I’ve been awarded a HEA grant to run a one day workshop at Bournemouth University on ‘Smart futures: practical use of technology in psychology learning and teaching’ on 2nd July 2013. Although focussing on psychology, some sessions may also be useful to those from other related disciplines wanting to develop their practice in using technology to enhance their students’ experience. I will be presenting my own research and reflecting on my practice. Other speakers include Dr M Coxon (York St Johns) on ‘Tweeting, Twittering and Twitterdom’ and Dr C Senior (Aston) on ‘Technology and Student Teams in Learning’. Bookings are open at http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/events/detail/2013/02-July-Smart-futures-Bournemouth
Category / Training
New to BRIAN?
If you are new to BU, have missed the Brian training sessions or just need a refresher, the BRIAN team is looking to run some training sessions for academics to help you gain the most from BRIAN. The session covers how to set up and maintain your BRIAN profile, how to ensure your details are correct, how to request a photo is uploaded, how BRIAN links to your external staff profile and lots more.
These are hands-on sessions being run on both the Lansdowne and Talbot Campuses or one-to-one. To register your interest, please email the BRIAN team (BRIAN@bournemouth.ac.uk).
Child Protection in a time of Austerity – The National Centre for Post-Qualifying Social Work


Incorporating critical thinking and relationship based interventions with complex families.
We recognise that this is a challenging time for the social work profession and statutory social work in particular. The Munro Review of Child Protection highlighted the complex nature of child protection work and the importance of ensuring that the professional judgement of social workers working with children and families with complex problems is of a high calibre.
Set against a backdrop of welfare reform, marketisation of services and austerity measures, the National Centre for Post-Qualifying Social Work is pleased to bring you our first child protection conference, which will focus on:
- Critical reflection in child protection
- Reflective leadership and the consequences of diminishing services
- The role of supervision
Speakers
Gillian Ruch
Gillian Ruch has a background in professional practice as a social worker with experience of working in statutory child care teams. Her research interests relate to child and practitioner well-being and in the contribution of reflective practice to professional education, practice and research. She is particularly interested in developing understanding of reflective practice as a mode of support for professional practice and as a research method.
Find out more about Gillian / Publications
Siobhan Maclean
Siobhan qualified as a social worker in 1990. She has worked in a variety of settings including children’s services, learning disability services and mental health services. She has been a foster carer, an approved social worker and a practice educator. Siobhan now manages Kirwin Maclean Associates Limited. She acts as a researcher, trainer and consultant for a range of social care and social work organisations. Siobhan also retains practice experience by acting as a Practice Educator. Siobhan is the European Honorary Secretary for the International Federation of Social Workers.
Find out more about Siobhan
Nushra Mansuri
Nushra Mansuri currently works for the British Association of Social Workers as Professional Officer in England. One of her key responsibilities is leading on children and families social work. Nushra compiled BASW’s response to Professor Munro’s review on child protection and also BASW’s evidence to the Justice Select Committee’s Inquiry into the workings of family courts. Nushra regularly acts as BASW’s spokesperson on child protection issues and has appeared on BBC Breakfast TV, This Morning, Channel 4 News, BBC News, Sky News, Dispatches, the Tonight programme, Radio 4 and a variety of national, international and local media.
Find out more about Nushra
Jane Wonnacott
Jane Wonnacott is Director of In-Trac Training and Consultancy, UK, and is a qualified social worker, independent trainer and consultant. She has a long-standing interest in supervision and has trained social work supervisors across the UK.
Find out more about Jane /Publications
For any enquiries, please contact: Lucy Morrison (lmorrison@bournemouth.ac.uk) or Emily Rosenorn-Lanng (elanng@bournemouth.ac.uk)
New to BRIAN?
If you are new to BU, have missed the Brian training sessions or just need a refresher, the BRIAN team is looking to run some training sessions for academics to help you gain the most from BRIAN. The session covers how to set up and maintain your BRIAN profile, how to ensure your details are correct, how to request a photo is uploaded, how BRIAN links to your external staff profile and lots more.
