Latest research and knowledge exchange news at Bournemouth University
This part of the blog features news and information for postgraduate research students and supervisors
PGRs have a huge range of videos and e-learning courses from Video Arts, designed to help you develop a wide range of professional skills.
They feature famous actors (like Blake Harrison, Helen Baxendale, Robert Webb and Sally Phillips) and are entertaining and humorous; making it easier to remember and practise what you’ve learned.
All videos and e-learning is accessible via the Researcher Development Programme on Brightspace.
The Post- Graduate Society had a successful official launch on the 23rd of September 2019. This was the first of many educational and interactive events to be organized by the society to enhance postgraduate students experience. The event saw newly enrolled PGRs, MRes and current PGRs at different stages in their research project.
The society aims to create a post-graduate community within SUBU and BU for students to belong to a network of highly skilled postgraduate students who will seek to offer help to each other, either for personal and professional growth and development. The Postgraduate Society supported by SUBU and the Doctoral College will also host events and activities tailored for postgraduate students in order to provide both fun and academic engagement in BU.
We received some feedback from PGRs anticipating more events like this in the future. Please click here to let us know what kind of events you will prefer https://bournemouth.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/postgraduate-events
So why join us? Here are five reasons
To be a part of this community, all you need is to register. Registration is easy. Simply click ‘Join’ at https://www.subu.org.uk/organisation/pgrsoc/ There is a membership fee of £2 per year.
For any questions, please contact us at subupgrsoc@bournemouth.ac.uk
Pictures from Doctoral College PGR Induction, September 2019
PGR Society
The Doctoral College Newsletter provides termly information and updates to all those involved with postgraduate research at BU. The latest edition is now available to download here. Click on the web-links provided to learn more about the news, events and opportunities that may interest you.
If you would like to make a contribution to future newsletters, please contact the Doctoral College.
Last month, approval was provided by the University’s Research Degree Committee for a brand new Postgraduate Researcher Development Steering Group to provide direction to postgraduate researcher development at BU, and I am recruiting members.
There will be 2 meetings per academic year and ad-hoc if required. Some of the main responsibilities include:
See the full Terms of Reference for details on the Steering Group if you are interested in becoming a member.
Please submit your Expression of Interest, including a half-page as to why you are interested, the knowledge, skills and experience you can bring to the group, via email to Natalie at pgrskillsdevelopment@bournemouth.ac.uk by midday, Friday 1 November.
Membership available:
– PGR Student Champion: 1 per Faculty (open to all PGRs)
– Academic Champion: 1 per Faculty (ideally an active PGR supervisor)
– Early Career Researcher: 1 representative
Expressions of Interest will be assessed by the Chair and Deputy Chair of the Steering Group, we look forward to receiving them.
Earlier this year, the UK Council for Graduate Education (UKCGE) ran a pilot scheme exploring the feasibility of a Research Supervision Recognition Programme to set a benchmark for good-practice in research supervision and to shine a light on this under-appreciated area of academic practice.
BU was one of 13 HEIs invited to participate in the pilot and, to recognise and celebrate good practice in research supervision here at BU, three supervisors from three faculties (FHSS, FM, FST) was asked to take part. Each participant wrote an extended reflective statement on their supervisory experience and practice, focusing on all areas of the role. All applications were successfully assessed by the UKCGE review panel and participants were commended for the commitment and enthusiasm they demonstrate for the role, and are now able to use the title “UKCGE Recognised Research Supervisor”.
The Doctoral College led the institutional participation in the pilot and Dr Fiona Knight reported to UKCGE that “Bournemouth University is continually identifying mechanisms to improve the experience of our PGRs and recognise that the quality of the supervisory relationship is central to this. We welcome this scheme as a way of encouraging our new and established supervisors to reflect on their practice whilst engaging with continuing professional development.”
