Hello Everyone,
Welcome to this December 2019 issue of the Sussex Researcher.
As we approach the shortest day of the year, the RSO are very much looking forward to the all the winter festivities, including the special Brighton "Burning of the Clocks" event and the variety of Christmas-y events here at the University... as well as the up-coming holiday. We hope you are too!
We will be closing the office Friday Dec 20th - Friday Jan 3rd inclusive so we can really enjoy the break - but between now and then, we still have some exciting provision for to you, including the Researcher Lunch on Tuesday Dec 3rd where we are particularly welcoming our International Researchers. Sign up if you'd like to come along!
We will be finalising our Semester 2 programme over the coming month - keep an eye on our Training and Development webpage if you want an update between now and the next newsletter.
Over the holidays, if you are interested in thinking about your future career, why not link through to our new Canvas site and look at the "Where shall I take my career next" area?
Whatever you do over the next month - we hope you have a fantastic close to 2019, and we look forward to seeing you in 2020!
Best wishes,
The Research Staff Office Team (Hayley Cordingley and Alex Aghajanian)
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Workshops & Events - Autumn term
- Preparing for leadership & management
- Improving your academic writing
- Personal effectiveness
- Research skills development
- Understanding the academic context
- Mental health & wellbeing
- Community events
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Events organised by other teams
Mental Health Awareness - Tuesday 3rd December, 09:15 - 12:45
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Featured Event Navigating peer review: challenges, responses and publishing Monday 9th December, 14:00-17:00 We are delighted to be able to offer our Research Staff an opportunity to engage in this half day workshop, created and led by Dr Joanna Young - founder of the Scientific Editing Company, and Director of Electv (the training division of #SciEditCo). Designed to introduce you to the academic publishing and peer review system through short presentations, discussions and peer review exercises, this event will give you an insight into how cutting edge research is assessed and published. By the end of the session you will:
- have an understanding of the peer review system (the process, the complexities, the responsibilities of the author/ reviewer)
- know what to expect when you submit your research papers for publication
- understand how to critically assess a research manuscript for quality, style, content, novelty and relevance
as well as how to get the most out of the experience!
All researchers will encounter peer review during their career - some as an author and some as an expert who has been asked to review the work of another - so sign up now and secure one of the limited spaces that are still available.
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Preparing for Leadership: e-Learning module Have you recently assumed leadership responsibilities? Or are you wondering what might be involved in a management role? By enrolling in this interactive module, you’ll discover the skills required and how you can develop them. Through video and text-based content, you’ll consider different approaches and apply them in the activities.
- When is leadership required?
- What is good leadership?
- How do values and background affect leadership styles?
- How do you manage different personality types?
- How do you motivate people?
- What is effective communication?
Learning outcomes By the end of the module, you’ll have:
- An understanding of the different types of leadership
- An insight into your own leadership style and preferences
- Guidance on how to get the best out of people
Who is this module for?
- Research Staff taking a leadership or supervisory role
- Research Staff who are planning to pursue a leadership role in future
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RSO Canvas "Careers" area: why not look at it over the holidays? Over the Christmas holidays, many people take time out to reflect on Life, the Universe and Everything - often thinking about where life is going and what they want to do career-wise. We understand this, and how it can be particularly acute for researchers working on fixed term contracts (not only at Christmas time!). So part of our new Canvas area is specifically designed to help you address the question - " Where shall I take my career next?"
- For people that are not sure they want to / are able to continue pursuing their current career trajectory (something that is very common within academia), we have a section entitled "What sort of job do I want?" Why not take some time out over the break to work through the self reflection exercises and start 2020 with a clearer idea of who you are and what will make you happy?
- For people that know where you want to take things, why not look at the "Finding and Applying for a job" section where you can brush up on your job hunting and application skills.
