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World Wellbeing Week 2025 – free activities for PGRs

The international awareness event World Wellbeing Week takes place in June each year. To celebrate, the Doctoral College is pleased to share a variety of free activities available to PGRs to give you the opportunity to unwind and look after your mental, physical, and social wellbeing.
Herbal tea and arts & crafts
Enjoy some arts and crafts in the sun whilst relaxing with herbal teas!
📅 When: Tuesday 24 June – Friday 27 June, 10:00-14:00
📍 Where: Doctoral College (DLG08) outside patio, Talbot Campus
Community Garden volunteering
Spend some time enjoying nature and volunteer in the garden to support the mission to grow food for each other and those in need.
📅 When: Wednesday 25 June, 12:00-14:00
📍 Where: BU Community Garden, Talbot Campus
Seed bombs & sweet treats
Join us for a fun, hands-on activity where you’ll make your own eco-friendly seed bombs using clay, soil, and seeds. Take these home with you and plant them in your garden or green up a forgotten public place! 🌱
There will also be some delicious sweet treats for you to enjoy!
📅 When: Wednesday 25 June, 15:00-16:00
📍 Where: BU Community Garden, Talbot Campus
Register here
Table tennis
Following last year’s successful table tennis wellbeing event, we have booked the SportBU studio again for more table tennis fun!
Socialise with other PGR students and get active in a relaxed environment. This will not be a competitive tournament, just simply come and have a friendly hit.
📅 When: Wednesday 25 June, 19:00-20:30
📍 Where: SportBU, Talbot Campus
Register here
Paint & Sip to Summer

Unwind and paint your own little summer inspired canvas to take home for decoration over tasty mocktails, laughter and summery bites!
📅 When: Thursday 26 June, 16:00-18:00
📍 Where: BU Community Garden, Talbot Campus
Register here
Click here for more information about World Wellbeing Week 2025
Best wishes,
The Doctoral College
BU seeking input from ethnic minority and migrant communities
Bournemouth University has received funding from the NIHR to support an internship for a Social Work student to seek views and perception of women from ethnic minority and migrant communities. Therefor, we are seeking volunteers to take part in a small group on-line workshop to hear from women from ethnic minority and migrant communities. They are invited to share their thoughts, insights and experiences of engaging in health research so that we can better understand what would work when conducting research with this population. This work sits within a larger NIHR-funded project that aims to reduce health inequalities for marginalised mothers and babies. BU Profs Huseyin Dogan and Professor Vanora Hundley are leading workstreams within this prestigious NIHR Maternity Disparities project over the next five years (more information about the bigger project can be found here!).
We would like to hear from women from ethnic minority and migrant communities, also referred as women from the global majority. You do not need to be pregnant or have had a baby to participate in the workshop. If you are a woman from an ethnic minority and migrant community in the UK and you would like to take part please apply here! The event will be online on Tuesday 8th July from 11.00-12.30. No specific experience of involvement in research is required.
Dr. Orlanda Harvey and Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen
Faculty of Health & Social Sciences

Reflecting on Alzheimer’s Awareness Week: A Day of Learning, Connection and Innovation
On Monday 20th May, we were proud to host a packed day of events at Bournemouth University in support of Alzheimer’s Awareness Week — bringing together housing professionals, students, researchers, and community partners to raise awareness and share ideas around dementia-friendly practices.

Paper on sustainable conferencing
Traditional conferences tend to have a high carbon footprint. In October 2023, the Multimodal Immersive NEuro-sensing (MINE) Research Cluster and Bournemouth EEG Lab hosted Bournemouth Garden of CuttingGardens2023 conference, a globally distributed and hybrid conference on cutting-edge EEG/MEG methods with 800+ attendees. After the huge success of the event, the global team evaluated the experience and wrote an article “Doing conferences different: a decentralised multi-hub approach for ecological and social sustainability”. This article has been accepted for publication on PLoS Sustainability and Transformation. Two BU staff, Xun He (Head of MINE Cluster and EEG Lab) and Ruijie Wang, co-authored this publication. We hope our work can reshape the international conferencing scenes.
