Learning and development for doctoral students
While a PhD will give you access to a range of career opportunities both in
academia and beyond, employers in all sectors look for a range of achievements,
skills and attributes in addition to education. So try to take full advantage of
the opportunities made available by your supervisor and your Department. In
addition the University runs a central programme specifically for PhD students,
through which you can develop a range of valuable skills, plus there are many
other development programmes that are available to you, listed under
programmes and courses (select the relevant tab). The UK Research Councils have defined a
set of skills (.pdf) that students should develop over the course of a PhD,
including academic, transferable, and career management skills. The Research
Councils provide funding to help universities support the development of these
skills centrally. You may be interested to see what
previous students
gained from the sessions.
Frequently asked questions
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How do I find information about forthcoming sessions?
Details of sessions are published on this website at the beginning of each
term (Autumn, Spring and Summer). There is also a fortnightly e-mail bulletin,
circulated to all PhD students during term time, which details the sessions
running in the coming weeks. Places are offered on a ‘first come first served’
basis, so book early to avoid disappointment.
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How do I book a place at a session?
Each session listed on this website is linked to a webpage containing full
details plus a booking form. Complete the form to apply for a place at the
session. Provided that there is a place available, you will receive a
confirmation email from the Learning and Development team within a few working
days.
Your place is only booked once you receive a confirmation email.
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Can I just turn up on the day?
Unfortunately not. All participants for a session need to book a place as
outlined above.
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What if the session I want to attend is fully booked?
If you do not receive a confirmation email following your application, it is
because the session is fully booked. A number of our sessions are repeated over
the course of the year, so you will have further opportunities to attend. In
some cases, where demand for places on a given course is high, we are able to
organise an additional session.
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What if I am unable to attend?
If you have a confirmed place at a session but find that you are unable to
attend for any reason, then please contact the Learning and Development team as
soon as possible to cancel: call 01206 874402 or e-mail us (‘ldev’). We will
then be able to offer the place to someone else.
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Is there a charge to attend sessions?
No. All of our sessions are free of charge to University of Essex doctoral
students. Very occasionally there are sessions where a deposit is required in
order to book a place; if so, this will be clearly stated on the corresponding
webpage, and the amount will be returned to you at the end of the course.
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What are Wise Up Wednesdays?
In addition to our programme of
research skills training, we also offer Wise Up Wednesdays: a series of
one-off events that take a broad look at research-related topics. Often
delivered by guest speakers, these popular midweek sessions are likely to be of
interest to research students from a wide range of disciplines. Previous topics
have included getting published in top journals, timely completion of your PhD,
and managing your research data, as well as live demonstrations of various
research software packages.
If you have any suggestions for future Wise Up Wednesday topics, then please
e-mail ldev (non-Essex users add @essex.ac.uk).
ESTRO
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