- If you're interested in branching out - look at the "Thinking creatively about your Career" recorded webinar
- And of course there are the Career Planning Toolkit webpages you can look through too
As we mentioned in our e-mail earlier this month, we will continue adding content to the Canvas area, and are very keen to hear from you about what you would like to see/what we can do to make this site really useful (especially if you work part-time and/or at a distance from campus). So please fill in this quick feedback form! NB - for the links in this article to work, you will have to register for the general RSO Canvas area, which you can do using the button below.
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Community news: Did you know? Useful local information you might have missed... 1) The Sussex Research Hive is the Library's designated area for researchers, open to all doctoral researchers and research staff. Located on the top floor of the library, the Hive features plenty of desk space, wide screen desktop computers, and two private rooms that you can book for meetings or use as a space for discussion and/or collaborative work. More than just another campus workspace, it is a place where you can interact with researchers at all stages and from all schools and departments on campus! 2) Research Staff can use the small ads section for one-off, personal ads – e.g. to buy and sell things, look for and offer accommodation, and post notices to others on campus. 3) There are a lot of Christmas-y activities happening around and about the University this month - check out the News and Events page to see what is going on. For example:
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University news: Dignity Champions Opportunity to apply to be one (by Dec 10th) As you may have heard, following the launch of the Dignity and Respect policy, a new "Dignity Champion" role has been created, with the University wanting to appoint eight people from across the whole university to these positions (that run alongside your "day job"). The role of these Champions is to "provide confidential and informal advice to those who feel they are experiencing difficult working relationships, including bullying or harassment, or who have witnessed such behaviour." If you are interested in knowing more, and potentially applying for one of these positions: look at the relevant Dignity and Respect web pages, read the Dignity Champion job description, and submit your application before December 10th.
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University news: Understanding the University’s committees and leadership groups Have you ever wondered about which high-level committees and groups responsibility for what? This month, there was a really useful "staff news" item that explained the University’s four key leadership groups:
- Council, is the Governing Body of the University and sets University strategy and monitors performance. It’s made up of a majority of independent members.
- Senate, is responsible for the academic standards and the direction and regulation of academic matters of the University.
- University Executive Group (UEG), “steers” the University, and it is the first port of call for regular, collective consideration of current and upcoming institutional business. It is chaired by the Vice-Chancellor.
- University Leadership Team (ULT), meets every two weeks to share information, discuss and make decisions to ensure that we deliver our Sussex 2025 Strategy. It is also chaired by the Vice-Chancellor, and has a wider membership than the UEG.
To find out more detail, or if you have any questions read the full news item and follow the links therein.
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Sector news: Revised Concordat to Support Research Integrity Item kindly written by: Antony Walsh, University of Sussex Research Governance Officer On 25 October, Universities UK announced the publication of the updated Concordat to Support Research Integrity. Compliance with this Concordat, which aims to ensure that universities uphold "the highest standards of rigour and integrity in all aspects of research", sees institutions being required to:
- annually publish numbers of investigations into allegations of misconduct in research, and
- set out how they actively promote and support research integrity, robust ethical review and good practice by researchers of all levels.
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Opportunities / External events
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Programme Director: Youth Futures The British Academy wishes to appoint a Programme Director who will engage with the award-holders and wider audiences to ensure coherence across outputs, synthesise research and policy-relevant findings, promote their effective uptake and use, and develop programme-level engagements with key stakeholders. Eligibility Requirements The Academy are seeking to appoint an outstanding researcher who has an established and distinguished track record of publication in a relevant field. The role is suited to someone who is particularly interested in operationally relevant research and in energising innovative collaborations between researchers and young people. It is anticipated that the research grant will cover all or part of the Programme Director’s salary and replacement teaching costs, and that s/he will be currently employed at a UK university or other UK institution of higher education. The appointed Programme Director cannot be part of any research award made under the Youth Futures programme. Value and Duration Applicants to the post of Programme Director should apply for a grant of up to 24 months in duration, starting on 20 March 2020. Funding of up to £160,000 is available for the duration of the contract. Application Process Applications and enquiries should be sent to Dr Stephanie Appleton at s.appleton@thebritishacademy.ac.uk. The deadline for submissions is Wednesday 11 December 2019 (00.00 UK time)
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Jenny Garrett Blog: Is bullying cutting short careers in many academic institutions? Jenny Garrett, award-winning career coach and member of the panel discussion on sexual misconduct, harassment and violence in the workplace, argues that bullying could be cutting short women’s careers in academia. According to Jenny, recent studies in the US show that 38% of workers, from both genders, witness or experience bullying during their careers, and research from Stonewall found that one in eight lesbian, gay and bi people (12 per cent) wouldn’t feel confident reporting any homophobic or biphobic bullying to their employer – yet few workplaces have effective policies to deal with bullies. If you are faced with bullying, Jenny states six steps that you can take to try and resolve the issue:
- Keep outwardly calm
- Record everything
- Get some external support
- Stand up for yourself
- Make a bottom-line case
- Prepare for potential retaliation
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Sector initiatives to know about...