Here is the link to the paper: Doing conferences differently: A decentralised multi-hub approach for ecological and social sustainability (PLOS Sustainability and Transformation).

Successful academic writing, publishing and collaboration workshop at BU
Last week’s workshop on ‘Academic Writing, Publishing & Collaborating’ held at Talbot Campus organised by Mrs. Anjana Paudyal, Ph.D. student in FHSS (Faculty of Health & Social Sciences) was very engaging and very well attended. This event was part of the Doctoral College’s Research Culture and Community workshop series. The workshop was opened by Anjana, who spoke about publishing her first PhD paper in the first half year of her part-time PhD journey.


Whilst Dr. Pramod Regmi, Principal Academic in International Health in FHSS stressed the importance of paying attention to publishing metrics and identifiers, including h-factors, impact factors, and social media use in academic publishing.
Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen, Research Culture Champion in FHSS outlined ideas for turning PhD chapters in papers and he also highlighted BU’s unique option of doing a so-called ‘Integrated thesis‘. The integrated thesis format allows students to incorporate papers into their thesis. These can be published papers, papers accepted for publication, papers submitted, prepared but not submitted papers and other unpublished papers or reports.
Dr. Orlanda Harvey is a senior lecturer in Social Work at BU, specialising in Developing Professional Relationships and Leadership, she presented replying to reviewers. The Question & Answer session was lively and engaging.
Last, but not least, Anjana Paudyal, the organiser, and presenters would like to thank the Doctoral College for supporting this important event!
Leadership in disaster nursing

On Wednesday (04/06) the Centre for Wellbeing and Long-Term Health (CWLTH) and the Department of Nursing Science welcomed Kelsie Fletcher back to Bournemouth University to talk about her doctoral research – ‘Becoming leaders of change: adaptive moral navigation and the challenges of international disaster nursing‘. Kelsie, currently a Lecturer in Nursing at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, is supervised by Professor Steve Ersser and Dr Linda Agyemang.

Kelsie presented some of her initial findings from her qualitative research in which she has interviewed nurses currently involved in teams engaged in disaster management around the world. In the coming week, Kelsie will be presenting her research again, this time to a much larger audience at the International Council of Nurses (ICN) Congress in Helsinki. If you would like to know more about Kelsie’s research, please email fletcherk@bournemouth.ac.uk.
We all wish Kelsie well as she moves towards submission of her thesis for examination later this year.
The CWLTH’s next and final research seminar for this academic year will be on Tuesday 17/06 when Jess Correia will be speaking about her research on ‘Understanding the decision-making process for women with common mental disorders around prescribed psychiatric medication use during pregnancy‘. All are welcome to attend and for more information please contact CWLTH@Bournemouth.ac.uk.
Presenting SERVED at the KCL Veterans’ Mental Health Conference
SERVED – Supporting Evidence-based Research for Veterans Experiencing Dementia
The Wessex Nutrition Research Network and the INFORmED project
Discover how we can work together to improve the lives of people living in Wessex through nutrition research.
We need you for a short meeting:
Are you Interested in research and nutrition?
Do you want to improve nutritional outcomes across the life course?
If so, please come to one of our engagement events (online or face-to-face) to share your priorities and experiences.
Key dates:
Online: Tuesday 1st July (12.30 – 2.30 pm) or Wednesday 2nd July (9.30-11.30 am)
or
In-person: Wednesday 9th July (10 am to 2 pm, Registration from 9.30 am) Room LE30 at University Hospital Southampton, SO16 6YD
The Wessex Nutrition Research Network and the INFORmED project are a new Wessex Health Partners collaboration led by University Hospital Southampton and Bournemouth University, which aims to improve nutritional health outcomes across the life course.
