Hello Everyone,
Welcome to the April 2021 issue of the Sussex Researcher. We hope you had a wonderful and relaxing Easter break!
We start this edition by bringing you news of the newly appointed Director of Research Staff Development, Dr Erika Mancini. Please read the news story below for more details.
Also highlighted below, there are still a few days left for you to apply to the Researcher-Led Initiative Fund - which provides up to £750 for ECRs to organise an event or activity that can enhance your professional skills and/or benefit the research community.
In terms of training provision for research staff, there are a number of workshops coming up in April we'd particularly like to draw your attention to:
Best wishes,
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
- Data Management Skills
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Events organised by other teams
Wrangling your workload - Tuesday 13th April & Thursday 15th April, 10:00-12:00
Making the most of your Elements profile - Wednesday 14th April, 12:00-13:00
Sussex Research Hive Seminar - Own it: The impact of rights retention - Tuesday 20th April, 14:00-15:30
Developing your people management skills - Thursday 22nd April, 11:00-12:30
Making the most of your Elements profile - Monday 26th April, 12:00-13:00 |
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Introducing Dr Erika Mancini - Director of Research Staff Development We are delighted to welcome Dr Erika Mancini as the new Director of Research Staff Development. Erika is the Chair of the Research Staff Working Group. Her role as Director of Research Staff Development involves creating a thriving environment for the development of research staff. Erika will be overseeing the implementation and improvement of the Concordat for the Career Development of Researchers; increasing the visibility of research staff at the University level, act as a key liaison point between research staff and School/Professional Services staff, and advocate for research staff as a community.
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Sussex Research Hive Seminar series returns for 2021! The Sussex Research Hive Seminar series returns for 2021. Moving online they will be bringing together the research community and, for the first time they will be available to all institutions, academics and researchers. Over four months the seminars will be exploring and discussing issues that are currently affecting researchers. The seminars will provide a range of perspectives from researchers and practitioners, and open the conversation up to our peers.
Supported by SAGE Publications and hosted by the University of Sussex Library, these events are open to everyone engaged in, supporting or curious about the research process. Where possible slides and recordings of the sessions will be made available.
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Want to run your own training or community activity? Apply to the Researcher-Led Initiatives Fund The Researcher-Led Initiatives Fund offers up to £750 to doctoral and early career researchers to organise an event or activity to enhance your professional skills and benefit the research community. The fund supports short-term, well defined initiatives around:
- equality, diversity and inclusion
- mental health and wellbeing
- public engagement
- training and development
See the RLI Fund webpage for further information and to apply. The deadline for applications is Monday 12 April
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Opportunities / External events
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Elsevier Researcher Academy - Free Online Modules on Manuscript Preparation As you embark on your publishing career, it can feel like there’s an endless array of procedures, protocols and best practice to absorb. In this series of modules, you will be walked through some of the key points you should pay attention to during that all-important manuscript preparation stage. Access these modules and learn how the publishing cycle works from submission and peer review through to decision time. You will learn about the various elements in a traditional research article and receive valuable tips on how to maximize their potential.
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UKRIO Annual Conference 2021 (research integrity two-day event) UKRIO’s annual conference is the principal research integrity event in the UK and, since 2013, has been an essential resource for the research community and policy makers. For the first time in its 8-year history, this free event will take place online across two days, Wednesday 19 May and Thursday 20 May, with a deep dive into research integrity and “good research practice in a changing world”. The event will be opened by Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, the Chief Executive of UK Research and Innovation and Regius Professor of Botany at the University of Cambridge. Tracey Brown OBE, Director of Sense About Science, will open the second day of the conference, sharing her perspective on good research practice and the communication of research. Speakers from the research community will come together to discuss “good research practice in a changing world”, including:
- How to support a culture of high quality and ethical research, now and in the future.
- How to respond to issues of poor practice and concerns about fraud.
- Updating delegates on key developments in research integrity and stimulating debate on good research practice.
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UK still considering Discovery Fund in addition to EU’s Horizon *Article by Sophie Inge from Research Professional The UK government is still considering introducing a new Discovery Fund in addition to association to the European Union’s R&D programme, Horizon Europe. The fund was originally proposed as an alternative to the €95 billion (£80bn) EU research programme, should the UK fail to associate to it after Brexit. While association has yet to be formalised, the UK government has since agreed to retain participation in the programme as part of its Brexit trade deal with the EU. But Research Professional News understands officials are still considering whether there is scope to proceed with a Discovery Fund that is complementary to association and could facilitate meeting the priorities laid out in the government’s R&D roadmap. According to the roadmap, the fund would offer “sizeable grants over long periods of time to talented early, mid and late-career researchers, whether already in the UK or coming here from anywhere in the world, to pursue discovery-led, ground-breaking research”.
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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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Early detection and diagnosis primer award
This enables researchers at all stages to develop early, novel and outside-the-box ideas and collaborations to build and make progress in the early detection field. Awards are worth up to £100,000 for up to one year.
Deadline for Applications: 8th September 2021
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CRUK/Pathological Society predoctoral research bursary
These provide short term funding to allow clinicians to get involved in cancer research projects early in their careers. Awards are worth up to £45,000 each for up to one year.
Deadline for Applications: 8th September 2021
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