Tagged / collaboration

Professional services staff can apply too….FIF-tastic!

Funding opportunities, Fusion

Not only does the Fusion Investment Fund provide opportunities for academic staff at BU, there are also options for professional services staff:

Staff can apply to Erasmus which is most appropriate for enabling academic and professional staff based at higher education institutions (HEIs) to spend a period of training or teaching between 5 working days and 6 weeks in a European HEI or enterprise.  Under training mobility, the purpose is to allow the staff members to acquire knowledge or skills relevant for their current job and their professional development and to help create cooperation between organisations. There are also opportunities to invite staff from enterprises to Bournemouth University to give presentations and provide teaching. Professional staff can undertake training at a European educational institution.

Another option is to apply to the standard element of the Staff Mobility and Networking (SMN) strand. Non-academic staff must be able to demonstrate through their application how their travel will benefit the academic process within BU and particular focus should be placed on the creation of sustainable collaborative networks of academics or professionals linked to specific outputs or partnership developments. 

 For more information please read the relevant policy documents and information available on the FIF intranet pages.

The Fusion Investment Fund is managed by Samantha Leahy-Harland and the Interim Administrator is Dianne Goodman. Please direct all initial enquiries to Fusion Fund.

FIF says ‘If you prefer to stay put, let the professionals and/or academics come to you!’

Funding opportunities, Fusion

Did you know that under the FIF you can invite an academic or professional to BU in respect to the development of projects or to provide training which is linked to any aspect of Fusion?

 

2 elements of the Fusion Investment Fund provide support for inward mobility:

The Standard element of the Staff Mobility and Networking (SMN) strand supports UK or overseas travel and subsistence in pursuit of any aspect of Fusion – research, education, and/or professional practice – with no minimum or maximum duration. Awards made will be between £1k and £10k. Particular focus should be placed on the creation of sustainable collaborative networks of academics or professionals linked to specific outputs or partnership developments. 

The Erasmus element of the Staff Mobility and Networking (SMN) strand provides opportunities to invite staff from enterprises to Bournemouth University to give presentations and provide teaching.

For more information please read the relevant policy documents and information available on the FIF intranet pages.

 The Fusion Investment Fund is managed by Samantha Leahy-Harland and the Interim Administrator is Dianne Goodman. Please direct all initial enquiries to Fusion Fund.

Are you FIF aware?!

Funding opportunities, Fusion

Because the FIF team are lovely, lovely people we’ve decided to hold some awareness sessions to give you the valuable opportunity to make your Fusion bid the very best it can possibly be. Two sessions will take place where you can discuss your application/s with the FIF Manager, Samantha Leahy-Harland, and committee members and, in addition, Dr. Martin Pickard of Grantcraft will be running a two and a half hour session giving his expert and essential Fusion bid writing advice. Martin is a specialist in writing and supporting research grant applications and tenders, as well as providing administrative and management support services for ongoing projects (additionally there will be some 1-2-1s available with Dr Martin Pickard in the afternoon of the 20th of November).

Come along to find out what makes a great application, what the committee members like to see in proposals and errors to avoid.  

  • Wednesday 13 November at 12-1pm, S203, Lansdowne – with the FIF Manager and committee members
  • Monday 18 November at 2-3pm, Casterbridge room, THS, Talbot – with the FIF Manager and committee members
  • Wednesday 20 November, at 9.30am – 12 midday in, CG04, Christchurch House, Talbot Campus – with Dr. Martin Pickard.
  • Additionally we have arranged some 1-2-1s in the afternoon between 1pm-5pm with Dr Martin Pickard to assist you specifically with your Fusion Bids.

 If you are interested in attending any of these sessions or to book a 1-2-1 appointment please contact Fusion Fund to confirm your place and your preferred session.

For all the updated strand policy documents, application form and more information please visit the FIF intranet pages.

The Fusion Investment Fund is managed by Samantha Leahy-Harland and the Interim Administrator is Dianne Goodman. Please direct all initial enquiries to Fusion Fund.

 

SMN could just be the strand for you!

Funding opportunities, Fusion

The Staff Mobility and Networking strand (SMN) of the FIF may seem like your normal, everyday standard strand but look carefully and you’ll see it’s a strand with a difference. It has 2 elements meaning even more opportunities for you! Not only is there a Standard element which includes Santander, but there is also an Erasmus Staff Mobility element too!

This strand provides support in the form of subsistence and travel costs and for staff to:

  • Travel within the UK or overseas with respect to development of projects linked to research, education, professional practice or any combination thereof.  Particular focus will be placed on the creation of sustainable collaborative networks of academics or professionals linked to specific outputs or partnership developments.
  • Travel within the UK or overseas for academic conferences, where one or more oral presentation is being presented and there is clear evidence of additional institutional value in terms of network creation or partnership development. 
  • Travel to at least one university from the the UK Santander Universities Network or one of the Overseas Santander Partner Universities with respect to development of projects linked to research, education, practice or any combination thereof. Please see the following for a list of participating institutions
  • Travel overseas in order to develop academic partnerships or lasting collaborative ventures around research, education and/or practice. 
  • Undertake a programme of mobility and/or networking across a series of linked trips or visits which are inter-disciplinary, especially where they are clearly linked to the BU Research Themes or involve student and staff participation. 
  • Travel in support of a Study Leave application.
  • Invite external partners to visit the University. For example, this might include inviting academics from other institutions or professionals from businesses to visit BU to develop projects and/or co-convening or facilitation of an international workshop.