The‘INFORmED’ project focuses on Improving Nutritional Outcomes for people across Wessex by Engaging Dietitians and Nutritionists in Research. Specifically, we aim to:
Connect dietitians, nutritionists, organisations, patients, the public, and the community with a shared interest in nutrition.
Collaborate to improve the lives of people living in Wessex.
Develop a sustainable, collaborative, inclusive network to tackle key nutritional challenges and priorities across the life-course to improve health and well-being in Wessex.
Grow new research capability in nutrition interdisciplinary research led by underrepresented professions, and in particular, dietitians and nutritionists
‘INFORmED’ engagement events are open to anyone interested in improving nutrition across Wessex. We particularly encourage dietitians, nutritionists, and managers who are interested in getting started or developing their clinical academic journey, as well as those interested in overweight, obesity, and young people.
We are delighted to invite attendees to an event supporting dietitians and nutritionists of all grades (pre- and post-registration; ANutr and RNutr) across Wessex to engage in research and evidence-based opportunities.
Educators, managers, academics, community/council members, interested organisations/individuals, and industry representatives are also welcome.
These events are aimed at anyone interested in starting in or advancing their clinical academic ambitions in nutrition research.
If you would like to attend, please complete this ‘Eventbrite’ https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1394795052549?aff=oddtdtcreator
and a short survey (https://forms.office.com/e/j8dP8BHPey). The survey includes a short scoping survey that will be used at the engagement event.
Survey link:
Congratulations to Dr Fiona Knight – UKCGE (UK Council for Graduate Education) status
We would like to congratulate Dr Fiona Knight, Head of Doctoral College, who has been awarded the UKCGE (UK Council for Graduate Education) status of Recognised Research Supervisor. Her submission was “Highly Commended” for the extensive experience, critical insights and deep personal and institutional engagements to her practice, and her application was considered to demonstrate an approach which is student-centred, ethical, and aligned with best practices.
The scheme is open to all supervisors, whether new to supervision or established within the role, to apply for national recognition of doctoral supervision from the UKCGE. Two levels of recognition are available, depending on the level of experience:
- Recognised Supervisor (full award) — for those who have seen doctoral candidates through final examination and completion
- Recognised Associate Supervisor – for those who have not seen doctoral candidates through final examination and completion and/or are involved in research supervision ‘informally’.
BU now has over 25 recognised research supervisors. In order to achieve this status you will be required to:
- Reflect – Write a reflective account of your supervisory practice in relation to the Good Supervisory Practice Framework.
- Apply – Apply for your practice to be recognised by the UKCGE using the relevant
- Recognised Supervisor Reflective Account Form WORD | 56.37KB
- Recognised Associate Supervisor Reflective Account Form WORD | 55.72KB
- Review – A two-person panel will peer-review your application. Regardless of the outcome, they will give comprehensive feedback.
For further information, to register your interest or to have discuss an application, please email the Doctoral College (doctoralcollege@bournemouth.ac.uk). The Doctoral College will meet the cost of applications submitted by BU supervisors.
Next application deadline:
BU Window Closes | UKCGE Window Closes | Expected Outcome |
13 June 2025 | 20 June 2025 | September 2025 |
Complete applications should be submitted to Dr Fiona Knight (fknight@bournemouth.ac.uk) by the above deadlines.
Best wishes,
The Doctoral College
Share your public engagement event with a wider audience
If you’re running an event or activity that is open to non-academic audiences and showcases BU research, the Public Engagement with Research team in RDS can help spread the word.
We can help you promote public engagement with research events through our monthly newsletter and social media channels.
To be included, your event must:
- Be aimed at and open to the general public (not academic audiences)
- Feature BU research – either as the main focus or part of a larger programme
- Be submitted by the middle of the month before the event (e.g. submit by 14 May for a June event)
Please note: we may edit event descriptions to align with our other communications.
Ready to share your event?
