Category / Research Concordat

Research committee vacancies – help shape research at BU

BU research, R & KE Operations, Research Concordat, Research Ethics Panels, research governance, research opportunities

We are currently seeking expressions of interest from academics at all career stages to be part of several key research and knowledge exchange committees.  

The positions offer the chance to have your voice heard in an institutional committee at an exciting time while we are developing our BU2035 strategy – helping to shape and deliver research and knowledge exchange activity across BU.  

The available positions are:  

Research and Knowledge Exchange Committee 

There are two vacancies, one for an early career Academic and one for a mid-career Academic. 

This committee is responsible for monitoring and enhancing research and knowledge exchange at BU, helping to support the quality, visibility and impact of Research and Knowledge Exchange (RKE) activities. It reports into Senate and normally meets four times per year.  

Research Degrees Committee: Supervisor representative

There is a vacancy for an academic at any grade who is currently supervising Postgraduate Researchers (PGRs). 

The committee takes responsibility for the strategic direction, nature, quality, development and delivery of the university’s research degree provision. It reports into the Education Committee with strong links to the Research and Knowledge Exchange Committee and normally meets five times per year. 

Research and Knowledge Exchange Concordat Steering Group

There are three vacancies for this steering group, a Researcher (typically a Postdoctoral Research Assistant), an early career Academic, and a mid-career Academic.

The steering group is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of a coherent and robust action plan to embed the principles of the Research and Knowledge Exchange Concordats that BU has signed up to. It reports into the Research and Knowledge Exchange Committee and normally meets four times a year.  

Research Ethics Committee

There are two vacancies for this committee, Chair (member of the Professoriate) and Deputy Chair (member of the Professoriate).

The committee is responsible for promoting best ethical practice in relation to research activities, including overseeing the Research Ethics Panels and arbitrating in cases of dispute over ethical best practice and misconduct. It reports into Senate and normally meets four times a year.  

If you are interested in any of the roles, please submit an Expression of Interest (no longer than one page of A4) to research@bournemouth.ac.uk outlining which position you are applying for, why you are interested in the role, and the knowledge, skills and experience you think you could bring. This will be followed by an interview process.  

The Terms of Reference for these committees are available on request by emailing research@bournemouth.ac.uk.

The closing date for submitting Expressions of Interest is Friday 15 November.  

Research Skills Toolkit – On demand online modules

BU research, Doctoral College, ECR Network, Research Concordat, Research Ethics, research staff, Research Training

We are pleased to inform you that there have been some updates to our Epigeum Research Skills Toolkit modules.

  • Becoming a Researcher: Comprising of three courses (Working With Your Supervisors, Effective Management of Doctoral and Master’s Research and IP in the Research Context), the programme was recently given a content refresh.
  • Disseminating Your Research and Beyond Research are in line for updates in 2025 – watch this space for further information in due course!

Online modules within this Research Skills Toolkit include the following:

  • Becoming a Researcher: Effective management of Doctoral and Master’s research, Intellectual property in the research context, Working with your supervisors.
  • Research Methods: Undertaking a literature review, Principles of research methods, Research methods in practice: Arts and humanities, Research methods in practice: Social sciences, Research methods in practice: STEM.
  • Ethical Research: Becoming an ethical researcher, Research ethics in practice
  • Disseminating your Research: Communicating your Research with Impact, Getting Published.
  • Beyond Research: Innovation and entrepreneurship, Career planning.

See brochure

All modules as part of the Research Skills Toolkit are available to ALL STAFF using your @bournemouth.ac.uk email address.

You will need to follow these steps to set up an account:

  1. Go to: https://courses.epigeum.com/register.
    Use token 678a512f when completing the form.
  2. An activation link will be sent to your e-mail. Please also check your JUNK mail.
  3. Once registration is complete, log in with this different link: https://courses.epigeum.com/login.

Adding the Research Ethics Modules:

  1. Once you have set up your account and logged in, click the person icon in the top right-hand corner of the screen.
  2. Select ‘Enter Token’.
    Use token 02d34ae8.

If you already have an account:

If you already have an account set up, you will then need to follow these steps.

  1. Log into your account: https://courses.epigeum.com/login.
  2. Click the person icon in the top right-hand corner of the screen.
  3. Depending on what you are missing either add token 678a512f (for the wider Research Skills Toolkit modules) or 02d34ae8 (for the Research Ethics Modules).