These are hands-on sessions being run on both the Lansdowne and Talbot Campuses or one-to-one. To register your interest, please email the BRIAN team (BRIAN@bournemouth.ac.uk).
Grants Academy – June grant writing workshop: only a few spaces left !

We are holding an additional Grants Academy, 2 Day Grant Writing Workshop in June with Martin Pickard on the:
Monday the 10th and Tuesday the 11th of June 2013
However on this workshop we have only a few spaces left and these are available on a first come basis so we urge you to act fast if you wish to secure a space.
By clicking on the Grants Academy page on the Research Blog you can find further details about the Grants Academy, what assistance is available to you and the expectations from you going forward.
Please note: if you would like to attend we will need you to bring a draft proposal you are currently working on. Please also be aware as a member of the Grants Academy you will be required to work on a proposal after the session, using the resources available to Grants Academy members, and to submit this proposal for external funding within six months of completing the training programme. Membership of the Academy is for a maximum of 18 months during which time you will be expected to have submitted a minimum of three external bids.
If you would like a place on this workshop please email me (Dianne Goodman) and confirm you are able to bring a proposal. Please also forward an email from your line manager supporting your membership of the Grants Academy. We look forward to hearing from you shortly.
Call for papers and special BU staff rate: 2nd International Conference on Social Responsibility, Ethics and Sustainable Business
You are invited to attend the 2nd International Conference on Social Responsibility, Ethics and Sustainable Business to be held at Bournemouth University, UK, on September 5-6, 2013. The purpose of the conference is to create a networking opportunity for both researchers and practitioners to discuss recent insights on socially responsible practices in the non- and for-profit sector.
Although academic in nature, representatives in the business environment will deliver case studies on sustainability practices and will reflect on the challenges and opportunities that corporate social responsibility brings to different industries. The main topics of the conference, but not limited to these, are: CSR and Sustainability, CSR and Business Ethics, CSR and Social Media, CSR and Education, Communicating CSR, CSR initiatives/strategies, Corporate Governance, NGO Marketing.
Keynote speakers
David Crowther, Professor of Corporate Social Responsibility and Head of the Centre for Research into Organisational Governance at De Montfort University, Leicester, UK. He is a qualified accountant with many years business experience. His research is into corporate social responsibility with a particular emphasis on the relationship between social, environmental and financial performance. David has published over 30 books and has also contributed to more than 350 articles to academic, business and professional journals and to edited book collections. He has also spoken widely at conferences and seminars and acted as a consultant to a wide range of government, professional and commercial organisations. He is a member of a number of international advisory boards and is also founding chair of the Social Responsibility Research Network: series editor of the Gower Applied Research in Responsibility Journal and convenor of the International Conference Series on Corporate Social Responsibility.
Wim J.L. Elving, (PhD U of Twente, 1999) finished an MA in Social and Organizational Psychology (U of Groningen, 1993). His PhD was on the care of cancer patients, and especially the constraints in cooperation and communication of health care professionals. In 2000 he started working as assistant professor at the Department of Communication, Amsterdam School of Communications Research at the U of Amsterdam. His research shifted from organizational and or internal communication (Communicating Organizational Change) to Corporate Communications in general. In the last years he did several studies in Branding, use of Social Networking Sites, and CSR Communications. As visiting professor he taught students at reputable institutions in Finland, Denmark, the UK, Slovenia, Italy and Spain. Since 2006 he is editor in chief of Corporate Communications, an International Journal, member of the Editorial Board of Journal of Brand Management and the Dutch Journal in Communication Science. He has co-authored almost 100 different articles in Communication Journals and 4 books.
Please send an abstract of 300 words in a Word document format via email to icsr2013@bournemouth.ac.uk by May 20, 2013 (extended). No more than two papers will be accepted from any author. The deadline for the full paper is August 1, 2013. The abstracts of the papers will be published in the Conference Proceedings and the intention is to publish selected papers in an edited collection.
