A mentor should be someone who can show you the way through things. They may not have THE answer, but they probably have AN answer. A bit like a Sherpa helps people up mountains. They cannot climb the mountain for you, but they can give you the best advice and support about how to climb.
The decision to become an academic researcher is often based on passion for science or research. And although leaving any profession is hard, the decision to leave academia is often a tough one. There are often conflicting emotions concerning staying or leaving. Not to mention the conversations with staff, students and colleagues. And sometimes it […]
PhD graduates are clearly capable of doing many things beyond the running of an individual research project. However, that is not always obvious to their potential employers. Here, I look at how to track, record and build transferable skills developed in your PhD or research career, so they can be made “accessible” to your potential […]
Virtual teams, or my preferred term – distributed teams – have come into prominence as a result of many governments implementing physical distancing measures to curb the transmission of COVID-19. However, virtual teams have been in operation for many years. Banks and utilities have had personnel placed across the globe for varying functions for the […]
The four key elements of Project Management are cost, quality, scope and time. Of all four, I most often get asked to help researchers with cost. Or more to the point budget setting and management.
Continuing the strategic planning theme this webinar builds on the last, this time covering environmental scanning. We often talk about strategy and strategic planning? But what does it actually mean? In this webinar I’ll give a brief introduction to strategic planning and then cover one of its key components – environmental scanning. I’ll provide a […]
We often talk about strategy and strategic planning? But what does it actually mean? In this webinar I’ll give a brief introduction to strategic planning and then cover one of its key components – SWOT analysis (also known as Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats).
Average completion times for a PhD vary, but most data suggests at least four years (full time) as an average. In some cases, the average completion time is more than seven years! So, how can we reduce that time. Short of doing more work or more hours (which I do not recommend), or being more […]
It is no longer enough to offer “just a PhD program”. Universities and their faculties, colleges, schools and departments all need to prepare PhD graduates for the workforce. And not just the research or academic workforce, but the wider workforce. We know that 50% of PhD graduates will immediately go onto a non-academic career, and […]
PhD students have some of the highest rates of mental fatigue of any part of the research system. Some studies even show PhD students as having the worst mental health of all professions and students. Why is this the case? And what can the sector do about it? We look at some of the data […]