…. It would also be a lost opportunity if the strategy does not take a whole-of-tertiary approach, encompassing education and training delivered by the full range of higher education providers (and incentivising partnerships and pathways between them), as well as the research and innovation ecosystem. It must also consider the 50 per cent of people who do not currently access higher education, and how to reverse the sharp decline in part-time and m…
…in-depth on BBC Newsnight. 5. The Doctoral Training Alliance went virtual, delivering four online residential events and 55% more elective workshops than previous years (21 in total) on a range of subjects, including research skills, wellbeing, motivation, presentation and influencing skills to name a few. DTA researchers were given the opportunity to showcase their research to the wider DTA community, engage with sector relevant speakers and join…
…ugh these they can then create the informal connections to receive the peer-to-peer support that may become vital for their wellbeing. Develop strong representation systems While it is great that Student Unions (SUs) cover postgraduate representation, I know from my own experience that undergraduate-focused SUs are not the best place for PhD issues to be actively listened to. PhD students need dedicated representation systems and the issues they r…
…All the entries were amazing, and I loved learning about each and every research conducted my fellow DTA researchers. “I would like to thank everyone who voted for me. Presenting my work at WinterWind 2020 was one of the biggest milestones for my research and receiving an award that is connected to that experience makes it all even more special. I would further like to thank the DTA team for organising this competition and providing us with a pla…
…the excellent set of entries and finding out more about the range of ground-breaking research projects being carried out across the DTA. DTA researchers, supervisors and members of the DTA Training and Management Groups were also invited to select the most engaging images in the People’s Choice vote. Images were then evaluated according to how effectively they conveyed the area of research to a non-specialist audience. Louise Mitchell (Bioscience,…
…ions, preventing disease and managing outbreaks, and this application of research to real-world problems is something Arantza wants to work on. She says the ability to work with an organisation like Pirbright is one of the main advantages of the DTA programme; “The most beneficial element of the programme is that students are encouraged to do placements. This means you learn new things and meet more people- people who can help you in your future c…
…think about research collaborations with Europe. Alliance universities are delivering research across a range of contemporary themes, from health and wellbeing, engineering, the environment and digital technologies, to arts and creative processes and social issues such as deprivation. We need this multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research to address complex and interconnected global challenges. As part of Horizon Europe, the UK could contin…
…central to the hope that this country’s recovery will be driven by cutting-edge research and innovation. Through our focus on applied research, knowledge exchange and innovation, we are working towards ensuring a fairer, greener, healthier, more prosperous, and resilient UK. Alliance universities are home to some of the most talented, dedicated, and innovative researchers in the country, and many are already working to respond to the immediate an…
…University Group’s commitment to impactful, transdisciplinary and challenge-led research is therefore of paramount importance. As Director of the Innovation Ecosystem, I lead a specialist team dedicated to supporting pre-commercial and early-stage innovation. Working together with experienced research and academic colleagues across the Group, we focus on delivering support for business, Intellectual Property (IP) realisation and commercialisation,…
…projects in more depth. We had the choice to share our work as oral, Pecha-Kucha-style or poster presentations, and the themes – how our research relates to the world outside the university and the interdisciplinary element of our projects – helped reveal shared interests and methods across our projects. The interactive poster session in WonderRoom was particularly fun. We learnt a lot about the work of peers outside of our disciplinary cohorts,…