 Previously funded activities under this strand:

Bournemouth-Birmingham-Brasilia: Consortium Building and Joint Work (BBB).

Dr Raian Ali, a Senior Lecturer in Computing, is the Principal Investigator of the BBB project which creates a community of interest involving the computing groups of the University of Brasilia, University of Birmingham, and Bournemouth University. The three groups are focused on Software Engineering research and this timely research project focuses on adaptive software systems, particularly, cloud and service computing. Exchange visits as part of this project have encouraged partnership development and international collaborative working. 

  Archaeology Professional Practice Forum: Bridging the Gap

The ‘Bridging the Gap’ project has been a highly successful networking and information gathering exercise, which will inform and drive actions to better prepare students for careers within archaeology, to better meet the needs of the profession and to enhance both subject-specific employability and transferable skills. An Archaeological Professional Practice Forum event was held to gather information from archaeology practitioners, employers, recent graduates and current students on the nature and extent of the skills gap between graduation and entry-level employment within archaeology. It explored ways to improve the industry-readiness of our students in order to give our new graduates a competitive edge when seeking employment, and to service the needs of the profession.  

 Please be aware that the Erasmus scheme differs quite significantly from the other FIF strands. More information is on the Erasmus intranet page  and more general information can be found on the FIF intranet pages.

 The Fusion Investment Fund is managed by Samantha Leahy-Harland and the Interim Administrator is Dianne Goodman. Please direct all initial enquiries to Fusion Fund.

 

NRG Future Foresight Workshop with Sue Thomas

Dr Sue Thomas was recently appointed as a Visiting Fellow in The Media School. She was formerly Professor of New Media at De Montfort University, where she established a Transdisciplinary Common Room with an emphasis on Future Foresight.  Sue works closely with members of the university’s Narrative Research Group and we are delighted that she has agreed to host this event, which will take place on Wednesday 13 November at 2p.m in CG09.  Full details of the workshop appear below. All welcome.  You can find out more about Sue and her work at www.suethomas.net

 

How to think about the future in order to attract funding now. With examples drawn from nature and technology.

Academics are expert in the history of their discipline, but what about its future? For example, do you know how to use your expert knowledge of, say, the history of media, to predict the media landscape of 2025 or even 3025?

This session is in two parts:

1. A brief overview of my own work on nature and technology (see ‘Technobiophilia: nature and cyberspace’, Bloomsbury, 2013) and research questions arising from it. I’m interested in working with BU colleagues on developing grant applications in this area, perhaps in fields such as the future of video games, well-being, and tourism.

2. A practical workshop on the skills of Future Foresight – what it is and how to do it. The workshop is designed to stimulate ideas for ways to apply Future Foresight to your own subject area with a view to devising grant applications.

 

 

An opportunity for study leave, secondment or placement? Thank FIF for that!

Funding opportunities, Fusion

The Study Leave strand (SL) has three sub-strands: Academic Study Leave, Internal Secondments and Industrial Staff Placements.

  • Academic Study Leave This is to provide academic staff with a period of paid academic study leave, normally up to six months in duration, for the purposes of undertaking research, educational development (eg. the development of teaching programmes) or professional practice.  There must a clear benefit to both the individual and to BU and the stakeholder benefits with respect to Fusion should be clear. 
  • Internal Secondments:  In order to drive interdisciplinary research at BU a limited programme of internal secondments is available.  Secondments may last up to a maximum of six months.  A secondment application must be agreed between the host and the applicant with both parties contributing to the submission.  Cases will be judged on merit in terms of the collaborative output(s) that they will deliver which might include but are not restricted to: (1) completion of an interdisciplinary book or publication programme; (2) submission of a major research grant; (3) curriculum or pedagogic development; and (4) completion of a period of professional practice or knowledge exchange project. 
  • Industrial Staff Placements:  Staff have the opportunity to arrange their own placements with local and regional businesses/organisations for between two and six months.

 Examples of projects funded under this strand:

Engaging students in industry and updating professional practice

Associate Senior Lecturer, Sue Sudbury worked with Sequoia Films, which was commissioned by Channel 4 to develop an idea for their flagship documentary strand Cutting Edge and also to develop and produce an international feature-length documentary, Indian Spacemen, for BBC Storyville. Sue took ten BU students on broadcast production work experience while at the same time updating her professional practice.

 Understanding the co-creation of leisure behaviour in socio-natural environments

Dr Dorothy Fox, a Lecturer in the School of Tourism, undertook research practice with the aim of bringing new ways of thinking about the natural environment into the academic and public arena. This was achieved through primary research carried out in the UK; overseas travel to Australia and New Caledonia (in the South Pacific); the initiation of international networking; undertaking training and the development of new teaching materials for 2013-14.

