Hello Everyone,
Welcome to the latest issue of the Sussex Researcher for 2019.
As we write this, it looks like the summer has finally arrived - so we're really looking forward to the weekend ahead and over the coming weeks trying to grab some time out and about on campus - so you may see us trying to drop in and visit you so we can get out of the office!
This month we are introducing a quick navigation section below our introductory "blurb" to help you see what is in the newsletter at a glance, and find the items of particular interest quickly (although of course we think it's all really interesting and relevant!). Let us know what you think about it, and as always if there's anything that you'd like to see organised/talked about here. See you all soon!
Best wishes,
The Research Staff Office Team (Hayley Cordingley and Alex Aghajanian)
In this Edition Workshops & Events - July: - Featured Events: ECR Fellowships series - Seminar survey results: You said; We will do... News: University - Biennial Researcher Pulse Survey - Research Staff Socials - MPS & EngInf Sector - Concordat update - summary slides from Vitae Opportunities: - Podcasting brainstorming session - Life Sciences Postdoc Research Symposium Your Research & Careers: Research: -Snails and memory Careers articles: - Academic conference tips - Insecure employment => bad science Research Funding: - CAMS; MRC; NERC; Getty/ACLS
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Workshops & Events - July
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Research Staff Office Events
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Events organised by other teams
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Featured Events: ECR Fellowships Have you heard about "Fellowships" and wondered what they are? Have you thought about applying for a Fellowship? Do you want to learn more? Then sign up to attend one of these Fellowships events the Research Staff Office and Research Development Office are putting on specifically for you this July.
In this session, two fellowship applicants will talk about their personal experiences: putting an idea onto paper; making it into a fundable proposal; linking up with key contacts in the School / at the University; Top-Tips for future applicants.
In this session a university specialist will give an overview of what is 'Research Impact' and why it has become "a thing" over the last few years. The session will also cover what is a 'Pathways to Impact Statement', how might you go about creating one, and what support there is.
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Summer Seminar Series Survey - You said; We will do...
Many thanks to everyone who managed to find the time to contribute to our survey asking about the optimal timings and formats for re-running our interactive seminars.
We are delighted to say that we had responses from 36 people who are affiliated with 11 Schools across the University, with 34 people identifying as being Research Staff (amongst your various roles!) - so a great sample representing about 10% of our client community.
And so to the results!
You said:
- In terms of face-to-face vs webinars – preference for face-to-face
- In terms of timing for this sort of event – strong preference for lunchtime
- In terms of location for this sort of event – preference for seminar/training rooms
- Free text entries touched on people working limited hours/days - needing advance notice
So based on this feedback We will: - Organise to re-deliver the seminar series at lunchtimes in a centrally located venue on campus - Give at least one month notice of each event - Deliver the seminar series on a variety of weekdays (avoiding Mondays and Fridays) - Record/make available the seminar materials via an online platform - Consider developing a hybrid event that lends in a more social environment
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COMING SOON - Biennial Researcher Pulse Survey
In July the RSO will be launching our biennial survey, specifically aimed at Research Staff, to "take the pulse" of this community here at Sussex.
The reasons why we will be asking people to participate in this survey are two-fold:
- Hayley has been in the Research Staff Officer role here at the University for 6 months now and is considering how to shape the RSO offerings for the new academic year. She would very much like to gather as much feedback from the community to input into this - hence will be asking questions in the survey around: what you particularly like in terms of the RSO support offered to you; what you would like to see more of; what you think about some ideas she has bubbling away.
- Part of the work the Research Staff Office undertakes to champion the cause of research staff here at the University is to co-ordinate the University submissions for the HR Excellence in Research award, and to co-create and ensure delivery of the Concordat Implementation Plan. We are approaching our 2 year review point, and we want to gather the sort of data that is captured in the CROS survey so we can compare what was said 2 years ago with what people are saying now.
We anticipate the survey will take around 20 minutes to complete, and realize this is quite a "big ask", so as an extra incentive we will be organizing a prize draw - look out for more details!
We are genuinely only asking for you to participate so we can support you better - when we have the data to show what the community says is important / needed, it helps us to lobby to get the resources we need to deliver this for you.
So please - when you receive an email inviting you to complete the Research Staff Survey - do complete it!
We will update you on progress in the next edition of our newsletter.