Viewing your modules:

To start viewing and working through your chosen modules, click back on the person icon, and select Full Catalogue.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to get in touch:

Enrica Conrotto – pgrskillsdevelopment@bournemouth.ac.uk

Sarah Bell (Ethics modules) – researchethics@bournemouth.ac.uk

 

Ageing well together event – Thursday 13th June

BU research, Events, Impact, Research Concordat, Research news, research staff

The Ageing & Dementia Research Centre are delighted to be hosting “Ageing well together” an event bringing together members of the public, community organisations and researchers for an interactive day to share knowledge and showcase various projects and activities. The event will be in BGB on the Thursday 13th June 10.00- 15.00.

Please invite friends and family to join us. We ask that they register through our Eventbrite link https://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/events/ageing-well-together

Any questions about the event please email adrc@bournemouth.ac.uk 

FST and BUBS Research Staff Association Reps wanted!

BU research, Research communication, Research Concordat, research staff

HR excellence in research logoThe BU Research Staff Association (RSA) is a forum to promote research culture at BU. Research staff from across BU are encouraged to attend, to network with others researchers, disseminate their work, discuss career opportunities, hear updates on how BU is implementing the Research Concordat, and give feedback or raise concerns that will help to develop and support the research community at BU.

We are looking to recruit FST and BUBS Faculty RSA Representatives.

The Faculty RSA reps role is to support the Institutional reps with the running of the BU RSA, attending the Research Concordat Steering Group, and Faculty Research and Professional Practice Committee Meetings, to provide an update on the BU RSA and feedback any comments or concerns.

Eligible research staff are those on research-only contracts – fixed-term or open-ended employment (not PTHP/casual contracts) who have at least one year remaining on their contract at the time of recruitment.

If you are interested in the FST RSA rep or BUBS  RSA rep role, please supply a few words to demonstrate your interest and availability in relation to the position. These should be submitted to the RDS Researchdev@bournemouth.ac.uk  by 5pm on Thursday 14 March 2024.

Please contact your RSA reps to chat about it if you have any queries.

Recruiting : FST and BUBS Research Staff Association Representatives

Research communication, Research Concordat, research staff

The BU Research Staff Association (RSA) is a forum to promote research culture at BU. Research staff from across BU are encouraged to attend, to network with others researchers, disseminate their work, discuss career opportunities, hear updates on how BU is implementing the Research Concordat, and give feedback or raise concerns that will help to develop and support the research community at BU.

Recruiting FST and BUBS Faculty RSA Representatives

The Faculty RSA reps role is to support the Institutional reps with the running of the BU RSA, attending the Research Concordat Steering Group, and Faculty Research and Professional Practice Committee Meetings, to provide an update on the BU RSA and feedback any comments or concerns.

Eligible research staff are those on research-only contracts – fixed-term or open-ended employment (not PTHP/casual contracts) who have at least one year remaining on their contract at the time of recruitment.

If you are interested in the FST RSA rep or BUBS  RSA rep role, please supply a few words to demonstrate your interest and availability in relation to the position. These should be submitted to the RDS Researchdev@bournemouth.ac.uk  by 5pm on Thursday 14 March 2024.

Please contact your RSA reps to chat about it if you have any queries.

UK Research Integrity Office – Free Webinar – Social Media and Ethics – Last chance to book

BU research, Research Concordat, Research Ethics, Research Ethics Panels, research integrity, Research Supervision, Research Training

UKRIO LogoUKRIO has announced details of a forthcoming Free Webinar “Social Media and Ethics” on Wednesday 21st February from 10:00 – 11:00 BST. 

Research using social media data presents several ethical issues that researchers must navigate to ensure the responsible and respectful use of this data. Some of the primary ethical issues in research using social media includes privacy and informed consent, anonymity and confidentiality, data ownership and terms of use, ethical use of algorithms and AI, sensitive topics and vulnerable populations, consent and minors, deception and online identity, unintended consequences, and transparency and reproducibility.This webinar discusses these ethical concerns that require a combination of thoughtful consideration, adherence to research guidelines, and engagement with relevant stakeholders, including social media platforms and users.

Dr Nicolas Gold, Associate Professor  in Computer Science will lead the webinar, which will cover:

  • The identification of some key ethics issues when using social media data.
  • An approach to constructing arguments for ethically defensible research in this space.
  • A brief “tour” of some platform terms and their potential impact on research.

This webinar is aimed at all researchers using social media and those involved in the ethical review process of projects.

As BU subscribes to UKRIO services, UKRIO webinars are free and open to anyone who may be interested in research integrity and ethics, good research practice and improving research culture and avoiding misconduct.

To register – please click here (takes you to external website).

UK Research Integrity Office – Free Webinar – Social Media and Ethics

BU research, Postgraduate Research, Research Concordat, Research Ethics, Research Ethics Panels, research integrity, Research Supervision

UKRIO LogoUKRIO has announced details of a forthcoming Free Webinar “Social Media and Ethics” on Wednesday 21st February from 10:00 – 11:00 BST. 