Dr Fox said: “The process of applying for study leave and its execution has had a profound impact on my way of thinking about my role at BU. This has led to a change from a local perspective to an international one.”

Need to know more? Your wish is my command! Go now to the FIF intranet pages.

The Fusion Investment Fund is managed by Samantha Leahy-Harland and the Interim Administrator is Dianne Goodman. Please direct all initial enquiries to Fusion Fund.

FIF says ‘Get co-creating!’

Funding opportunities, Fusion

The Co-creation and Co-Production strand supports activity that embraces as many of the following as possible:

  •  Demonstrates a clear, fundamental and innovative contribution to Fusion benefitting staff and students within BU. Benefits to students could include both direct and indirect benefits.
  • Requires pump-priming to initiate activity which will then become sustainable.
  • Delivers a series of clear, measurable and tangible outputs that deliver benefits beyond the team applying.
  • Presents new, innovative projects or initiatives that are likely to have both reach and significance within and beyond BU and where possible involve inter-disciplinary collaboration.
  • Leads to public engagement with a range of stakeholders.
  • Demonstrates good value for money in terms of return on investment and strategic priorities.

  Duration of the activities can be between 6 and 12 months. Awards made will be between £2k and £75k.

Be inspired by reading about some of the successfully funded activities under this strand:

The Poole and Purbeck Portal is an inter-school collaboration between the School of Applied Sciences, the Media School and the National Centre for Computer Animation.

http://www.pooleandpurbeckportal.co.uk/

Centre for Face Processing Disorders at BU

Dr Sarah Bate from the Psychology Research Centre was awarded funds from this strand to develop a Centre for Face Processing Disorders at BU.  Sarah’s work explored the cognitive presentation and treatment of face processing deficits in adults and children with a range of neuropsychological conditions, such as developmental or acquired prosopagnosia (face blindness), autistic spectrum disorder, and Moebius syndrome. 

More information about this project can be found here: www.prosopagnosiaresearch.org

Want to know more? Of course you do! Follow this link to the FIF intranet pages.

The Fusion Investment Fund is managed by Samantha Leahy-Harland and the Interim Administrator is Dianne Goodman. Please direct all initial enquiries to Fusion Fund.

Thank FIF it’s open! – Round two now open to applications

Funding opportunities, Fusion, Research themes

 

 

 

The Pro-Vice Chancellor would like to invite you to apply for the current round of Fusion Investment Fund.

 Three funding strands are available for staff at BU:                                                       

Co-Creation and Co-Production strand (CCCP)

 Study Leave strand (SL)

There are three sub-strands under this strand: Academic Study Leave, Internal Secondments and Industrial Staff Placements.

 Staff Mobility and Networking strand (SMN)

This strand includes Santander and Erasmus.

 Awareness sessions will take place on the following, giving applicants the valuable opportunity to discuss their applications with the FIF Manager and committee members:

  • Wednesday 13 November 12-1pm, S203, Lansdowne
  • Monday 18 November 2-3pm, Casterbridge room, THS, Talbot
  •  In addition, Dr. Martin Pickard of Grantcraft will be running a two and a half hour session giving essential Fusion bid writing advice on Wednesday 20 November, at 9.30am in, CG04, Christchurch House, Talbot Campus. Martin is a specialist in writing and supporting research grant applications and tenders, as well as providing administrative and management support services for ongoing projects.

If you are interested in attending any of these sessions please contact Fusion Fund to confirm your place and your preferred session.For all the updated strand policy documents, application form and more information please visit the FIF intranet pages.

The Fusion Investment Fund is managed by Samantha Leahy-Harland and the Interim Administrator is Dianne Goodman. Please direct all initial enquiries to Fusion Fund.

BUCRU Events and Services

Bournemouth University Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) incorporates the Dorset office of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Research Design Service South West (RDS SW). This means that in addition to the support outlined in previous blogs, we can also provide access to the following:

RDS SW Grant Applications Workshop

The grant applications workshop is directed at researchers who are considering applying to peer-reviewed funding competitions for applied health or social care research, and is intended to allow them to turn good applications into excellent ones.

The workshop does not provide detailed training in research methodology but rather covers the full range of issues inherent in developing a successful grant application. It will be of relevance to researchers applying to any of the major health research funders, but particularly the NIHR funding schemes.

Researchers should have a plan for a project but, ideally, a worked up proposal, even one that has been previously rejected. All proposals will receive detailed written feedback from the RDS team.

The next workshop will be held at Taunton Racecourse, Somerset on the 7th November 2013. Unfortunately, the deadline for applying has now passed. The next workshop is scheduled for the spring. For more information please see http://www.rds-sw.nihr.ac.uk/gaw.htm.

RDS SW Residential Research Retreat

The Residential Research Retreat provides an opportunity for research teams to develop high quality health related research proposals suitable for submission to national peer-reviewed funding schemes. The aim of the Retreat is to provide the environment and support to promote rapid progress in developing proposals over a relatively short time period.

At the retreat participants are supported by a range of experts while developing their research proposal. They work intensively on their proposal, while learning how to maximise its chances for successfully securing a grant.