UKCGE has now launched the Good Supervisory Practice Framework which acknowledges, for the first time at a national level, the wide-ranging, highly complex and demanding set of roles involved in modern research supervision. The framework is designed to set expectations for all supervisors and sets out the criteria used to define good supervisory practice are based on the substantive body of academic literature. Professor Stan Taylor of Durham University, who was instrumental in developing the criteria, was External Examiner for the former PG Cert Research Degree Supervision at BU. It is UKCGE’s ambition that, ‘in addition to enabling supervisors to demonstrate their ability to colleagues and candidates, the criteria underpinning the programme will create a benchmark that becomes the standard for effective supervisory practice the programme’ (Dr Gill Houston, Chair of the UK Council for Graduate Education).
Recent Advance HE PRES results for BU indicate that the majority of PGRs feel very positive about their supervisory experiences, however, it is acknowledged that supervisors can feel undervalued and overwhelmed by the scale of their task that is often undertaken in addition to many other academic responsibilities.
Roll out of programme
The Doctoral College plans to formalise BU’s engagement with the programme through its on-going programme of supervisory development activities in a process akin to TeachBU. This will enable individuals to demonstrate that they have met the good supervisory criteria and duly receive recognition. Not only will this provide encouragement for supervisors to engage with continuing professional development but it will also provide a structured process to support the development of high quality research supervision and public evidence of the quality of supervision across BU, whist aligning with a number of BU’s strategic goals that are articulated in BU2025.
Further details will be made available in due course however, if you are interested in learning more, please contact Doctoral College .
“More pilots please!” is not a call from British Airways, Ryanair or the Royal Air Force. No, it a reminder to students to do more piloting in their postgraduate research projects. Between us we have read many (draft) theses and examined over 60 PhD theses external to Bournemouth University, and it is clear to us that many students do not do enough pre-testing or piloting of their research instruments. Perhaps they did some piloting or feasibility work for their projects but don’t write enough about it. Or they present some feasibility or piloting in their thesis but haven’t added references to methodological texts.
The term ‘pilot studies’ refers to mini versions of a full-scale study (also called ‘feasibility’ studies), as well as the specific pre-testing of a particular research instruments such as data collection tools (i.e. questionnaire or semi-structured interview schedule). Pilot studies are key to good study design [1-6]. Conducting a pilot study does not guarantee success in the main study, but it does increase the likelihood of success. Pilot studies have several of important functions in research design and can provide valuable insights to the researcher on both tools and research processes. We think it is telling that our most cited paper on Google Scholar is not one of our papers reporting research findings but a methods paper highlighting the importance of pilot studies [2].
Professors Vanora Hundley & Edwin van Teijlingen
CMMPH
References:
This discussion forum is a ‘spin-out’ event following the Conference ‘Deep Transformations and the Future of Organisations’ (6-7 December). It would be the very first event aiming to bridge UK-Japan researchers who are specialised in the research field of the B2B and business transformation in the globalised era.
Two presenters are invited to this colloquial from Japan, Professor Takemoto (Innovation & Management Laboratory, Fukui University) and Mr Ikematsu, (Consultant/Researcher, ex strategist for Fujitsu).
Professor Takemoto will talk about the revitalisation projects with entrepreneurial movements in Fukui area, referring to the concepts of ‘Creative destruction’ and ‘Planned Happenstance Theory’.
Mr Ikematsu will talk about his experiences from the marketing and economical points of view, presenting the ‘straggles’ to change Fujitsu from the B2B model firm to the B2C model firm. His presentation will be also a good case of innovation dilemma and network externalities.
The colloquial will be carried out via the Skype conference method. Dr Hiroko Oe will act as a facilitator for this colloquial and Dr Kaouther Kooli will perform as a supervisor for this event who liaises the outcome from the main Conference the week before.
BU ECRs and the PG students will be invited to the colloquial, too. Dr. Ediz Akcay (Lecturer in Digital Marketing) and Dr Yan Liang (Lecturer in Strategy) will be there as discussants.
This colloquial will provide unique and interesting views from the different cultural context of Japanese cases, including some key topics of the UN SDGs (e.g., Goal 9 ‘Industry, innovation and infrastructure’, Goal 11 ‘Sustainable cities and communities’, and Goal 17 ‘Partnerships for the goals’).
