Personal and professional development – The Bristol Doctoral College Blog

What we’ll miss about our Postgraduate Researcher Development Officer, Dr. Loriel Anderson

Posted on 17 April 201917 April 2019 by Doctoral College

Whether you’ve only recently started your degree, or you’ve been a PGR for a while, the chances are you’ve come across Loriel, our PGR Development Officer.

Originally a Classics PhD student, she started her career in Professional Services as an intern when the Bristol Doctoral College was first founded in October 2013 – making it a total of 5.5 years she has been working to make our University’s environment better for our postgraduate research students.

Today, the BDC team and wider PGR community bid farewell to Loriel as she returns with her family back to Canada, where she originally hails from. Just like the geese in winter, she is going back home – but not before we commemorate some of the initiatives she has left with us that have helped make our PGR community feel like a home for researchers.

She helped set up the PPD programme

The BDC’s Personal and Professional Development programme, commended by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) as a shining example of good practice, is a curated catalogue of opportunities designed specifically with postgraduate researchers in mind.

Loriel was there at its conception, and has been the driving force behind the programme as it has grown and developed every year. While the programme extends out far beyond the seminars and courses offered centrally within the BDC, Loriel has played a huge role in working with colleagues across the University to ensure that the postgraduate research community knows what support is available to them in their personal and professional needs throughout their time at Bristol.

Setting up the Ventures Fund – a pot of money reserved for students to run development activities and initiatives they’d like to see offered – is part of one of the many amazing incredible gifts she has brought to the University’s PPD offering. Along with assistance from other colleagues in the BDC team, she even started running and delivering in-house workshops on Thesis Mapping and how to manage different stages of a research degree.

She is one of the brains behind Research without Borders

Some say that the Research without Borders festival is one of the PGR parties of the academic year – it’s both a showcase and a celebration of the amazing work that research students accomplish at the University.

The first Research without Borders festival was run by Loriel in the BDC’s early days, and while the festival itself has grown and evolved into its Colston Hall showcase and Watershed discussion series format of today, its aims have always remained the same: to give students the chance to communicate their work, train them about how to talk to different groups in effective ways, and to create space and opportunity for our researchers to meet people outside of their disciplines.

Loriel is the team member who described the festival as a chance for students to “raise their gaze” from their desk and look around at the wide, wonderful and wacky world of research happening all around us everyday. And this is a reminder and a gift we now celebrate annually!

She’s a constant champion for the PGR community – including making the PGR Hub happen!

A space dedicated to researcher development and wellbeing is something that felt like a faraway dream when Loriel first began with the BDC in 2013.

After years of setting up the PPD programme across various University rooms – from windowless holes in the basement of Wills Memorial Building to the beautiful views found on the 4th floor of the School of Education (she is still a font of knowledge about what rooms to avoid when booking meetings…!) – the PGR Hub became instated as part of the Campus Heart project.

Shaping the space, defining its mission, and being a champion for the significance of a PGR-specific space and the activities it can run, have been hallmarks of Loriel’s last year with us. She was even the ideas-person behind our Five Weeks of Wellbeing initiative.

She brings her job title to life

What is in a job title, you ask? In 2013, “researcher development” was still a phrase few in the world of academia understood. Why is researcher development important, and how is it different to other kinds of development?

Researcher development – as the BDC applies it in the world of postgraduate research – is about helping students at the beginning of their degree feel equipped and empowered to grow into effective researchers who feel able to apply the skills and experience they gain in a variety of interesting and engaging areas.

No one has brought this quite to life like Loriel: she has proven, as all the above have indicated, that growing into an “effective researcher” means more than just delivering a skills programme, or hosting one fun community event. It is about making sure the soil to plant ideas in is fertile, and that the seeds and plants are well-tended and watered. She has given us an entire garden that will continue to grow and flourish, because she has given it the attention and care that it needed to take root in the first place.

So – this isn’t goodbye, but a “thank you”. Thank you, Loriel. You will be missed, but you have given us a number of gifts that we can carry with us on our side of the pond!

Want to engage?