The next Retreat will be held at the Ammerdown Conference Centre, near Bath in Somerset from 1 June to 6 June 2014 inclusive. To win a place on the Retreat, applications should be submitted by 1pm on Friday 17th January 2014. For more information see http://www.rds-sw.nihr.ac.uk/rrr.htm or our recent blog post http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/research/2013/09/24/desperate-for-uninterrupted-quality-time-on-your-grant-application-come-to-the-residential-research-retreat/.

 RDS SW Project Review Committee

The RDS SW Project Review Committee provides an excellent opportunity for researchers to obtain a critical review of a proposed grant application before it is sent to a funding body. The Committee brings the benefit of seeing the proposal with “fresh eyes”, replicating as far as possible the way the real funding committee will consider the application. Committee members include senior research consultants who have considerable experience of obtaining research funding, resulting in comprehensive comments and advice.

Committee meetings take place approximately nine times per year. To submit a study for review at the meeting, paperwork must be provided to the Committee via BUCRU two weeks prior to the meeting date, and at least a couple of months before the intended funding deadline. For more information and a list of meeting dates see http://www.rds-sw.nihr.ac.uk/project_review_committee.htm.

 Centre of Postgraduate Medical Research and Education (CoPMRE) Annual Symposium

In addition to events aimed at supporting the development of grant applications we also host an event geared towards dissemination. The CoPMRE Tenth Annual Symposium was held on 16th October 2013 at the Executive Business Centre (please see our recent blog post http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/research/2013/10/22/copmre-tenth-annual-symposium-2/). These successful annual conferences have been running for the past ten years and have featured themes such as ‘Professionalism and Collaboration’, ’Research Innovation’, ‘Interprofessional Learning’, and ‘Social Media’. This year’s Symposium focused on medical devices and medical education.  The conference is open to all healthcare professionals and academics.  Information about the next Symposium will be posted on our website in due course and you will be able to register online nearer the time.

Contact us: For further information about the Grant Applications Workshop, the Residential Research Retreat and the Project Review Committee you can contact us by:

Or pop and see us on the 5th floor of Royal London House!

CoPMRE Tenth Annual Symposium

The Centre of Postgraduate Medical Research and Education (CoPMRE) held its Tenth Annual Symposium on Wednesday 16th October in the Executive Business Centre. The Symposium, ‘Innovation in Medical Education and Research, Promoting Change…’ was attended by over 70 delegates from BU, local NHS Trusts and other areas of healthcare. Despite the wind and the pouring rain, it proved to be an interesting and informative day!

The morning session focused on medical devices and kicked off with a presentation from Professor Paul Thompson (Director of CoPMRE and Consultant Rheumatologist, Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust) who discussed the Department of Health’s ‘Innovation, Health and Wealth’ report and its implication for practice. Professor Siamak Noroozi (Chair in Advanced Technology, DEC) followed with a fascinating presentation on the key performance enhancement potentials of running with blades and the cutting edge research currently underway in DEC. Professor Ian Swain (Director of Clinical Science & Engineering, Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust and Visiting Professor, BU) treated us to a live demonstration of functional electrical stimulation (FES) and an overview of the fantastic results he and his team have had using FES and other Assistive Technologies in neurological rehabilitation.

Mr Robert Middleton (Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Visiting Fellow, BU) talked about medical device trials in Bournemouth, particularly the quality, quantity and expertise available with regards to hip and knee replacements. Chris Pomfrett, Technical Adviser from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) described the process for the evaluation of new medical devices and the production of NICE guidance for devices. Dr Mike McMillan (CEO, NHS Innovations South West) finished the morning session with a presentation on how to be an innovator and keep the day job.

After a fantastic lunch and a chance to network, the afternoon session focused on medical education. The first speaker was John Reidy, Careers Lead from Talbot Heath School who talked us through the University application process and support available to students applying to medical school. Dr Tristan Richardson (Consultant Endocrinologist, Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS foundation Trust and Visiting Fellow, BU) told us about the work experience course at Royal Bournemouth Hospital for local school children wishing to pursue a career in medicine. Dr Chris Stephens, Associate Dean from University of Southampton discussed its Medical School, what they look for in applicants, and what the future holds for the School. Dr Mike Masding (Head of Wessex Foundation School, Consultant Physician, Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Visiting Fellow, BU) presented on the ‘golden age’ of medical training and the evolving Foundation Programme for Junior Doctors. Paula Robblee from the General Medical Council (GMC) talked us through how the GMC regulate medical research and training, and Dr Peter Hockey concluded the Symposium with a presentation on the education and training available from Health Education Wessex.

All round an interesting day with many exciting speakers! A full report on the day will be available and distributed in due course. For more information contact us.

Who are BUCRU? Introducing members of the team and our expertise

In last week’s post we gave you a brief introduction to BUCRU and how we can help you.  This week we introduce you to the members of the team.

Front row (L-R): Lisa Gale, Louise Ward, Helen Allen, Sarah Thomas, Zoe Sheppard. Back row: Peter Thomas, Annabel Kenny-Jones, Paul Thompson, Audrey Dixon.

