Date: January 9 - 13, 2022
The purpose of a scientific article is not the mere presentation of information and thought. Rather it is actual communication. An article describing a great scientific discovery may mean nothing unless a large majority of the reading audience accurately perceives what the author had in mind. Therefore, to improve writing, we must understand how readers go about reading and interpreting texts. Such an understanding is vital for young scientific writers to ensure that their work is well received by the scientific community. The proposed workshop offers in-class discussion and one to- one conferences with participants on effective scientific writing. The goal is to develop participants’ expertise in four areas central to writing effectively.
Date: January 26, 2022
Interviews outside academia are often quite different to academic job interviews. In this session, you will learn what to expect and how to prepare for these types of interview. Whatever job you are applying for, this session will give you the tools to
prepare well and go into the interview confidently to perform at your best.
Date: February 1 & 3, 2022
Learn the skills of writing research papers for international peer-reviewed journals. Many researchers struggle with writing papers. However, there are effective strategies to help you get your research papers written and published. During this webinar, through practical exercises and discussions, you will examine all the steps in the writing process, and start drafting your own paper.
Date: February 8, 2022
Networking is frequently misunderstood, and often gets an undeserved bad press. Effective networking is about recognising and cultivating professional and social capital. University is an ideal environment from which to discover a rich network of contacts that may help you throughout your career. This webinar introduces a proactive approach to developing your own network. It explains how to incorporate networking into your career planning, and how to build genuine relationships. It also includes practical tips to help you “work the room”, and to promote yourself in conversations without appearing pushy or arrogant.
Date: February 10, 2022
Are you interested in moving out of academia and into a different career? In this course, you will learn how to approach a career change in a positive way. This includes how to research your options, network, and approach making decisions. The course will cover some of the typical careers that postdocs move into and give information on how to work out what would suit you best.
Date: March 28 - 30, 2022
This course is designed to equip you with the skills and resources you need to achieve success as a postdoc and launch your career as a researcher. It is a three-day course for postdocs in their first two years. In a structured and supportive environment facilitated by experienced trainers, you will gain a thorough understanding of your career options and develop tools and techniques to help you set and reach a series of short, medium and long term goals to maximise your success as a postdoc and plan for your next step.
Date: March 1, 2022
In this session, you will learn what to expect for the different types of academic interviews and what the interview panels are typically looking for. You will find out what interview questions to expect and how to prepare to answer them with confidence.
Date: March 8 - 9, 2022
Date: March 14 - 15, 2022
This course is designed to help experienced postdocs (usually with two to four years of postdoc experience) to take their next career step, academic or otherwise. During the course, you will be encouraged to explore your career options and develop an action plan to achieve the next step whilst enhancing your job application and interview skills.
Date: March 23, 2022
Date: March 24, 2022
Date: April 21, 2022
This course is designed to provide postdocs with useful information to help them prepare for the next stage of an academic career. Is a lectureship the right thing for you? Are there other options? Most importantly, can you make your academic career ambitions a reality? If you want to explore the answers to these questions, then this is the course for you.
Date: May 9, 12, 16, 23 and 30, 2022
A series of five online interactive co-hosted two-hour career education :
Date: May 19, 2022
Date: Jun 9 - August 8, 2022
The Higher Education Teaching Certificate aims to give you the opportunity to engage deeply with and reflect on your teaching practices, portfolio, and teaching journey in the higher education (HE) field. Loosely based on the in-person seminar program currently offered by Harvard’s Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning, you now have the opportunity to explore the focus areas of pedagogy, course and assessment design, professional communication, language and culture of the classroom, and reflections on teaching – entirely online, from anywhere in the world.
Date: July 27, 2022
Interviews outside academia are often quite different to academic job interviews. In this session, you will learn what to expect and how to prepare for these types of interview. Whatever job you are applying for, this session will give you the tools to prepare well and go into the interview confidently to perform at your best.
Date: August 9, 2022
This course introduces postdocs to fellowship funding and the process of making a fellowship application. During the course you will learn where to look for appropriate fellowship funding, how to apply and how to prepare a written application. Additionally you will take part in a practice exercise providing insight into the writing and peer review processes. Successful applicants and panel members from Imperial will share their experience of applying for fellowships in a question and answer session.
Learn how to make your application materials for jobs outside academia effective. You will find out how employers look at CVs and how to make yours catch their attention. You will also learn about the purpose of a cover letter, how to write one well and how to approach application forms.
Date: August 18, 2022
Being a postdoc can be a frantic, reactive and stressful time but it doesn't need to be, this course is aimed at those who would like to take back some control over their time.
Date: September 12-13, 2022
Date: TBC
Academia is an ultra marathon that we try to run as a sprint. This approach tends to leave us with little time or energy for life outside of work and very few resources to cope when we face challenges. But a healthier approach to research is possible and is essential if you want to build a sustainable career in academia (or anywhere else in this fast-paced, competitive world we live in). Despite our increasing diversity, researchers tend to harbor a common chorus of voices in our heads. Voices that demand perfection, or that tell us we aren’t good enough and we don’t belong here; voices that have driven us to excel, but that also charge a pretty high tax. A tax on our emotional, mental and physical health. Yes, the environment is a contributor to the unhealthy, counterproductive lifestyle many of us live. However, we as individuals can address the way we approach academia to buffer us against stress and burnout, worry and fear, and the toxic competition we are often surrounded by. These workshops provide you with tools to increase your resilience to stress, anxiety, and burnout, and to enhance your overall well-being both now during COVID times, as well as navigate everyday life and the challenges we face.
Date: September 20, 2022
Are you being invited by journal editors to review research manuscripts? Do you find reviewing a time-consuming, difficult or stressful activity? This webinar explains how the peer review system works, and what is expected of reviewers. It describes best practice for reviewers, based on the recommendations of 116 editors of medical, psychology, biology, chemistry, physics, maths, engineering and earth science journals.
Date: October 13, 20, 24, 31, 2022
A series of four online interactive co-hosted two-hour career education :
Date: October 12 - December 13, 2022
The Higher Education Teaching Certificate aims to give you the opportunity to engage deeply with and reflect on your teaching practices, portfolio, and teaching journey in the higher education (HE) field. Loosely based on the in-person seminar program currently offered by Harvard’s Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning, you now have the opportunity to explore the focus areas of pedagogy, course and assessment design, professional communication, language and culture of the classroom, and reflections on teaching – entirely online, from anywhere in the world.
Date: October 17-18, 2022
What does leadership in research look like? How can you provide vision and strategy alongside the day to day management of an expanding research group? Working with early career research leaders we will explore leadership and management using a mixture of case studies, advice from senior academics and theory. We will cover topics such as leadership styles, creating a group culture, raising the visibility of yourself and your group, conflict resolution and strategic thinking. An overarching theme will be your own personal career development. The course will be highly participative with group work and the opportunity to benefit from one-to-one coaching.
Date: November 3, 2022
In this session, you will learn what to expect for the different types of academic interviews and what the interview panels are typically looking for. You will find out what interview questions to expect and how to prepare to answer them with confidence.
Date: TBC
This five-part interactive series will focus on sharing effective strategies and tips on various critical aspects of grant proposal writing, submission, and resubmission. The schedule of the sessions is as follows:
1. How to Formulate a Convincing Rationale of Your Research Project.
2. Finding the Right Funder: Strategies for Prudent Selection!
3. How to Create a Comprehensive Project Management Plan.
4. How to Write a Persuasive Grant Proposal.
5. Understanding the Process of Grant Proposal Submission and Resubmission.