Posted on 2 November 20169 March 2017 by Doctoral College

Thomas O’Shea-Wheller is a final year PhD student in Biology. He studies the behaviour and social organisation of ants, with a particular interest in how complex collective behaviours may emerge from simple rules at the individual level. His research has been featured on the BBC, PBS and Wired, among others. Photo credit: Mengqiong Zhou.

From the moment I started my PhD, I knew that I wanted to engage people with my research. After all, that was how I first became interested in science; by learning about the work and discoveries of others, and so I was eager to elicit those same feelings of enthusiasm that I had felt as a child.

The only problem was, I had no idea how to go about doing it. Initially, it was far from clear which of the many avenues of ‘public engagement’ were actually worth the time and effort, and besides that, if anyone even cared about the work of a PhD student. After doing some research, however, it became apparent to me that much of the exposure that could be received in science was dependent upon making your work accessible, rather than upon its exact subject. Such a revelation could at first seem like a bad thing; after all, shouldn’t research be ascribed coverage based on its merit and scientific significance alone? In fact, what it means in practice, is that all scientists have the potential to intrigue and fascinate others with their work. Of course, ground-breaking discoveries are guaranteed to receive ample attention, and justly so, but with the right approach, so can more modest advances. There is, however, one caveat to achieving this; you need to be able to crystallise precisely what makes your work interesting.

I’ll admit that I consider myself fortunate in this regard; my area of research, the collective behaviour of ants, is relatively relatable and easy to explain, since most people have at least heard of the industrious insects. That said, whether you study trans-membrane receptors, or the self-organising properties of chemical compounds, it matters not, as all research has one uniting faculty that lends itself well to public engagement. Specifically, if you are investigating anything scientifically, it is because you hope to find something of use, or at the very least, something novel. This—by its very nature – is going to be intriguing to people, and all that you have to do is explain it in a way that will foster understanding.

Making your science accessible is, somewhat ironically, more akin to an art; a delicate balance between removing unnecessary complexity and avoiding an overt ‘dumbing down’ of the core concepts. The best advice I can give is to focus upon isolating the central points or messages that are most important to a piece of research, while doing so in as straight-forward a manner as possible. A distillation, so to speak.

Once you have some practice in summarising your research effectively (and practise you will need), the final piece of the ‘puzzle’ concerns how best to disseminate your findings, in order to reach the people you wish to engage. The answer to this really depends on your personal aims and target audience, do you want to inform the general public? The scientific community? Or perhaps a combination of both? Activities such as science demonstrations and talks to schools are a great way to gain experience, and most institutions provide ample chances to do both. However, if you truly wish to reach the widest audience, and make a lasting impression, publication of your work is key, as it paves the road to media coverage.

It goes without saying that in an increasingly technologically-centred society, digital media really does form the heart of any effective promotion or engagement strategy. So, how can you go about getting such coverage? It is often a lot easier than you might think. If there is one key point to take away from this post, it is that preparing and disseminating good quality press releases is probably the most important factor in increasing the media impact of your research. The good thing about this, is that it is relatively easy to do; simply contact the relevant journal prior to the publication of your article, and discuss putting together a statement. Furthermore, you can ask the same of your university’s press office, as they will often distribute a summary of your research in tandem with the journal, and are usually more than happy to do so.

Just ensure that you are not idle.

The reason I bother to mention this, is that it is something that it is so rarely taught, or even mentioned, but has a massive impact; an effective press release can literally mean the difference between a national headline, and a complete lack of interest. Put simply, by the time you are publishing a piece of research, you have already invested (often very) considerable effort into it, so why neglect the final stage, when it may determine whether anyone actually reads it?

Fortunately, there is now a promising trend towards more awareness on the part of PhD students when disseminating their research. Student press-groups, and better information relating to the benefits of press coverage, have become markedly more common in the few years since I began my PhD. Still, there is a lot to be said for actively promoting your own work; do not be afraid to contact the press offices of journals and institutions alike. If they are going to publish your work, ensure that they promote it as well.

On a parting note, the more practice you have, the better you will become at it, and in terms of the cost-benefit trade-offs (apologies, I am a biologist) I can think of few other public engagement activities that are so rewarding.