Professor Paul Thompson

Paul is Consultant Rheumatologist at Poole Hospital and Visiting Professor at BU.  He was appointed Director of the Centre of Postgraduate Medical Research and Education (CoPMRE) in 2007, where he has been leading developments between research and education active doctors in NHS Trusts and the academic community at the University.  He is Co-Director of BUCRU, Lead for the musculoskeletal local priority group for the Western Comprehensive Local Research Network (CLRN) and Fellow of the NHS Improvement Faculty.  He is interested in clinical research and service development in the rheumatic diseases.  He supervises PhD students and is an External Examiner at other Universities.

Professor Peter Thomas

Peter is Co-Director and leads on research methodology.  He has a background in epidemiology and statistics, and has been with Bournemouth University since 1996.  He has a special research interest in psychosocial aspects of chronic disease and much of his recent work has focused on multiple sclerosis.

Dr Sarah Thomas

Sarah is Deputy Director (methodology). She has a background in psychology and since 2000 has worked in the NHS in Dorset.  As well as supporting other researchers in a Research Design Service capacity, she also conducts research.  Her main research interests are in the field of multiple sclerosis (MS) and she is currently Chief Investigator for a pilot study funded by the UK MS Society exploring the use of the Nintendo Wii™ in people with MS.

Helen Allen

Helen is a health psychologist with a nursing and midwifery background.  She has a qualitative background with a particular interest in the mind:body interface and chronic disease, including patient empowerment.  She is the Unit lead on Public Patient Involvement.

Professor Roger Baker

Roger is Professor of Clinical Psychology and runs the MSc course Foundations in Clinical Psychology at BU.  He is also a Consultant Clinical Psychologist at Dorset Healthcare University NHS Foundation Trust.  He has expertise in the design of assessments and questionnaires, research design and clinical evaluation of services and has worked in a dual role as researcher and clinical psychologist at Leeds, Aberdeen & Bournemouth Universities and in NHS Trusts specialising in Mental Health.

Audrey Dixon

Audrey is the Centre of Postgraduate Medical Research and Education (CoPMRE) co-ordinator and co-administrator for BUCRU.  She has worked for the NHS since 1988.  She first joined Professor Paul Thompson in 2001 to assist him with his academic work, following his secondment to the University.  Audrey was seconded to BU in 2003.  She now looks after a growing Visiting Faculty and the education arm of CoPMRE.  She is very proud to see the little acorn grow into a Centre of Postgraduate Medical Research and Education and BUCRU.

Louise Fazakarley

Louise is a Physiotherapy lecturer with experience in neurological rehabilitation, the management of chronic disability and rehabilitation research.  She joined Bournemouth University in 2006 to establish and teach on the BSc (Hons) Physiotherapy course.  Louise is currently working on the MS Society funded pilot study to look at the Nintendo Wii™ as a method of helping people with MS increase their physical activity.

Lisa Gale

Lisa joined the team in May 2013 as Clinical Research Co-ordinator.  She has a background in psychology and previously worked in the research department of a local NHS Trust.  The main focus of Lisa’s role is to create a seamless link between academics at BU and clinicians in the NHS who are interested in interprofessional, high quality research to construct bids for funding, develop project plans, and conduct research.

Annabel Kenny-Jones

Annabel is a Clinical Research Administrator who joined Bournemouth University in October 2009.  She provides support to Professor Tamas Hickish, Consultant Medical Oncologist, Royal Bournemouth Hospital/Poole Hospital and the rest of the research team on various ongoing research projects within the Unit.

Dr Zoe Sheppard

Zoe is a demographer with particular experience investigating socio-economic status.  She joined Bournemouth University in October 2009 as a Research Fellow in Research Methods.  She provides research methods support for people doing health research and support writing grant applications in her National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Research Design Service (RDS) capacity.

Louise Ward

Louise is one of the administrators for the unit and has been with the team since 2008.  She has worked in various NHS settings and has an interest in marketing.  Both her undergraduate and Master’s degrees were studied here at Bournemouth University.

Contact us:

You can contact us by:

Or pop and see us on the 5th floor of Royal London House!

Students Reflect on Internationalisation Experience

In September, four sport students engaged in intensive extra-curricula internationalisation activities in order to enhance their study, professional and personal intercultural experience. This BU blog article combines their personal reflections.

Sport management and sport development students Luke Frary, John Bryson, Oliver Johnson and Stefan Ferencz significantly contributed to the Student Seminar and the main conference of the European Association for Sport Management (EASM) in Turkey from 7 to 14 September (http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/research/2013/09/19/bu-sport-students-and-academic-succeed-at-european-association-for-sport-management-conference-in-istanbul).