Understanding the Academic Context:
Bite-size briefing #2
According to the Biennial Pulse Survey, researchers at the University are quite knowledgeable about some sector initiatives, but are unfamiliar with others - some of which are quite important for academic research careers. So over the next few newsletters, we thought we would give you some "bite-size briefings" to help familiarize you with the 13 initiatives you were asked about in the survey.  3) Concordat to support the Career Development of Researchers
- This Concordat, commonly known as the Researcher Development Concordat, is an agreement between stakeholders to improve the employment and support for researchers and researcher careers in higher education in the UK.
- It has just undergone a 10 year review, with the 2019 version being published this Sept.
- This new concordat clearly outlines 4 stakeholder groups (Institutions; Funders; Managers of Researchers; Researchers) that have certain obligations under 3 principles (Environment & Culture; Employment; Professional & Career Development).
- Unlike the previous version, organisations have to sign up to the Concordat on an individual basis.
- A range of major funders in the UK (e.g. UKRI, Wellcome; CRUK, British Academy) and wider sector organisations (e.g. UUK, UHR, Advance HE) are signatories to this Concordat, and it is widely expected that all UK research-intensive Universities will sign up.
- Upon committing to the Concordat, organisations have to undertake certain activities with 12 months, and report to “their governing body” on annual basis with documentation that becomes publicly available.
- UKRI, a signatory at launch, stated "By signing the concordat, UKRI has committed to consider how funding opportunities and policies can facilitate different patterns and ways of working; support the improvement of working conditions for researchers in relevant funding calls; and support institutions to develop policies and frameworks to promote sustainable employment arrangements".
- The RSO is delighted to say that initial conversations held with key stakeholders at the University indicate that Sussex will become a signatory to this new Concordat in due course.
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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 |
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International placement scheme
This provides funded research fellowships for doctoral students, doctoral-level research assistants and early-career researchers at leading international research institutions. Fellowships last between two and six months and include a one-off stipend of £870 for visa and travel costs and a monthly stipend of £1,500.
Deadline for Applications: 6th February 2020
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JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowships for Research in Japan (Standard Programme)
There are various opportunities to build collaborations with institutions in Japan via the JSPS. The standard programme provides opportunities for postdoctoral researchers from other countries to conduct, under the guidance of their hosts, cooperative research with leading research groups in universities and other Japanese institutions.
The fellowship includes a maintenance allowance of ¥362,000 per month and a settling-in allowance of ¥200,000 with a duration of 12 to 24 months.
Deadline for Applications: 8th May 2020
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JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowships for Research in Japan (Short-term Programme)
There are various opportunities to build collaborations with institutions in Japan via the JSPS. The short term programme provides opportunities for pre-/post-doctoral researchers from the US, Canada and Europe to conduct, under the guidance of their hosts, cooperative research with leading research groups in universities and other Japanese institutions.
The fellowship includes a maintenance allowance of ¥362,000 per month and a settling-in allowance of ¥200,000 with a duration of 1 to 12 months.
Deadline for Applications: 5th June 2020
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