Abstract Submission Deadline: May 20, 2013 (extended)
Acceptance Notification: May 25, 2013
Registration Deadline: July 10, 2013
Full Papers Deadline: August 1, 2013
Conference: September 5-6, 2013
Conference Fee: £200 academic/practitioner; £150 PhD student **BU staff rate £60*
Website: http://microsites.bournemouth.ac.uk/icsr2013/about-2/
Organizing Committee
Dr Georgiana F. Grigore, The Media School, Bournemouth University
Dr Anastasios Theofilou, The Media School, Bournemouth University
Dr Dan Jackson, The Media School, Bournemouth University
Dr Alin Stancu, Faculty of Marketing, Bucharest University of Economic Studies
Cristian Ducu, Centre for Advanced Research in Management and Applied Sciences
An Introduction to the BRAD Framework and Development Sessions
Calling all BU Researcher Staff,
We invite you to: An Introduction to the BRAD Framework and Development Sessions– Wednesday the 18th of September 2-3.30pm (location to be confirmed).
The University has created Bournemouth Researcher/Academic Development-BRAD. BRAD is a tailor designed research development framework with supporting development sessions, for BU’s Research/Academic staff. The aims and objectives of BRAD are aligned to the Universities Strategic Plan 2012-2018, our Visions & Values-BU 2018, and Vitae’s researcher development framework. BU is providing professional and personal development sessions and online courses throughout the next academic year 2013-2014, which are all free to attend. The development sessions will cover a range of topics, from statistics, NVivo, personal effectiveness, research management and publishing in journals and books.
Please email Bridie at: bapplebygunnill@bournemouth.ac.uk to confirm your attendance to the Introduction to BRAD Session
Calling all Early Career Researchers,
Calling all Early Career Researchers,
We invite you to: An Introduction to the BRAD Framework and Development Sessions– Wednesday the 18th of September 2-3.30pm (location to be confirmed).
The University has created Bournemouth Researcher/Academic Development-BRAD. BRAD is a tailor designed research development framework with supporting development sessions, for BU’s Early Career Researchers (ECR’s). The aims and objectives of BRAD are aligned to the Universities Strategic Plan 2012-2018, our Visions & Values-BU 2018, and Vitae’s researcher development framework. BU is providing professional and personal development sessions and online courses throughout the next academic year 2013-2014, which are all free to attend. The development sessions will cover a range of topics, from SPSS, NVivo, personal effectiveness, research management and publishing in journals and books.
Please email bapplebygunnill@bournemouth.ac.uk to confirm your attendance to the Introduction to BRAD Session, and to identify yourself as an Early Career Researcher, by the end of this week.
Want to improve your communication and public speaking skills?
Stand Up & Speak Without Fear – Wednesday 8 May 2013
7th Floor EBC 2pm to 5pm
The Centre for Entrepreneurship is delighted to invite you to a seminar by Toastmasters International. An educational organisation that operates clubs worldwide for the purpose of helping members improve their communication, public speaking and leadership skills.
You will also get the opportunity to meet with Brian Jenner who is a professional speechwriter. He won a prestigious Cicero Award in 2010. His clients have included Cabinet ministers, CEOs and celebrities. Brian now runs the European Speechwriter Network. He worked for the Daily Telegraph, Guardian and Daily Mail, and wrote a bestselling book, Men & Collections
This is a free event for BU Staff, Students & Businesses. Refreshments will be provided. To book your place please visit www.bucfe.com/events or telephone 01202 961216.
Don’t miss finding out how you can engage with KTPs and SMART awards…..
CALLNG ALL ACADEMICS WHO WISH TO ENGAGE WITH BUSINESSES!
Staff are invited to attend the:
‘Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) and SMART awards events’
Both these schemes are UK-wide programmes funded by the Technology Strategy Board.