Research using social media data presents several ethical issues that researchers must navigate to ensure the responsible and respectful use of this data. Some of the primary ethical issues in research using social media includes privacy and informed consent, anonymity and confidentiality, data ownership and terms of use, ethical use of algorithms and AI, sensitive topics and vulnerable populations, consent and minors, deception and online identity, unintended consequences, and transparency and reproducibility.This webinar discusses these ethical concerns that require a combination of thoughtful consideration, adherence to research guidelines, and engagement with relevant stakeholders, including social media platforms and users.

Dr Nicolas Gold, Associate Professor  in Computer Science will lead the webinar, which will cover:

  • The identification of some key ethics issues when using social media data.
  • An approach to constructing arguments for ethically defensible research in this space.
  • A brief “tour” of some platform terms and their potential impact on research.

This webinar is aimed at all researchers using social media and those involved in the ethical review process of projects.

As BU subscribes to UKRIO services, UKRIO webinars are free and open to anyone who may be interested in research integrity and ethics, good research practice and improving research culture and avoiding misconduct.

To register – please click here (takes you to external website).

Recruiting : Faculty Research Staff Representatives 

BU research, Research Concordat, research staff

The BU Research Staff Association (RSA) is a forum to promote research culture at BU. Research staff from across BU are encouraged to attend, to network with others researchers, disseminate their work, discuss career opportunities, hear updates on how BU is implementing the Research Concordat, and give feedback or raise concerns that will help to develop and support the research community at BU.

Recruiting FST and BUBS Faculty Research Staff Representatives

The Faculty RSA reps role is to support the Institutional reps with the running of the BU RSA, attending the Research Concordat Steering Group, and Faculty Research and Professional Practice Committee Meetings, to provide an update on the BU RSA and feedback any comments or concerns.

Eligible research staff are those on research-only contracts – fixed-term or open-ended employment (not PTHP/casual contracts) who have at least one year remaining on their contract at the time of recruitment.  

If you are interested in the FST rep or BUBS  rep role, please supply a few words to demonstrate your interest, availability in relation to the position to Researchdev@bournemouth.ac.uk by the 14/02/24.

Please contact your Faculty RSA reps to chat about it if you have any queries.

 

BU retains Vitae HR Excellence in Research Award for tenth year

BU research, Featured, Research communication, Research Concordat, Research news, research staff

We are delighted to announce that we have successfully retained the HR Excellence in Research Award for a tenth year.

HR excellence in research logoThe award demonstrates BU’s commitment to aligning process and practice to the UK Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers and thereby improving the working conditions and career development for research staff.

It is awarded by Vitae, a global leader in supporting the professional development of researchers, and was retained following an external review.

As part of the review process, institutions need to demonstrate that they have completed a gap analysis of their existing policies and practice against the Concordat, developed a robust action plan for implementation, and taken into account the views of researchers.

Key achievements highlighted in our ten-year submission include providing Bridging Funding to enable research staff on fixed term contracts to remain in post while awaiting the outcome of future funding applications, and creating 12 new research posts within high-performing academic teams as part of the Research Capacity Transformation Scheme.

Research staff at BU can also participate in a range of training and development opportunities through the Research and Knowledge Exchange Development Framework (RKEDF) and can access support through networks including the Early Career Researcher (ECR) Network and the Research Staff Association (RSA).

BU is one of three institutions to retain the award after their 10-year review and one of 87 Vitae UK member institutions with the award.

Professor Mike Silk, Co-Chair of the Research Concordat Steering Group (RCSG) at BU, said:

“We are absolutely delighted to have retained the HR Excellence in Research Award following our 10-year review. The award demonstrates our long-term commitment to supporting the career development of our research staff, developing policies to support researcher development, and providing space to empower our research staff to impact their careers.

“Our research staff are integral to the success of Bournemouth University and I’m particularly pleased with how well the RCSG have worked collaboratively this last couple of years to ensure the voices of our research staff have been at the very centre of our progress towards the award.”

He added: “The award not only recognises the progress we have made to date, but provides the impetus for further development in three key areas: our environment and culture, employment conditions, and professional and career development for research staff.

“Our forward-looking action plan will be demanding, but progressing our key actions will ensure we further embed the principles of the research concordat into our processes, procedures, strategic goals and research culture at BU.”