 

The students’ key reflections and conclusions in short:

  • Oliver Johnson: “Upon first hearing about the opportunity to participate in the reputable European Association of Sports Management conference and Master Student Seminar in Istanbul, I was instantly attracted and impressed that my university was able to offer this to me. (…) Looking back, what I achieved over the course of the week has been astonishing, as I honestly believe that the experiences that I have gathered shall put me in a great stead for the future. I would recommend such an experience to anyone, it really is an opportunity not to be missed.”
  • Luke Frary: “Over the next few days we got to know the various individuals from all over Europe as we engaged in the Masters Student Seminar. The topics covered where not entirely different to those I had covered at Bournemouth, but through adding an international perspective, the approach becomes refreshingly different. (…) Later in the week we were divided into groups to work on a management game. I was grouped with students from Germany, Finland and Holland. Once again it was insightful to work with the addition of an international dimension. It became clear that when studying in just one country, it is easy to adopt a narrow approach to your studies.”
  • John Bryson: “I thoroughly enjoyed this international experience and the chance to stay in a foreign city and work collaboratively with people from such diverse backgrounds and cultures. This is an experience that I have gained many new skills form and will benefit me greatly going forward.”
  • Stefan Ferencz: “The main conference enabled me to learn about current issues and trends in the field of sports management, thus providing me with useful information that I will utilise in my final year. Having observed how speakers structure their presentations, I now feel more confident about speaking at the presentations required for some of my units during level H. (…) I would recommend any sports management student to attend an EASM conference as it will definitely have a positive impact on skills, knowledge and future career. Overall, I feel proud to have successfully represented Bournemouth University at an international stage.”

 

Please read about their reflections in more length below the pictures.

 

Part of the international student group during venue visit and on-site lecturing in Istanbul.

John Bryson (second from left) during team work.

Luke Frary in discussion with the NBA Europe Business Development Manager

International students mingling during coffee break. In the middle, BU students talking to retired UNICEF Partnership Director.

Stefan Ferencz (third from right) with his team, awarded for winning their case competition.

 

John Bryson

“I travelled to Istanbul along with three other Bournemouth University students to attend the European Association of Sports Management (EASM) Masters Student Seminar and EASM Conference. The seminar and conference provided me with some excellent experiences including presenting my dissertation research, working in a team with other international students in a sports management game, gaining an insight into cutting edge sports management research and issues and also making many professional and personal contacts.

With help and guidance from Dr Tim Breitbarth I was able to present my dissertation research at the corporate social responsibility workshop during the EASM Conference alongside many of the authors that I had referenced in my own work. This was a rewarding experience as I was able to make a contribution to the conference while showing off my dissertation that I had worked on throughout the previous academic year.

During the student seminar I also worked on a sports management game. I found this particularly interesting as it allowed me to work on a real life scenario to devise and implement solutions. During the management game I was required to work in a team with students from The Netherlands, Finland, Germany and Turkey. I really enjoyed the opportunity to work alongside other students from different countries and cultures and the challenge of combining many different ideas and perspectives into a successful end product. In the end our hard work paid off as we won our case competition and were able to work on the project further and present it our final solution at the main conference.

The seminar and conference also provided me with the opportunity to make many professional and personal contacts that will be very useful going forward in my career. The management game was especially useful for networking as we were devising solutions for industry professionals and it was a useful task to showcase your imagination, creativity and problem solving skills.

I thoroughly enjoyed this international experience and the chance to stay in a foreign city and work collaboratively with people from such diverse backgrounds and cultures. This is an experience that I have gained many new skills form and will benefit me greatly going forward.“

 

Luke Frary

“Upon leaving the arrivals lounge of Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport it was highly satisfying to be instantly reminded that we were visiting new territories when our non-English-speaking taxi driver some how managed to gesture that there would be a suspicious extra charge for our ‘over sized luggage.’

After a short ride we arrived with a warm welcome at the reception of our hotel (which clearly was going to exceed all expectations of accommodation at a student conference). Here we were informed that we would be separated and would be sharing rooms with students from other European Universities as a way of encouraging the ‘multicultural atmosphere’ that the conference programme alluded to. In hindsight, we were extremely naïve as we approached this with scepticism – one of the many valuable lessons we learnt during the conference.

After a short while we were escorted to the Sports campus of Mamara University for the opening of the Masters Student Seminar. Once again the scepticism set in when we heard the words ‘ice-breaker’ bellowed above the closed conversations taking place in small clusters of previously familiar friends.  We then proceeded to play a number of games that finished with holding hands and dancing around in a circle to a Turkish song. Little did we know that this song would become a regular during the conference and a very memorable part of the trip.

Over the next few days we got to know the various individuals from all over Europe as we engaged in the Masters Student Seminar. The days started with Key Note speeches on some highly engaging topics. The topics covered where not entirely different to those I had covered at Bournemouth, but through adding an international perspective, the approach becomes refreshingly different.

Later in the week we were divided into groups to work on a management game. I was grouped with students from Germany, Finland and Holland. Once again it was insightful to work with the addition of an international dimension. It became clear that when studying in just one country, it is easy to adopt a narrow approach to your studies.

In between the keynote speakers and the management game, we were able to select from a number of sports activities. For me the highlight was kayaking along the Bosphorus and mooring alongside a Turkish restaurant to sample a local snack.

The following week welcomed the main conference. There were some very interesting presentations and there were many great opportunities to generate ideas and inspirations to take into one’s own studies. In the evenings the hospitality the Turkish had arranged was phenomenal. It was great to share these moments with the large group of new friends we had made.