-
KTP provides academics with opportunities for the practical application of their research. Importantly, they are an opportunity for academics to engage with the business community.
-
SMART awards assist businesses to engage in research & development projects in areas such as science, engineering and technology, from which successful new products, processes and services can emerge. Whilst universities may not apply directly, they may act as a sub-contractor to an applicant.
If you are interested in learning more about KTP and SMART awards, please come along to one of the following events:
Event Dates:
Friday 26th April Breakfast Meeting – Talbot Campus (KG103) – 8.30am – 10.30am
ktpbreakfast2013.eventbrite.co.uk
Tuesday 30th April Executive Business Centre (7th Floor) – Lansdowne – 6pm – 8pm
ktpandsmart2013.eventbrite.co.uk
(To book your place – just go to the ‘Eventbrite link’ listed under each date. There are only a limited number of spaces left, so please book asap to avoid missing out)
- Local businesses are going to be invited to attend these sessions too, which will provide a valuable opportunity for academics to network and develop potential working relationships with them.
For further information, please contact Lucy Rossiter.
Reminder – Marie Curie morning session 16/04/13 – Need a Fully Funded Research Fellow ??
The Prize
These schemes provide strong financial support for a Research Fellow in your department for a period of 12 – 24 months on any research topic.
The Catch
The Research Fellow must come from another European Country or International Base worldwide. It is joint application with you and the fellowship candidate – so they must be identified. (If the fellow is already in the UK they must have been working here for less than 1 year in the last 3.)
The Deadline
Deadline for application is August 2013 – but the forms are relatively easy & straight forward – although moderately time consuming. Fellowships will start in early 2014 but this start date could be extended to early 2015.
Intra-European Fellowships (IEF) Deadline Mid August 2013
International Incoming Fellowships (IIF) Deadline Mid August 2013
Note: For people already at the University there is a similar outgoing international Fellowship scheme to enable research periods in other , non European, Labs and Research Centres.
These fellowships are prestigious and highly sought after, especially as they pay very well. There is a difference in emphasis between the two schemes but the overriding criteria is candidate, and host, excellence with respect to the justification of the project rationale. This is all derived from the candidates cv and thus please discuss initially with Martin Pickard who can advise on suitability and fit.
These fellowships are an excellent, and often overlooked, way to expand and compliment a research team. Initial advice is imperative as, again, project structure and rationale with respect to the candidate are very important in determining success and need to be argued and justified around the actual science and project.
Requirements.
One University (Host) and one applicant, of any nationality, other than from than the UK. (candidates may already be in the UK but must have spent less than 12 months of the past 36 in the UK)
The higher the quality of the cv, rated against age and experience, the more likelihood of funding success. Each prospective fellow can only apply for one fellowship but any host can have as many fellows as they want applying to work with the same PI.
The Grant
Typical project period – Minimum 12 months — Maximum 24 months
Fellow income: In excess of 80,000 Euro per year.
University Income: Minimum of 18,000 Euro per year.
Help Needed ??
If you have a research Fellow in Mind (or can find one through networking or your colleague links) the application will not take a lot of time – but a clearly defined and specific approach is required. Guidance notes will be available as well as direct one to one support from our proposal writing specialist Dr. Martin Pickard.
To assist further we have also arranged a series of 2 morning information sessions. The next one and last one is due to be held on the Tuesday 16th of April 2013 – Lansdowne Campus
Information Session 1 – 09:00am – 10:00am
A Brief Introduction to the Marie Curie Fellowship Schemes – for those of general interest.
In addition to the general European topic specific calls under the cooperation programme there are a number of explicit opportunities arising through other schemes – some of which are far more easily accessible and have the advantage of being open to literally any research idea/topic. Several of these arise through the People programme under the Marie Curie calls and this 40 minute plus Q&A information session seeks to highlight some of these opportunities and identify their pro’s and cons so that a clear strategy can be developed to avoid missing these significant, and relatively easy, opportunities.
