; whether you are in your first management role or you are an experienced manager, there is something here for you. Within each section there is a range of topics to choose from. Each topic contains workshops, webinars, online learning and other resources that you can undertake to develop your skills and knowledge. Most of these resources are available for you to access anytime, can be completed in any order and as and when you need them. Resources are split into three sections:
- Manager's Induction - this section contains a comprehensive guide of the main stages of the employee cycle as well as some FAQs.
- Managing People and Teams - this section contains information and resources on appraisals, coaching skills, and supporting flexible and blended teams.
- Developing Yourself as a Leader - this section contains information and resources on leadership and management, understanding your strengths, and mentoring.
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LinkedIn Learning - Online courses on Remote Working for Research Staff LinkedIn Learning is an online library that houses over 10,000 high quality tutorials on a range of topics that can contribute towards your personal and professional development. As highlighted in our previous newsletter edition, the Research Staff Office has curated collections of courses to guide research staff to useful resources on topics such as communication skills, productivity and time management, and quantitative research skills. To compliment these collections, we have now collated a list of courses and online tutorials on the topic of remote working that we feel are useful for you. Topics included cover:
- Learning how to use Zoom and MS Teams;
- Setting up your workplace and tips for remote working;
- Balancing work and life as a work-from-home parent;
- Using tools to collaborate while remote working.
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New collaborative Covid-19 projects get green light The University of Sussex has approved a number of new, collaborative projects to address the challenges and opportunities arising from the Covid-19 pandemic. A University-wide call for proposals has resulted in a number of new projects, using money from the University’s allocation of Higher Education Innovation Funding (HEIF) from Research England. The approved projects cover research, the student experience and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and involve working with external partners. The projects were all agreed by the CRES (Covid Resources, Equipment and Services) task force, chaired by Professor Malcolm Reed, Dean of the Brighton and Sussex Medical School. Professor Reed said: “We are thankful to Research England for granting us flexibility with these funds, which has enabled us to support lots of great projects." *News story by Stephanie Allen
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Findings from COVID 19 survey for Early Career Researchers & Suggestions to Universities The Student Mental Health Research Network (SMaRteN) and Vitae, on behalf of the sector, have surveyed doctoral researchers and early career research staff in UK universities about the impact of the COVID-19 restrictions since 16 March 2020 on their working lives. The survey launched on 16 April and 5,900 researchers responded, consisting approximately one third research staff. The survey asked respondents for suggestions of how their supervisors and institutions could help them to work effectively during lockdown. “Communicating effectively with doctoral and early career researchers has been a challenge. This group have diverse funding arrangements and different ways of working. Universities need to get the balance right – ensuring researchers receive all the information they need while not overwhelming them. As universities start to re-open campuses, there will be renewed uncertainty that needs to be navigated carefully.” Dr Nicola Byrom, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, Kings College London and Principle Investigator, SMaRteN, the Student Mental Health Research Network. Full findings from analysis available online at: www.smarten.org.uk/suggestions-following-covid-research The survey and full set of quantitative data can be accessed here: www.smarten.org.uk/covid-19-study
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Opportunities / External events
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Free Access to Online Course on Supporting PhD Students Are you a PhD supervisor or about to become one? If so, this online course provides you with practical tips, resources, and ideas for improving the supervisory relationship. Through videos and activities, the course addresses the key challenges of supporting research students throughout their PhD towards successful completion. Topics include coaching techniques, academic writing, and managing the impact of mental health issues. The course comprises:
- 25 short videos for you to watch at your own pace
- Captions and transcripts throughout
- Downloadable templates
*The Research Staff Office have negotiated free access for a limited number of research staff at the University of Sussex. Please contact the Research Staff Office to obtain a free access code.
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Fifteen to one: how many applications it can take to land a single academic job offer *Article by Nina Notman & Chris Woolston from Nature.com It takes at least 15 job applications to land a single offer, finds a survey of 317 early-career researchers who applied for faculty positions in a range of nations. The results have shed light on a hiring process that is often opaque, frustrating and hard to predict. Contrary to common belief, the authors found that a publication in a high-profile journal isn’t an absolute prerequisite for a successful application. The survey tracked conventional metrics of success such as fellowships, citations and publications, and found that these measures were only modestly effective at predicting which applicants would get job offers. The authors tried to construct a flow chart to predict the applicants’ fate, but it was less than 60% accurate.
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Research Funding
If applying for funding, remember to check funders' eligibility criteria carefully and discuss the opportunity with your host institution/department prior to preparing any applications.
Do look at Research Development webpages for guidance around applications
For more information about ECR Fellowships, check out our new webpage:
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/staff/research/researchstaff/funding/fellowship-opportunities
For Coronavirus information for research grant applicants & grant holders check out:
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/staff/research/development/covid-19 |
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Postdoctoral fellowships
These support early-career researchers in the humanities or social sciences. Fellowships are tenable for three years and cover fellows’ salaries, small-scale research expenses up to £6,000, costs towards the time of a mentor, and the host institution’s estates and indirect costs.
Deadline for Applications: 14th October 2020
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Stephen Hawking fellowships
These support postdoctoral researchers in the field of theoretical physics or fundamental mathematical and computer sciences that underpin them. Up to 10 fellowships, tenable for up to four years, are available.
Deadline for Applications: 18th November 2020
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Early-career fellowships
These enable early-career researchers to undertake a significant piece of publishable work and to advance to a more permanent academic position. Approximately 100 fellowships are available.
Deadline for Applications: 25th February 2021
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Philip Leverhulme prizes
These recognise researchers in the early stages of their career whose work has had international impact and whose further research career is promising. Prizes are worth £100,000 each over two to three years.
Deadline for Applications: 17th May 2021
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