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Research Staff Socials - MPS hosted in June; EngInf gathering in July Thanks to all of you who attended our ‘Postdoc Pizza’ event hosted by the MPS Research Staff Rep (Mark Bason) last week. We were delighted that so many of you could make it, and celebrate it being "summer" despite the blowy weather! We are happy so many of you said you enjoyed yourselves :) We in the RSO are very much looking forward to meeting members of the EngInf research staff community at the "Meet the RSO" lunchtime event we are organizing with the Research Staff Reps ( Husam Ramadan, Peter Overbury and Alex Dewar) for July 17th. More details about this event will be coming through to EngInf Research Staff from your Rep(s) in due course. We’re keen to hear if there is appetite for more events: social, professional development opportunities or both! So if you are keen to have something similar for your school or group, get in touch with us and share your thoughts and ideas!
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Update on the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers - summary slides Following the sector consultation on the independent review of the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, Vitae has produced a handy set of summary slides for your use. The slides provide a bitesize summary of the consultation outcomes, including next steps, and can be used within your institution to keep researchers and all those supporting them up to date with progress around the revision of the Concordat.
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Interview / Podcasting brainstorming session - Come along!
Date: Wednesday 10th July, 15:00-16:30
Location: Research & Enterprise Meeting Room 1, Falmer House
We are happy to announce that we are currently working on developing a new Peer Interview / Podcasting Initiative aimed at:
- encouraging and enabling research staff to link with and interview their peers
- giving research staff an opportunity to create engaging written and/or audio materials for a research-savvy but non-expert audience
- highlighting the quality research carried out here at Sussex.
To flesh the concept out in more detail, we would like to harness the ideas from our community. We will be holding a brainstorming session on the 10th of July at our offices on level 1 of Falmer House - please get in touch with us if you are interested in participating in this session, or would like to contribute but are unable to make that particular date. Also - if you are interested being an interviewer and/or interviewee, do let us know and we will be in touch as things develop over the next few months!
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Life Sciences Postdoc Research Symposium 2019
Date: Thursday 4th July, 10:00-15:00
Location: Jubilee Lecture Theatre, Jubilee Building
The Life Sciences Postdoc Research Symposium will be held on Thursday 4th July 2019, from 10am-3pm in the Jubilee lecture theatre. The symposium will be a one-day event to:
- raise awareness of the various kinds of research happening across the School of Life Sciences at the University of Sussex
- provide speakers with experience of preparing and presenting research
- provide networking opportunities between Life Sciences postdocs and the wider University community.
Please register for a place if you wish to attend! Please contact Rosie Barnard, Eduard Campillo-Funollet or Monika Chugh if you have any questions.
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15 minutes to develop your research career Episode 8: Academic conference tips Academic conferences are common in the research world, but how do you use conferences to develop your career? And what can you do to get the most out of them? This episode by Taylor & Francis Group guides you through the key aspects of conferences, including how to prepare for them, networking skills, and delivering a conference paper presentation. Interviewees include Pat Thomson – Professor of Education and creator of the popular ‘Patter’ blog, which is packed with advice for researchers at all stages. Get more tips for academic conferences here.
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Snails show that variety is the key to success if you want to remember more A change is as good as a rest when it comes to remembering more, according to new research by neuroscientists at the University of Sussex. Dr Michael Crossley, Senior Research Fellow in Neuroscience, used pond snails to study the factors impacting on memory interference. He found that, when tasked with learning two similar things, snails were only able to store and recall the first memory. Conversely, when faced with learning two totally unrelated tasks, the snails were able to retain all the information and successfully store both memories.
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Insecure employment for postdoc researchers is leading to bad science
Dr Nikolay Ogryzko, Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Edinburgh and a member of the Concordat Writing Group, wrote an interesting article in the Guardian last week, calling for an institutional culture change in the working environment for postdoctoral researchers helped by the forthcoming revision of the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers.
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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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CAMS-UK fellowships
These enable early-career analytical chemists to establish their own independent analytical science research identity. Fellowships are worth up to £30,000 each.
Deadline for Applications: 6th September 2019
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Population and systems medicine – new investigator research grant
This supports researchers capable of becoming independent principal investigators and who are ready to take the next step towards that goal within the areas of population and systems medicine. Grants are tenable for three years; however, in exceptional cases applications for longer periods of time may be accepted.
Deadline for Applications: 25th September 2019
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Independent research fellowships
These provides early-career environmental scientists with five years’ support for developing their research programmes and to gain international recognition. There are no funding limits although applications generally request £500,000 total funding.
Deadline for Applications: 1st October 2019
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New investigator research grant – neurosciences and mental health
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 over three years.
Deadline for Applications: 2nd October 2019
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Getty/ACLS Postdoctoral Fellowships in the History of Art
These support an academic year of research or writing by early-career scholars for a project that will make a substantial and original contribution to the understanding of art and its history. There are ten fellowships available worth USD 65,000 each.
Deadline for Applications: 23rd October 2019
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