Information Session 2 – 10:15am – 12:15pm
How to Approach and Structure your Marie Curie Fellowship Application – for those possibly intending to submit a bid.
The structure of any bid (partner interactions, methodology synergy etc.) is critical to the success of an application and forward planning is a key element of winning proposals.
If you are thinking of applying this August this session will illustrate the basic approach requirements for success and show how to structure and present your research application in the correct form of “Brusselese”. A brief, 2 hour, guide to the Marie Curie application process.
Please note: If you are already intending to submit a bid this August then Session 1 will provide very little additional information. Also Grants Academy members who have already attended our Grants Academy 2 Day Bid Writing Workshop will not need to attend Session 1 as this has already been covered in your workshop so we would recommend you book into and attend Session 2 only.
If these are a potential interest to you – don’t miss this exceptional opportunity. Please book in ASAP via Staff Development Booking Link to reserve your space as we anticipate these sessions will be very popular.
Developing Industry Partnerships Event
Understanding Modern Government are running an event on 1 May in London on Developing Industry Partnerships – helping academia and the private sector work together.
By 2014, capital grants to UK universities from Government will have halved.
HE Institutions must now access a much wider range of income streams to maintain their excellent academic and commercial work – including from the private and charitable sectors.
This course, led by Colin Wyatt, expert in the field of university and industry collaboration, will offer a practical guide on the most effective methods of obtaining alternative funding, be that from the public, private or charitable sectors.
Through a series of engaging workshops, delegates will hear how their universities can diversify their funding streams and build meaningful partnerships with industry.
Bournemouth University has two allocated spaces on this event for a reduced price of £395 + VAT per delegate. To take up this offer you will need to contact Gemma Roberts directly on 0161 2113011 or gemma.roberts@moderngov.com
Marie Curie Funding Info Sessions Reminder – Need A Fully Funded Research Fellow ?
The Prize
These schemes provide strong financial support for a Research Fellow in your department for a period of 12 – 24 months on any research topic.
The Catch
The Research Fellow must come from another European Country or International Base worldwide. It is joint application with you and the fellowship candidate – so they must be identified. (If the fellow is already in the UK they must have been working here for less than 1 year in the last 3.)
The Deadline
Deadline for application is August 2013 – but the forms are relatively easy & straight forward – although moderately time consuming. Fellowships will start in early 2014 but this start date could be extended to early 2015.
Intra-European Fellowships (IEF) Deadline Mid August 2013
International Incoming Fellowships (IIF) Deadline Mid August 2013
Note: For people already at the University there is a similar outgoing international Fellowship scheme to enable research periods in other , non European, Labs and Research Centres.
These fellowships are prestigious and highly sought after, especially as they pay very well. There is a difference in emphasis between the two schemes but the overriding criteria is candidate, and host, excellence with respect to the justification of the project rationale. This is all derived from the candidates cv and thus please discuss initially with Martin Pickard who can advise on suitability and fit.
These fellowships are an excellent, and often overlooked, way to expand and compliment a research team. Initial advice is imperative as, again, project structure and rationale with respect to the candidate are very important in determining success and need to be argued and justified around the actual science and project.
Requirements.
One University (Host) and one applicant, of any nationality, other than from than the UK. (candidates may already be in the UK but must have spent less than 12 months of the past 36 in the UK)
The higher the quality of the cv, rated against age and experience, the more likelihood of funding success. Each prospective fellow can only apply for one fellowship but any host can have as many fellows as they want applying to work with the same PI.
The Grant
Typical project period – Minimum 12 months — Maximum 24 months
Fellow income: In excess of 80,000 Euro per year.
University Income: Minimum of 18,000 Euro per year.
Help Needed ??
If you have a research Fellow in Mind (or can find one through networking or your colleague links) the application will not take a lot of time – but a clearly defined and specific approach is required. Guidance notes will be available as well as direct one to one support from our proposal writing specialist Dr. Martin Pickard.
