Hello Everyone,
Welcome to the latest issue of the Sussex Researcher. This month Sussex Research has launched the ninth round of the Research Development Fund designed to develop activities that will directly lead to the submission of substantive external research proposals. Take a look at the article below for more information.
On another note, the Research Staff Development Series will be holding its first workshop on Supporting PhD Students, so if you are a PhD supervisor, or considering becoming one, do take a look and book quickly to grab a place!
We hope you have a restful Easter break and to see you the upcoming events that we have going on throughout the month of April.
Best wishes,
The Research Staff Office Team (Catherine Pope and Alex Aghajanian)
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Featured Event
Supporting PhD Students: Practical Tips for Optimising the Supervisory Experience
Tuesday 24th April, 14:00pm-17:00pm
Audience: Research staff and early career academic faculty
Are you a PhD supervisor or considering becoming one? If so, this 3-hour interactive workshop will provide you with practical tips, resources, and ideas for optimising the supervisory relationship.
Through group discussion and exercises, we’ll address the key challenges of supporting research students throughout their PhD and guiding them to successful submission.
In this interactive workshop we will explore strategic tools and approaches to assist longer term research planning. You will have an opportunity to take an objective view of your broader research field and start to build a research career plan that enables you to be proactive in pursuing your research goals and responding to the big questions in your field.
We cover:
- Managing expectations
- Working with different types of researchers
- Undertaking a Training Needs Analysis
- Monitoring progress
- Dealing with problems
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Spotlight on Dr Adam Barrett
EPSRC Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Complexity Science, working on the Mathematics of Consciousness
I have a diverse set of interests; the unifying theme is the application of mathematics to big questions. It has been an exciting time for me to be able to work on a theory that was sort of in its infancy, on quantifying consciousness in terms of information, and coding information in a mathematical way.
Consciousness is fascinating because it’s everything that we are. There are a handful of people in the world who are trying to model mathematically the physical and biological processes underlying consciousness. I have come up with ways to measure the diversity of brain waves and found very reliably that there is greater diversity when you are awake than when you are under general anaesthesia or fast asleep.
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New round of the Research Development Fund launched Sussex Research has launched the ninth round of the Research Development Fund. The RDF is designed to develop activities that will directly lead to the submission of substantive external research proposals. The scheme is intentionally flexible, recognising that different disciplines have different requirements for research development. Funds could be used for example to support lab based work, work related to clinical trials, archival research, scoping activities, or web based research. Members of faculty on fixed-term contracts may apply if they will be employed at Sussex during the RDF funded project period and also during the proposed externally funded project(s) which would occur after the RDF pump-priming activity. Projects would normally be expected to run for a maximum of 6 months and applicants can apply for pilot projects ranging from £5k to £30k. Further details about the scheme and information on how to apply is available on the Sussex Research website. Deadline: 12 noon Monday 30 April 2018.
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Celebrating Women in Research at Sussex To recognise International Women's Day 2018, the Sussex Research Hive released a number of blog posts celebrating women in research at Sussex.
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University friends reunite for rough sleeping fundraiser Two friends who met at the University of Sussex are having a reunion with a difference as they prepare to sleep rough for charity. Karen Marshall and Alison Holt will brave temperatures of near zero degrees celsius as they team up to take part in the YMCA Sleep Easy 2018 fundraiser this Friday to raise money for YMCA DownsLink Group and local campaign Galvanise Brighton & Hove. Karen, a research fellow at the University of Sussex who works in the Serpell Lab in the School of Life Sciences, and NHS clinical psychologist Alison will join around 110 participants who will spend a night sleeping out at Brighton Hove and Sussex Sixth Form College (BHASVIC) with just cardboard and sleeping bags to protect them from the elements. To donate to Karen and Alison, visit here.
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Master Class on EU Cohesion Policy for early career researchers
As part of the 16th European Week of Regions and Cities, applications are being sought from early career researchers (defined as being within five years of the date on their PhD certificate or equivalent) undertaking research related to European Cohesion Policy to attend the 2018 University Master Class.
The Master Class is a unique format to connect aspiring researchers and will include presentations of papers by the participants as well as lectures and panel debates with policymakers, EU officials and senior academics to improve understanding of, and research, on EU Cohesion Policy.
In particular, the Master Class will serve to:
- discuss recent research on European regional and urban development and EU Cohesion Policy;
- enable PhD students and early career researchers to exchange views and network with policymakers, EU officials and senior academics;
- raise awareness and understanding of the research potential in the field of EU Cohesion Policy.
Interested early career researchers are requested to submit their details and the application documents via the online form at http://bit.ly/2FCC6Ef The application deadline is 9th May 2018, 15.00 (GMT) or 16.00 (CET).
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Award puts spotlight on humanities research in healthcare The Arts and Humanities Research Council and the Wellcome Trust have launched an award to celebrate arts and humanities research that aims to improve health, healthcare and wellbeing. Winners will be selected in five categories: best research; best doctoral or early-career research; best international research; leadership award; and inspiration award. An overall winner will receive the Health Humanities Medal at a ceremony in London in September. The deadline for entries is 24th May 2018.
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Opportunities
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. |
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New Investigator Research Grant (NIRG)
This supports researchers who are capable of becoming independent principal investigators and who are ready to take the next step towards that goal within the area of neurosciences and mental health. Funding supports salaries, research or technical costs, equipment and travel costs, and dissemination costs.
Deadline for Applications: 30th May 2018
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Early career researchers grants
These support individual early career researchers in specific studies or professional development. Grants are worth up to £5,000.
Deadline for Applications: 30th June 2018
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Training fellowships
These support early-career researchers from any area of medical, biological or veterinary research, focusing on developing new skills and gaining a breadth of research experience. The total budget is £600,000.
Deadline for Applications: 12th September 2018
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