The conference came to its finale with a cruise around the Bosphorus in a yacht big enough to accommodate the entirety of the conference delegate list. As the   boat returned at the end of the evening and it was time to say goodbye to our new friends, it became clear how enriching the whole experience had been and how our expectations had been greatly exceeded in all areas.”

 

Stefan Ferencz

“The EASM 2013 conference in Istanbul has been a unique experience that has given me the opportunity to expand my knowledge in the field of sports management and also to create a network of sports management students from around Europe.

The adventure began with the Student Seminar held at one of the campuses of Marmara University. Presentations delivered by academics and professionals were soon followed by the Management Game. The Management Game focuses on a very engaging and challenging group activity which gave me the opportunity to work with students from different countries, to develop communication and decision making skills and to work effectively under time pressure. I feel that I have benefited from all the challenges that arose during group work, from the research required to deliver the presentation as well as from the reward of producing the best case study for the allocated subtheme.

The main conference enabled me to learn about current issues and trends in the field of sports management, thus providing me with useful information that I will utilise in my final year. Having observed how speakers structure their presentations, I now feel more confident about speaking at the presentations required for some of my units during level H. The conference has been an amazing source of information provided by well-known academics and professionals and has generated many ideas for my future dissertation. Along with great social and sporting activities organized by staff, the conference has ended in style, with a superb boat trip on the Bosporus.

I would recommend any sports management student to attend an EASM conference, as it will definitely have a positive impact on skills, knowledge and future career. Overall, I feel proud to have successfully represented Bournemouth University at an international stage and I would very much like to get involved in future EASM projects.”

 

Oliver Johnson

“Upon first hearing about the opportunity to participate in the reputable European Association of Sports Management conference and Master Student Seminar in Istanbul, I was instantly attracted and impressed that my university was able to offer this to me.  I applied in order to further my working experience, looking to participate in activities outside my comfort zone and within a foreign environment.  I believe this is crucial to any student’s development, as not only does such an activity like appealing on a CV to employers, it helps to develop key characteristics such as communication, team work and working under pressure within a foreign environment.

A factor that enabled me to participate in the conference was the backing of the Global Horizons Fund, as they seek to provide financial assistance to students, like myself, who are enthusiastic and eager to learn or participate in competitions abroad to further their education.  Organisations such as Global Horizons make such an opportunity all the more attainable, as there are often financial restrictions associated with learning abroad which often dissuade students from participating.

My week in Istanbul was split into two halves: the first half, as part of the Master Student Seminar, was based at Marmara University and the other half, in the heart of Istanbul, at the Istanbul Convention and Exhibition centre for the main conference. The structure of the Master Student Seminar was organised excellently, as there was balanced daily routine of informative, interesting speakers and leisure activities.

The main focus of the seminar was the Master Student Seminar competition, where students were randomly assigned to multi-national working groups. The aim was to put together a presentation and report on an assigned topic. I was assigned to the topic of Corporate Social Responsibility, whereby our group had to propose an idea, on behalf of a local company, in order to promote physical activity amongst the community. Initially, I did find the task challenging, as the groups were comprised of foreign students, it was occasionally difficult to communicate effectively. However, I believe that our group gelled remarkably and were able to collate a strong argument for our case. This was proven as we were selected as the winners of our topic, where we would progress to present at the main conference in front of a jury of astute professionals and conference attendees, competing against other student groups’ topics. Personally, I have very little experience in presenting in front of a large audience; therefore I initially felt the prospect of doing so very daunting. Nevertheless, it was a fantastic experience to showcase our hard work at such an esteemed event.  My group was eventually announced as winners of the overall competition, an achievement that I am extremely proud of.

Although the work involved was demanding, there was allocated time to see the sights of wonderful sights of Istanbul and to have fun. My personal highlight of the trip was kayaking up the river Bosporus and under the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge, a spectacular sight. As mentioned previously, the organisation of the trip was excellent, with the assistance of several Marmara University students, who would often act as tour guides always willing to recommend places for us to visit and making sure everyone was looked after.

Looking back, what I achieved over the course of the week has been astonishing as I honestly believe that the experiences that I have gathered shall put me in a great stead for the future. I would recommend such an experience to anyone, it really is an opportunity not to be missed.”

 

Fresher’s, midwifery students and photographs!

Fresher’s week for midwifery students started with a hard copy photograph. The image had to depict themselves and what midwifery meant to them.  This was used as an ice-breaker for the very first session and students had five minutes to share their photo with the person next to them, before that person fed back to the group the student’s name, and how the photo depicted their commitment to midwifery.  The students were wonderfully creative and inventive. Many had accessed the 6 C’s and based their image around the values of care, compassion,  commitment and communication, all important attributes that midwives bring to the profession. Some photographs depicted the students with midwifery related objects such as stethoscopes, pinards, and fob watches, whilst others were shown working with children/adults and one even washing an elephant on an international placement! All shared a common theme, enabling and facilitating others.  