To assist further we have also arranged a series of 2 morning information sessions to be held on the Wednesday 27th of March and repeated again on the Tuesday 16th of April 2013
Information Session 1 – 09:00am – 10:00am
A Brief Introduction to the Marie Curie Fellowship Schemes – for those of general interest.
In addition to the general European topic specific calls under the cooperation programme there are a number of explicit opportunities arising through other schemes – some of which are far more easily accessible and have the advantage of being open to literally any research idea/topic. Several of these arise through the People programme under the Marie Curie calls and this 40 minute plus Q&A information session seeks to highlight some of these opportunities and identify their pro’s and cons so that a clear strategy can be developed to avoid missing these significant, and relatively easy, opportunities.
Information Session 2 – 10:15am – 12:15pm
How to Approach and Structure your Marie Curie Fellowship Application – for those possibly intending to submit a bid.
The structure of any bid (partner interactions, methodology synergy etc.) is critical to the success of an application and forward planning is a key element of winning proposals.
If you are thinking of applying this August this session will illustrate the basic approach requirements for success and show how to structure and present your research application in the correct form of “Brusselese”. A brief, 2 hour, guide to the Marie Curie application process.
Please note: If you are already intending to submit a bid this August then Session 1 will provide very little additional information. Also Grants Academy members who have already attended our Grants Academy 2 Day Bid Writing Workshop will not need to attend Session 1 as this has already been covered in your workshop so we would recommend you book into and attend Session 2 only.
If these are a potential interest to you – don’t miss this exceptional opportunity. Please book in ASAP via Staff Development Booking Link to reserve your space as we anticipate these sessions will be very popular.
Erasmus Mundus mobility to South Caucasus region and Ukraine for students and staff available now! -Deadline 28th February-
BU students and staff have been invited by Georg-August Universität Göttingen to apply for mobility at ALRAKIS II.
ALRAKIS II is one of the awarded Erasmus Mundus action 2 projects that promotes exchange mobility in the South Caucasus region and Ukraine. The beneficiary countries are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Ukraine. Our students and staff would be looking at applying at Target Group 2.
For more information please visit the project website and if you have any queries please contact Eva Papadopoulou at epapadopoulou@bournemouth.ac.uk and 01202 968252
Please note that the deadline for this is 28th February 2013.
FREE workshop for researchers (PGRs and Researchers): Charting an entrepreneurial career: how researchers can control their professional destiny
Vitae and the Entrepreneurial Institution are pleased to announce two new enterprise workshops on the 5th March in Bristol and on the 7th March in London.
Wherever you are in your research career, whether you are applying for research funding, moving into a new career or starting your own business (commercial or social) this day will enable you to understand your enterprising potential to create impact through research and take your ideas into a business.
During the day, you will:
- explore your own skills in relation to entrepreneurship
- explore research impact in relation to grant applications and REF
- explore different types of enterprise
- hear from successful entrepreneurs
- hear about social enterprise, commercialisation and knowledge exchange
- network and plan next steps
To book your place on the workhops, please visit:
Tuesday 5th March 2013 – www.vitae.ac.uk/enterprise_Bristol
Thursday 7th March 2013 – www.vitae.ac.uk/enterprise_London
DEC receives successful KTP training session…..
Although KTPs have been around for over 30 years; for some academics they are still new territory! Bearing this in mind, it was suggested that a training session on KTPs would be welcomed by academics in the School of DEC.
The training session took place at the Talbot Campus last week, and was well received – especially as the session provided the opportunity to meet Neil Grice who is the KTP Advisor for the region. KTP Advisors play a key role in the setting up of KTPs – they have a broad range of industrial expertise and are on hand to help with the preparation of a KTP proposal. Then, throughout the life cycle of the KTP, they monitor the progress to ensure that all the partners achieve their goals.