Tried and Tested: PhD is the New Boss

Posted on 19 October 20169 March 2017 by Doctoral College

On the 21^st of September 2016, I marked one year at the University of Bristol. People have compared the first year of a PhD programme to the “honeymoon phase” after a wedding. Since I have never been on a honeymoon, I cannot relate to that metaphor. I can however assure you that it has been an amazing academic year with huge learning experiences for me. I like to think that I have become smarter than I was a year ago. You have to take my word for it though. My research proposal has also gone through some changes, a process similar to the metamorphosis of a butterfly. However, it doesn’t look as pretty as a butterfly yet, but I hope it will, in the coming months. The research problem that intrigued me hasn’t changed yet. I am only changing the ways I wish to address the problem. These changes have been necessitated by the need to clarify the focus of my research and fine-tune the research process. During this period, I attended several seminars, workshops and conferences, in addition to my compulsory coursework units. I can attest to the fact that all of these platforms equipped me with vital skills for doing research. Particularly, there was one seminar organized by the Bristol Doctoral College (BDC) for Postgraduate Researchers (PGRs), which literally changed my PhD life. It was held sometime in February 2016 and made significant impact on my attitude towards the PhD. They called it the ‘Seven Secrets of Highly Successful Researchers’ seminar with Hugh Kearns.

I will not give away too many details about the seminar, so that I do not ruin the experience for those who might be attending the next one. I will instead talk about the three important lessons I took away from the seminar. The first was to treat the PhD like a job, because it is a job. Prior to that time, I viewed the PhD programme as my ‘last’ schooling endeavor. I had resigned from my ‘job’ to go to ‘school’. That demarcating line meant I could afford some luxuries like procrastination and distractions. As a full-time student, it also meant that I was in full control of how I spent my flexible time. Of course, I was busy with lectures, pre-readings, assessments and preparations for supervision meetings, but most of it happened within a schedule that was subject to my whims. To treat my PhD as a job I had to have regular working hours and specific targets with deadlines. I had to be responsible with how I spent my time and self. I had to be accountable to the PhD because it was my new Boss. It put money in my account and paid my bills literally, courtesy of my scholarship. Would I spend all day browsing the social media around a Boss, in an organization where I was an employee? Would I still be in bed by 9am when that organization’s resumption time is 8am? Would I just decide to stay off work without a legitimate reason like ill-health? I definitely would not. To treat the PhD as a job, my ways had to change — and they did, gradually. Today, I am doing my best to please my Boss and show this Boss that I deserve to be here. Treating my PhD as a job has engendered in me a high sense of responsibility and accountability for what I must do per time.

Jane's previous 'Home Office'. — Jane’s previous ‘Home Office’.

The second lesson for me was the need to write as I read, and not leave writing to a time in the future. Hugh Kearns problematized the notion of a ‘writing-up’ phase of the PhD and insists that writing must begin from the beginning – as we read articles, run experiments etc. This lesson has benefitted me a lot as it reduces the chances of me having a ‘writer’s block’. As I read articles or books, I review in writing the areas that are relevant to my research. Indeed, I end with MANY drafts but it’s a good thing for me because I also think by writing.

The third lesson for me was Hugh Kearns emphasis on the fact that the PhD is not the pursuit of a Nobel Prize. The aim of my PhD is not to submit a perfect thesis. Rather, it is to finish the PhD and submit the thesis. Therefore, my expectations of what I can and will accomplish within the three years of the programme must be realistic. I am grateful to my supervisors who spent our first meetings insisting that I narrow my research focus to something feasible within the timeframe I had.

I am also grateful to the BDC for organizing the seminar and numerous others that I have attended. I look forward to the new courses that I have booked to attend in the coming months. If I may ask, which seminar or workshop at the University has greatly impacted your PhD life?

The next ‘Seven Secrets of Highly Successful Researchers’ seminar will run on Friday, November 11, from 9:00-12:00 in the Helen Wodehouse Lecture Theatre, 35 Berkeley Square. Register via OnCourse.