If you have any questions, get in touch with the team at publicengagement@bournemouth.ac.uk
St Deny’s Activity Group presents at Community Voices Webinar
St Deny’s Activity Group presents at Community Voices Webinar on Wednesday,11th June 12-13pm. The June community Webinar will welcome Anne Cato and Paulette Julius from St Denys Activity Group to share insight on activities they do to improve mental health and wellbeing to members of their community, as well as their involvement with cancer awareness and research activities.
Research process seminar. Culturally Responsive Focus Groups: Purposes, Practices, and Possibilities. 24th June at 2pm on Zoom
You are warmly welcomed to the next research process seminar. Hosted by the Faculty of Media and Communication but open to all.
Culturally Responsive Focus Groups: Purposes, Practices, and Possibilities
I will explore the purposes and practices of culturally responsive (CR) focus groups as a powerful qualitative research method, based on my book, Focus Groups: Culturally Responsive Approaches for Qualitative Inquiry and Program Evaluation (Hall, 2020). Culturally responsive focus groups go beyond traditional approaches by intentionally centering the cultural contexts, lived experiences, and knowledge systems of participants—especially those from historically marginalized communities.
Participants will gain insight into what makes a focus group culturally responsive and how this orientation influences decisions across the research design, from recruitment and protocol development to facilitation and analysis. I will outline when and why CR focus groups are particularly valuable, and I’ll share key considerations for their successful implementation, including attention to power dynamics, group composition, language, and cultural humility.
About the speaker
Jori N. Hall is a President’s Distinguished Professor at the University of Illinois Chicago. Hall’s research is concerned with social inequalities andenhancing the robustness of social science research methodologies. Her scholarly pursuits address issues of research methodology, cultural responsiveness, and the nuanced interplay of values and privilege across evaluation, education, and health domains. Hall has published numerous peer-reviewed works in scholarly venues. She is also the author of the acclaimed book “Focus Groups: Culturally Responsive Approaches for Qualitative Inquiry and Program Evaluation.” Notably, she was honored as a Leaders of Equitable Evaluation and Diversity (LEEAD) fellow by The Annie E. Casey Foundation. She was also the Co-Editor-in-Chief for the “American Journal of Evaluation.”
About the research process seminar series:
The purpose of this research seminar series is different to your typical research seminar and conference presentation. Instead of presenting the results and outcomes of research, we want to share good practices around the process of doing research. This might often involve a focus on research methods but it also includes aspects of publishing, writing, time management, career management etc.
The idea here is that the speaker takes us through the anatomy of the project or approach focussing particularly on the process – the challenges, the successes, and the failures. For the audience, we walk away with a practical application of a method or approach we may not be familiar with or may not have applied in this way before. Our ambition is to make us all better researchers as a result.
2-3pm, Tuesday 24th June on Zoom
Register here: https://bournemouth-ac-uk.zoom.us/meeting/register/buiws7xORiCEX-RzyGvpDA
And if you want the recording but can’t make the event then please register and I will send it to you.
all the best
Dan
Postgraduate Research Summer Social – 2 weeks to go!

2 weeks to go till the Postgraduate Research Summer Social. We’re so excited to welcome you to the Branksome Dene Room for an afternoon of patio games, delicious food and sunshine by the beach!
We’ve booked this stunning location for the exclusive use of PGRs and Supervisors for the afternoon to unwind and reconnect up with your fellow researchers and academics.
The Doctoral College PGR events at Branksome Dene Room are always a hit so we hope you can join us!
We are pleased to offer a Greek style lunch menu including a pita with your choice of filling (chicken souvlaki, vegetarian or vegan) served with chips, a salad bar, teas, coffees and soft drinks! You are also welcome to bring your own refreshments to enjoy.
Register here
Ticket: £5
Please note there are limited spaces available, so please book as soon as possible if you would like to attend.