Neil provided an excellent and engaging overview of KTPs, and in addition to his presentation, further project information was delivered by BU colleagues, Emily Cieciura and Norman Stock. They both did a fantastic job of explaining the particulars in bidding for KTPs and what is required post award. The technicalities of a KTP can be quite laborious, so credit goes to Neil, Emily and Norman for delivering a training session which was clear and straightforward!
If you feel you or your school would benefit from a KTP training session, please get in touch! KTP’s are an excellent opportunity for academics to engage with further Research and Development, and in particular they contribute to the REF. Taking this into consideration, why not take advantage of a training session and find out the value of KTPs?
To find out further information, or to arrange a training session, please email Lucy Rossiter.
1-2-1 Sessions with an Expert Bid Writer at BU Available!
The RKE Development team have organised a unique experience for BU staff; a 1-2-1 with a leading grant writer. With a career background in both Academia and Industry Dr. Martin Pickard of Grantcraft is a specialist in writing and supporting research grant applications and tenders as well as providing administrative and management support services for ongoing projects. During the last 20 years Martin has worked extensively across Europe with a large number of universities, and research institutes as well as industrial firms, ranging from small SME’s to major international companies.
Martin is providing individual 1-2-1 surgeries with any academic staff member and works individually and confidentiality with each Principal Investigator as the project is structured and prepared in order to optimize the application documentation from every aspect of the Funders perspective; guiding, steering and showing how to optimize the application throughout the bid process.
Academics at BU who have undertaken his guidance have stated his ‘support and direction was invaluable – Martin gave me some pragmatic suggestions which really helped to shape the bid. His eye for detail made the document much easier to read and the message much clearer. I was very grateful for his input’ Assoc. Prof Heather Hartwell, School of Tourism.
In this highly competitive environment, many strong applications pass the threshold but fail to reach the funding level not because of their science or what they say, but because of their structure and what they omit to say. The science and art of Martin’s assistance directly addresses this major hurdle to success from innumerably perspectives; enabling demonstrated significantly higher success rates. Even experienced staff at BU who have utilized his services, have called Martin’s approach, ‘refreshing and helpful and renewed my energies in the arduous search for funding. He has had a major influence on the structure and presentation of my recent bids’ Prof Barry Richards, Media School.
Martin will work with you through a process of successive discussions and iterations of the application document, identifying and optimising as many of the weaker aspects as possible, starting with your 1-2-1 session. Identifying these weaknesses is important and takes considerable experience to be fully encompassing but the unique aspect of this approach is the direct provision of solutions and alternatives assembled from a lifetime career involvement, understanding and practise. This way, not only are you made aware of the problem but given a direct improvement solution It is only at the latter stages that effective grant-writing becomes evident with tweaks to phrases and styles as well as implementation of key/typical standards and texts. Results confirm that without this build of research structure behind and throughout the application success is always limited. This unique experience is valued by academics who have undertaken this process with him ‘Martin makes you think differently about approaching bid writing, constructing a bid and how to build up an argument throughout the various boxes; without changing the actual content he makes you think how to make key points jump out at the reviewer’, Dr Darren Lilleker, Media School.
The process, although labour intensive, works; with a proven historical average success rates of close to 1 in 2 against norms of 1 in 8 to 1 in 10. You can take up this unique and valuable experience, by booking a session now.
Appointments are approx 45 minutes long and you can book multiple sessions. You will also have unlimited telephone and email support to progress your application after meeting with Martin and you can discuss several applications with him.
Martin is at BU on the following dates and times and sessions must be booked through Dianne Goodman
Upcoming dates:
- 27th March 2013, 1:15-5pm (Talbot Campus) now full
Newly available dates (please note – limited availability):
- 15th April 2013, 9-11am and 2-5pm (Lansdowne Campus) now full
- 16th April 2013, 16:15-5pm (Lansdowne Campus) now full
- 16th May 2013, 9:15am- 5pm (Talbot Campus) now full
- 10th July 2013, 9:15am- 5pm (Talbot Campus)
- 4th September 2013, 9:15- 5 (TBA)
Need A Fully Funded Research Fellow ???