These re-orientation events are your opportunity to receive Faculty and Doctoral College updates for the forthcoming academic year. You’ll also hear about the updates to the 2019-20 Researcher Development Programme and a reminder of support services available to you throughout BU. You’ll be asked to consider research ethics during and towards the end of your research degree and there will be a bite-size effective researcher session appropriate to each re-orientation stage.
|
|
Pre-Major Review Re-Orientation Tuesday 8 October – 9.30 – 1pm – Lansdowne This re-orientation will also include a preparation session for the Major Review. |
|
|
Post-Major Review (Transfer) Re-Orientation Tuesday 15 October – 10.00 -1.30pm – Lansdowne This re-orientation will also include a preparation session for the Viva Voce examination. |
I look forward to seeing you at one of these bespoke sessions.
Natalie
(Reasearch Skills & Development Officer)
pgrskillsdevelopment@bournemouth.ac.uk
Work-related migration is a common livelihood strategy for many young people in Nepal. It is estimated that about 3.5 million Nepali work abroad, mainly in Malaysia, the Gulf countries, and India. The economic contribution of Nepali migrants to the country is highly significant as they send over US$6.1 billion in remittances which is 26 % of Nepal’s gross domestic product (GDP) [1].
There is a growing global literature on migrant workers’ poor health and wellbeing and of those they leave behind. Over the past decade the media in Nepal have reported on the mortality and morbidity of Nepali migrants abroad. Every year at least one thousand dead bodies of Nepali migrants return back home via Tribhuvan International Airport (the only international airport in Nepal the country). The Government of Nepal estimated 5,982 deaths in migrant workers in the period 2008 to 2017, however there is likely to have been under-reporting [2].
Although there have been studies on Nepali migrants’ health [3-9], these are largely around (a) sexual risk-taking behaviours of Nepali migrants in India; and, (b) occupational health and injuries issues among Nepali migrants in Gulf countries. These studies are carried out with the support from development partners and/or government organisations. However, most migration health research in Nepal has been small-scale for example to collect baseline information or as part of Masters or PhD projects. Currently, there is no research priority agenda on the topic of Nepali migrants’ health and wellbeing issues.
To address this gap in the research agenda staff in BU’s Faculty of Health & Social Sciences and their collaborators organised a consultation workshop on August 2nd of this year in Kathmandu, Nepal. This workshop aimed to identify Nepali migrant workers’ health research prioritites and gaps. A total of 26 participants representing universities, ministries, non-governmental organisations working for migrants and research organisations attended the workshop.
The workshop was participatory in nature. To start with BU Professor Edwin van Teijlingen and Professor Padam Simkhada (BU Visiting Professor) shared global perspectives on migrant workers health. Whilst BU lecturer Dr Pramod Regmi highlighted key findings of BU’s migration research of Nepali migrants and their left-behinds. This contextual information helped focus the discussion on Nepali migrant health research priorities and gaps.
In order to identify the research agenda and prioritise issues and problems, participants were divided into four groups, each comprising 6-8 experts in the migration field. Groups were purposively formed to include participants from diverse backgrounds, e.g., migration related researchers, migration programme managers and policy-makers. Each member of the team was requested to identify two to five research needs around Nepali migrants’ health and share within their group for consensus. The group then prepared research priorities agreed in their team. Each team presented the research priorities to the wider group. A total of 46 research agenda items were identified which were subsequently prioritised through a voting process. Table 1 shows who participants ranked the top issues requiring further research.
Table 1 Top migration health research priorities in Nepal
The way forward
The consultation workshop was very productive in many ways. First, it identified wide ranging health research for Nepali migrants and prioritised these research issues. This information may help guide future research on migration studies. Secondly, the workshop offered a platform to build a network among researchers working for Nepali migrants.
Pramod R Regmi, Nirmal Aryal, and Edwin van Teijlingen
References:
Attending the conference is a great opportunity to engage with postgraduate researchers and find out more about the exciting and fascinating research happening across BU.