If you have any questions, please do get in touch: pgrskillsdevelopment@bournemouth.ac.uk
RKEDF June Digest – development opportunities
Book now for RKEDF training in June 2025
Click on the titles to find further details and book your place
RKEDF: Principal Investigation – Post Award for RKE
Wednesday 4th June 13:00-14:30 – in person, Talbot Campus
This session is aimed at any researcher who is, who plans to be, a Principal Investigator for an externally funded research or knowledge exchange project. By the end of the session, attendees will have a strong foundation of what to expect when being responsible for their awarded projects. Topics covered include:
- What is post award? • Roles and responsibilities • Systems
- Key policies • Starting your awarded project • Making changes to your project and reporting • Hints and tips
Developing Policy Engagement for Impact
Wednesday 11th June 09:00-13:30 – online
Are you preparing an impact case study for REF 2029? Do you need expert advice on navigating the policy landscape to ensure your research reaches decision makers? If so, this online workshop is perfect for you. Carys Davis, a public affairs and policy consultant from The Other Place Public Affairs Ltd., will lead this workshop. RDS’s Impact Team will be present to offer support and guidance. Gain valuable insights and practical tips to effectively engage with policy makers and highlight your research.
This workshop is primarily aimed at researchers working on impact case studies for REF 2029, who will be given priority for registration. If you’re unsure whether this is suitable for you, please consult your UOA impact champion. This workshop will be held online via Zoom. The link will be sent out closer to the date.
BRIAN drop in surgery
Tuesday 17th June 13:00-15:00 – in person, BG-315, Lansdowne Campus
This is an in person, 2 hour drop in surgery for questions or issues relating to BRIAN. No question is a stupid question so pop in and ask. No booking required.
RSA: Getting Started, Securing Funding, and Advancing Your Career
Thursday 19th June – 10:00 – 14:30 – in person, Talbot Campus
This in-person event will take place over lunch and is dedicated to providing support, inspiration, and encouraging meaningful connections among research staff across all faculties. There will be expert advice on getting started and securing funding, along with practical tips from peers who will share case study examples of successful grants and lessons learned. By the end of the session, you’ll have valuable tools to navigate funding opportunities and plan your next steps—whether in academia or beyond. It is also a great opportunity to connect with colleagues and be part of a supportive research community. Open to all BU research staff, no matter where you are in your research journey.
Getting your REF impact case study off the ground
Thursday 26th June – 09:30 – 12:30, in person, Tabot Campus
This practical workshop gives you the opportunity to plan your impact case study. Starting this process early can help to gain much-needed clarity, both about your impact project(s) and about expectations for the final product for REF2029. In this workshop, Bella Reichard will guide you through creating (1) a narrative arc for your impact case study, and (2) an action plan to progress and evidence your impacts.
This workshop is for anyone who is considering preparing an impact case study for submission to REF2029. You may have submitted drafts to internal REF mock exercises in 2023 or 2024. You may be new to the process, in which case please let your relevant BU Impact Champion know that you’re interested in preparing a case study. This workshop is not limited to a single person per potential case study. If several academics are collaborating on a project it can be very useful to attend together.
Epigeum Research Skills Toolkit
Do you want to refresh your researcher skills? Have a look at the Epigeum Research Skills Toolkit (on demand online modules). Further information on how to access Epigeum courses can be found here.
Links for further RKE information and support are below:
RKE SharePoint page: RKE – Home
RKEDF SharePoint for development opportunities: Research and Knowledge Exchange Development Framework RKEDF – Home
RKEDF Brightspace: Homepage – Research & Knowledge Exchange Development Framework
Please help us in avoiding any waste of resources; make sure you can attend or cancel your booking prior to the session. For any further information, please contact RKEDF@bournemouth.ac.uk
RSA: Getting Started, Securing Funding, and Advancing Your Career

Join the BU Research Staff Association (RSA) for the 2025 Away Day on Thursday 19th June, Talbot Campus 10:00 – 14:30
This in-person event will take place over lunch and is dedicated to providing support, inspiration, and encouraging meaningful connections among research staff across all faculties.