The Prize
These schemes provide strong financial support for a Research Fellow in your department for a period of 12 – 24 months on any research topic.
The Catch
The Research Fellow must come from another European Country or International Base worldwide. It is joint application with you and the fellowship candidate – so they must be identified. (If the fellow is already in the UK they must have been working here for less than 1 year in the last 3.)
The Deadline
Deadline for application is August 2013 – but the forms are relatively easy & straight forward – although moderately time consuming.Fellowships will start in early 2014 but this start date could be extended to early 2015.
Intra-European Fellowships (IEF) Deadline Mid August 2013
International Incoming Fellowships (IIF) Deadline Mid August 2013
Note: For people already at the University there is a similar outgoing international Fellowship scheme to enable research periods in other , non European, Labs and Research Centres.
These fellowships are prestigious and highly sought after, especially as they pay very well. There is a difference in emphasis between the two schemes but the overriding criteria is candidate, and host, excellence with respect to the justification of the project rationale. This is all derived from the candidates cv and thus please discuss initially with Martin Pickard who can advise on suitability and fit.
These fellowships are an excellent, and often overlooked, way to expand and compliment a research team. Initial advice is imperative as, again, project structure and rationale with respect to the candidate are very important in determining success and need to be argued and justified around the actual science and project.
Requirements.
One University (Host) and one applicant, of any nationality, other than from than the UK. (candidates may already be in the UK but must have spent less than 12 months of the past 36 in the UK)
The higher the quality of the cv, rated against age and experience, the more likelihood of funding success. Each prospective fellow can only apply for one fellowship but any host can have as many fellows as they want applying to work with the same PI.
The Grant
Typical project period – Minimum 12 months — Maximum 24 months
Fellow income: In excess of 80,000 Euro per year.
University Income: Minimum of 18,000 Euro per year.
Help Needed ??
If you have a research Fellow in Mind (or can find one through networking or your colleague links) the application will not take a lot of time – but a clearly defined and specific approach is required. Guidance notes will be available as well as direct one to one support from our proposal writing specialist Dr. Martin Pickard.
To assist further we have also arranged a series of 2 morning information sessions to be held on the Wednesday 27th of March and repeated again on the Tuesday 16th of April 2013
Information Session 1 – 09:00am – 10:00am
A Brief Introduction to the Marie Curie Fellowship Schemes – for those of general interest.
In addition to the general European topic specific calls under the cooperation programme there are a number of explicit opportunities arising through other schemes – some of which are far more easily accessible and have the advantage of being open to literally any research idea/topic. Several of these arise through the People programme under the Marie Curie calls and this 40 minute plus Q&A information session seeks to highlight some of these opportunities and identify their pro’s and cons so that a clear strategy can be developed to avoid missing these significant, and relatively easy, opportunities.
Information Session 2 – 10:15am – 12:15pm
How to Approach and Structure your Marie Curie Fellowship Application – for those possibly intending to submit a bid.
The structure of any bid (partner interactions, methodology synergy etc.) is critical to the success of an application and forward planning is a key element of winning proposals.
If you are thinking of applying this August this session will illustrate the basic approach requirements for success and show how to structure and present your research application in the correct form of “Brusselese”. A brief, 2 hour, guide to the Marie Curie application process.
Please note: If you are already intending to submit a bid this August then Session 1 will provide very little additional information. Also Grants Academy members who have already attended our Grants Academy 2 Day Bid Writing Workshop will not need to attend Session 1 as this has already been covered in your workshop so we would recommend you book into and attend Session 2 only.
If these are a potential interest to you – don’t miss this exceptional opportunity. Please book in ASAP via Staff Development Booking Link to reserve your space as we anticipate these sessions will be very popular.