Abstracts are invited for postgraduate researchers to take part in the live research exhibition, present via oral or poster presentation, or for a speed challenge to submit to the rapid research session which will close this year’s conference.
Maria Abdel Karim, Postgraduate Research student in the Faculty of Media & Communication has been shortlisted for the final round of the prestigious Student Widescreen Film of the Year Competition.
Maria’s film ‘Two Women Can Tango’ has been picked from hundreds of entries from around the world to be screened alongside five other short films on Thursday 10 October 2019 at the Widescreen Weekend festival.
The narrative short film, shot in London, was presented as Maria’s Masters film for BU. Maria believes her film carries a strong humanitarian message behind it and a clear message that love is able to connect humans despite all their differences. It tells the story of Reem, a Palestinian young woman living in London on a sponsored visa who only has a couple of months before her visa expires when she meets Alma, a British-Jewish Tango instructor who sweeps her off her feet the moment they have their first Tango dance together. As the Tango between the two women escalate, Reem’s days in London become countable. She is left with only one choice to make.
The Student Widescreen Film of the Year Competition is one of the premier international events for showcasing young, emerging talent working with widescreen filmmaking technology. This unique competition strives to celebrate widescreen film and technologies within all genres. Previous entrants have spanned a range of methods including documentary, animation and short clips.
These re-orientation events are your opportunity to receive Faculty and Doctoral College updates for the forthcoming academic year. You’ll also hear about the updates to the 2019-20 Researcher Development Programme and a reminder of support services available to you throughout BU. You’ll be asked to consider research ethics during and towards the end of your research degree and there will be a bite-size effective researcher session appropriate to each re-orientation stage.
|
|
Pre-Major Review Re-Orientation Tuesday 8 October – 9.30 – 1pm – Lansdowne This re-orientation will also include a preparation session for the Major Review. |
|
|
Post-Major Review (Transfer) Re-Orientation Tuesday 15 October – 10.00 -1.30pm – Lansdowne This re-orientation will also include a preparation session for the Viva Voce examination. |
I look forward to seeing you at one of these bespoke sessions.
Natalie
(Reasearch Skills & Development Officer)
pgrskillsdevelopment@bournemouth.ac.uk
We are excited to announce that the Third Annual FMC postgraduate conference will be hosted on 13th November 2019 at the Share Lecture Theatre in the Fusion Building on Talbot Campus. This will be a fantastic opportunity for all postgraduate researchers to showcase their excellent research to the faculty, as well as providing a great experience to present in a conference setting. There will be a chance for staff and student conducting postgraduate research to receive feedback from staff and peers.
We are happy to receive the following submissions from all FMC PGRs:
– 15 minute presentation
– 30 minute workshop
Additionally, first year postgraduate researchers have the option to present a 3- minute thesis, a shorter presentation with just one slide, to introduce their research topic to the faculty. This year there is also the option for postgraduates based elsewhere to present virtually (please be aware that you will be asked to make a back up recorded presentation in case of technical difficulties). We want the conference to be inclusive of all FMC postgraduates.
If you would like to present, please submit your abstract of no more than 250 words, presentation title, presentation format, and no more than 75 word bio to byang@bournemouth.ac.uk by 17 October 2019. You will be notified within one week of the deadline as to whether your presentation has been accepted.
If you are interested in attending the conference free registration can be completed here: https://fmcpgconference.eventbrite.co.uk
We look forward to receiving your abstracts and registration!
Alex, Bing, Evgeniya, Jo and Mel
Conference Organisers Postgraduate Researchers
Faculty for Media and Communication
Submission Checklist
O Presentation Title
O c. 250 word abstract
O Presentation Format
O c. 75 word biography
Dr. Rachel Arnold’s recent paper in BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth was highlighted in a blog promoted by the publisher. The paper ‘Villains or victims? An ethnography of Afghan maternity staff and the challenge of high quality respectful care‘ reports on the everyday lives of maternal healthcare providers working in a tertiary maternity hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan (1). 
BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth is an Open Access journal so the paper is available free of charge to anybody in Afghanistan (and elsewhere) with an internet connection. The aim was to understand the staff’s notions of care, their varying levels of commitment to providing care for women in childbirth, and the obstacles and dilemmas that affected standards, and thereby gain insight into their contributions to respectful maternity care, whether as ‘villains’ or as ‘victims.’
Dr. Arnold is Postdoctoral Midwifery Researcher in the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH). This is the third paper from Rachel’s excellent PhD project, the previous two papers appeared in BJOG and Social Science & Medicine (2-3).
Click here for BMC Blog post:
Villains or victims? The role of maternity staff in decreasing or enhancing respectful care
Reference:
A series of writing days have been organised to help support BU authors work on their publications by providing some dedicated time and space, away from everyday distractions, supported by RDS staff.
The days will have a collaborative focus on productive writing with other BU authors and the RDS team will also be on hand to provide authors with help and guidance on all areas of the publication process. The objectives for the day are :
Writing Days have been scheduled on the below dates:
See the page on the intranet to book
Daniel Hills (FMC PGR) has recently returned from the European Communication Research and Education Association (ECREA) European Media and Communication Doctoral Summer School. This year it was held at Tartu University, Estonia between 9th to 16th July.
Taken from the ECREA website, the summer school brings together members of the European research community to this summer school in order to debate contemporary issues in media, communication and cultural studies. The summer school aims to provide a supportive international setting where doctoral students can present their ongoing work, receive feedback on their PhD-projects from international experts and meet students and academics from other countries, establishing valuable contacts for the future.
It is a full on conference including a variety of back-to-back workshops, lectures, group feedback sessions and consultation every day for 8 days, and is extremely intense. To qualify for this conference, I had to supply an initial 500 word abstract of my PhD, and following being successfully shortlisted for the next round, produce an expanded 3,000 word introduction and summary of my research project, as well as a 10 minute presentation summarising my research plans as they were prior to the summer school.
There were 40 delegates selected and I was lucky enough to be one of them. The conference commenced at 09:30 on the 8th with a half day meet and greet so we could all get to know one another and our personal areas of research. This was followed by lunch and then into an afternoon of interactive workshops taking us to 6PM. This was followed by a welcome drinks party where we could discuss our first day over a glass of wine and provided a great opportunity to bond with my new peers. Over the following days, we would cover a further 16 workshops, 5 lectures and most importantly for me, individual feedback sessions. Our large group was broken into 2 groups or 14 and 1 or 13, and over the course of the work were give an hour dedicated to presenting our research (10 minutes) maximum and then to receive a structured feedback from lecturers and peers whom had already read my 3,000 word paper. This delivered invaluable feedback for me and gave me a plethora of new perspectives which I had hitherto not considered.
I gained a great deal of insights, useful techniques and a re-ignition of enthusiasm towards my research throughout the 8 days, and would encourage anybody whom is more than a year into their research to apply for the 2020 version. I graduated with 10 ECTS points on the final day, but more importantly new-found knowledge and a new direction to progress with my PhD, and a whole lot of new friends and peers. I am planning on writing a paper with one of my new friends whom is interested in a similar field to my own. All in all, the ECREA European Media and Communication Doctoral Summer School has been one of the most useful academic experiences of my career to date.
Daniel Hills is a PhD researcher in the Faculty of Media and Communication at Bournemouth University, and is focusing his research in advertising planning and practice theory, aiming to complete in 2020.
BU staff can login below:
EPSRC reopens applications for strategic advisory bodies
Book Now – Public Engagement training at BU on Monday 21 Oct
Doctoral College Newsletter | October 2019
ESRC Festival of Social Science 2019: Upcoming events
Forthcoming RKEDF Research Training Events
ACORN Funding – Current and Previous Award Holders
NERC standard grants – internal competition extended
Funding opportunity : ISCF healthy ageing trailblazers: stage 1
Research Information Network UKRI
HE Policy Update for the w/e 11th October 2019
Public databases related to EU funding