There will be expert advice on getting started and securing funding, along with practical tips from peers who will share case study examples of successful grants and lessons learned. By the end of the session, you’ll have valuable tools to navigate funding opportunities and plan your next steps—whether in academia or beyond. It is also a great opportunity to connect with colleagues and be part of a supportive research community.
Open to all BU ‘research only’ staff, no matter where you are in your research journey.
For further information on this event please contact Pooja Shah shahp@bournemouth.ac.uk or Gladys Yinusa, yinusagg@bournemouth.ac.uk
Research Café: How are researchers working to prevent child drowning in Bangladesh? – Tuesday 1 July 6:30-8pm
Get inspired at BU’s Research Café
Join a community of curious minds to ask questions, share ideas, and explore research at Bournemouth University. Enjoy thought-provoking talks followed by lively discussions, where you can engage directly with guest speakers and fellow attendees.
Our next event will explore the Sonamoni Project, an international collaboration focused on preventing drowning among children in rural Bangladesh.
Join us on Tuesday 1 July, from 6:30 to 8pm, for a short talk and open discussion with researchers from Bournemouth University. They will share insights from the Sonamoni Project, which is funded by the National Institute for Health Research.
In many Bangladeshi communities, child safety has a direct impact on whether women are able to work. This talk will also look at how community-led safety initiatives not only protect children but also support women’s livelihoods.
The research team brings together experts from three UK universities, the RNLI, the Centre for Injury Prevention and Research in Bangladesh, and Design without Borders in Uganda. The evening will also include an interactive virtual reality experience that brings the research to life.
Taking place at the BGB Café, the event will begin at 6:30pm. The café opens at 6pm, so arrive early to buy a drink and a bite to eat before the event begins.
If you have any questions about this event, please email the Public Engagement with Research Team: publicengagement@bournemouth.ac.uk
Research process seminar. 3rd June on Zoom. Thinking about epistemology – where do we start as researchers and how to make that word more exciting than it sounds?
You are warmly welcomed to this week’s research process seminar.
Thinking about epistemology – where do we start as researchers and how to make that word more exciting than it sounds?
When we approach research, do we have an overarching structure of objectives that keeps us on topic and helps us to keep our work focused and efficient ? Instinctively, we know what we are trying to do, but so often there will be forks or bumps in the road, and some wider structural architecture is useful to help us negotiate those. We have a number of traditional choices as researchers, and while these are well suited to some types of research, they are lacking for some others. So this talk suggests a pragmatic option for media research, and one that adds value and the dimension of explanation for our work.
About the speaker:
Professor Richard Thomas is the Head of the School of Culture and Communication at Swansea University. In this role, he oversees the operations of the subject areas of English Literature, Applied Linguistics, Modern Languages, Welsh, History, Classics and Media. His research concerns the quantifying and qualifying of the trends and patterns in the coverage of economics, business, finance, politics and conflict by a range of news outlets ranging from TV and radio to online blogging and social media. He is the co-author of “Reporting Elections: Rethinking the Logic of Campaign Coverage” and has published many other journal articles and book chapters. He was the CO-Investigator in a joint Cardiff University/Swansea University project examining Alternative Political Online News. He has also been engaged in other research commissioned by and working with, media regulators. He is the Global Chair of the Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters Degree Advisory Board, working with journalists from across the world.
Tuesday 3rd June at 2pm
Please register in advance here: https://bournemouth-ac-uk.zoom.us/meeting/register/AjyvCtXkS2q5XClHiqBMOQ
And if you cannot make it but want the recording then please register.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://bournemouth-ac-uk.zoom.us/j/82472410837?pwd=Q2jFktKc9a80cka4ytnQ5QQEA8fzaz.1
Meeting ID: 824 7241 0837
Passcode: 8a7?!k5R