Find out more about BU’s commitment to the UK Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers

Recruiting: FST Rep for the Research Staff Association (RSA)

BU research, Research Concordat, Research news, research staff

The BU Research Staff Association (RSA) is a forum to promote research culture at BU. Research staff from across BU are encouraged to network with other researchers, disseminate their work, discuss career opportunities, hear updates on how BU is implementing the Research Concordat, and give feedback or raise concerns that will help to develop and support the research community at BU.

The Association is run by three leaders and supported by at least two reps from each faculty.

If you are interested in the FST rep role, please supply a few words to demonstrate your suitability, interest, availability in relation to the position to Researchdev@bournemouth.ac.uk by the 22/10/23.

Eligible research staff are those on research-only contracts – fixed-term or open-ended employment  (not PTHP/casual contracts).

Please contact the RSA FST rep  to chat about it if you have any queries.

Postdoc Appreciation Week: Postdoc Appreciation meet-up

BU research, Events, Featured, PG research, Postgraduate Research, Research communication, Research Concordat, research staff

This week is UK Postdoc Appreciation Week and we are celebrating and showcasing the achievements of our postdoctoral researchers and their important contribution to research at BU. 

To mark the week, we hosted a Postdoc Appreciation meet-up event on Talbot Campus…

A photo through a window of people gathered in a room with a poster saying Postdoc Appreciation Week

The Postdoc Appreciation Week meet-up

The event offered the opportunity for postdoctoral researchers, their line managers, and research staff from across the university to come together and network, as well as find out more about current postdoctoral research taking place at BU.

The event was opened by Professor Mike Silk, Co-Chair of the Research Concordat Steering Group at BU.

Introducing the event as an opportunity to increase and enhance the visibility of postdoc researchers at BU, he said: “Postdoctoral researchers really are the ones who drive forward the research agenda at any institution.

“They are the lifeblood of my research and career – I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing without the postdoctoral researchers that I have managed.”

As part of the event, postdoctoral researchers Sina Safari and Anastasia Vayona presented short summaries of their current research.

Sina Safari stood in front of a screen

Sina Safari presents his work as part of the ADDISONIC cluster

Sina, a Postdoctoral Research Assistant in Structural Dynamics and Advanced Materials, shared his work as part of the ADDISONIC research cluster, which is looking at how ultrasonic fatigue testing can provide valuable data around how long materials will last.

The work has applications for industry in helping them develop more robust modelling around the lifespan of materials, as well as exploring ways of potentially using less material while extending their life.

Anastasia, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Social Science and Policy, spoke about her research exploring greenwashing, wish cycling and the circular economy.

Anastasia Vayona presenting her research

Anastasia Vayona presenting her research into the circular economy

She shared a brief history of the introduction of plastic packaging and the development of a ‘throwaway culture’, which peaked around the 1990s. She also spoke about some of the challenges around recycling – including the responsibility being largely left with consumers, and unclear messaging which leads to recycling becoming contaminated and ended up in landfill.

The event ended with the chance to chat over coffee and cake, and offered a great opportunity to learn more about postdoctoral research at BU and meet some of our current researchers, as well as say thank you for the contribution they make to research at BU. The hope is to hold similar events in future – watch this space!

If you’d like to write a blog post to share your appreciation for our postdoctoral researchers, please contact research@bournemouth.ac.uk. You can also get involved on social media during Postdoc Appreciation Week by using #LovePostdocs and #NPAW2023 on Twitter and Instagram and tagging us @BU_Research or @UK_NPAW.

 

 

BU Research Staff Association

BU research, Research Concordat, research staff, Uncategorized, Vitae

BU Research Staff Association (RSA) is a forum to promote BU research culture. Research staff from across BU are encouraged to attend to network with others researchers, disseminate their work, discuss career opportunities, hear updates on how BU is implementing the Research Concordat, and give feedback or raise concerns that will help to develop and support the research community at BU.

There are three Institutional Representatives. Their role is to facilitate the BU RSA events, attend both the BU RCSG and the URPPC meetings, to provide an update on the BU RSA, and raise any feedback or concerns. The Institutional Representatives are: Chaoguang Wang, Faculty of Media & Communication, Anastasia Vayona, Faculty of Science & Technology, Rejoice Chipuriro, Faculty of Health & Social Science

Each Faculty also has two Research Staff Representatives. Their role is to support the BU reps in facilitating the BU RSA events, attending the BU RCSG and URPPC meetings to provide an update on the BU RSA and feedback any comments or concerns.

The current Faculty Research Staff Representatives are:

Faculty of Health and Social Science, Gladys Yinusa and Sophia Amenyah

Faculty of Science and Technology, Kimberley Davies

You can  contact the RSA reps @ ResearchStaffAssociation@bournemouth.ac.uk