As an ice-breaker it worked particularly well as the room hummed with animated conversation, but there was a secondary purpose to the activity. It was also a  ‘dummy’ run to see if it would work as an interview activity for the forthcoming 2013-2014 selection days for under-graduate pre-registration midwifery students. The interview process to select new students consists of a number of activities, one of which was a team activity. In previous years students were asked to participate in fictionalized scenarios, which consisted of survival on a lifeboat with limited provisions, being stranded in a forest in the snow after a plane crash and latterly a ‘real life dilemma’ based around prioritizing staff requests for holidays in August or having Xmas and New Year off.  Students had to work as a team and after a twenty minute discussion agree on priorities relating to the particular scenario. These activities enabled the interviewers to see which prospective students were team players, which students actively contributed and whether anybody in particular dominated proceedings. During the 1:1 interview which followed, students were asked about how they felt they had contributed. It was interesting to compare interviewer gradings with the student’s own insight into their participation.

This year the current admissions tutors were keen to try something new – hence the photograph activity.  Prospective candidates will be asked to bring along a photograph to their interview and will have been directed to draw links to one of the identified 6 C’s and to articulate it during their presentation. Each candidate will be partnered with one other during the activity and then asked to feedback each others’ thoughts to the whole group. Interviewers will score the candidates on the following: Communication (verbal & non verbal), how the particular ‘C ‘ was verbalized, creativity of the photograph, listening skills and how the role of the midwife is identified. Ultimately as the activity will be time restricted it is hoped that the candidates will be able, through their photographs to summarize, with reference to the 6 C’s, the values and attributes of a midwife. 

If anybody is interested to know more about the process, please contact Midwifery Admission tutors on the West campus: Susan Mant on smant@bournemouth.ac.uk, and Sarah Emberley on semberley@bournemouth.ac.uk and on the East Campus: Jan Stosiek on jstosiek@bournemouth.ac.uk and Jane Fry on jfry@bournemouth.ac.uk. 

 

 

What is BUCRU and what can we do for you?

What is BUCRU?

Bournemouth University Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) is a model for supporting and conducting health related research in Dorset. It supports researchers in improving the quality, quantity and efficiency of research across the University and local National Health Service (NHS) Trusts. It does this by:

  • helping researchers with developing high quality applications for external research funding (including small grants)
  • ongoing involvement in funded research projects
  • a “pay-as-you-go” consultation service

How can BUCRU help?

BUCRU can provide help in the following areas:

  • Study design
  • Quantitative and qualitative research methods
  • Statistics, data management and data analysis
  • Patient and public involvement in research
  • Trial management
  • Ethics, governance and other regulatory issues
  • Linking University and NHS researchers

BUCRU supports Bournemouth University staff and researchers working locally in the NHS. There are no restrictions on topic area or professional background of the researcher. However we do have special interests in areas such as chronic disease and complex interventions.

How is it funded?  

BUCRU is partly funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and incorporates the Dorset office of the NIHR Research Design Service (http://www.rds-sw.nihr.ac.uk). Further funding comes from a variety of research grants and contracts.

Contact us:

You can contact us by:

Or pop and see us on the 5th floor of Royal London House!

Desperate for uninterrupted quality time on your grant application? Come to the Residential Research Retreat!

The Research Design Service South West (RDS SW) is offering a unique opportunity to researchers in health and social care across the South West of England.

The Residential Research Retreat provides an opportunity for research teams to develop high quality research proposals suitable for submission to national peer-reviewed funding schemes. The aim of the Retreat is to provide the environment and support to promote rapid progress in developing proposals over a relatively short time period. The Retreat is open to health professionals and academic partners working within the South West. 

At the Retreat you will be supported by a range of academic experts while developing your research proposal. Away from the workplace, you will work intensively on your proposal, while learning how to maximise its chances for successfully securing a grant. You will learn how to develop your idea into a viable and first class research proposal and experience research project planning at a professional level.

A delegate from this year’s Retreat said, “This has been an extremely valuable exercise and has really helped build an understanding of what is expected from NIHR funded projects. In order to ensure that new researchers are able to make feasible, rigorous, well-designed bids for funding, this week is essential.”

The Retreat will be held at the Ammerdown Conference Centre, near Bath in Somerset from 1 June to 6 June 2014 inclusive. To win a place on the Retreat, applications should be submitted by 1pm on Friday 17th January 2014.  Applications will be reviewed competitively and places awarded to the most promising team proposals. The application and further information is available at http://www.rds-sw.nihr.ac.uk/rrr.htm.

Don’t forget, your local branch of the Research Design Service is based within the BU Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) on the 5th floor of Royal London House. Feel free to pop in and see us or send us an email.

CEMP Fellows? A Proposal for Fostering Innovative Education Research at BU

BU Challenges, Fusion

Many media studies professionals engaged in learning innovation first get introduced to Bournemouth University through CEMP, the Centre for Excellence in Media Practice. From attending annual summits to publishing in the Media Education Research Journal, before joining BU I was already connected to this unique community characterised by creativity, sharing and mentorship. Once I started working at BU I quickly realised that educational researchers interested in media and technology were not just in CEMP. From the School of Tourism to DEC, inspiring educational research can be found across BU.

As the Fusion vision expands and EdD programme grows, the time seems ripe to further foster innovative education research at BU, to use CEMP to bring our educational researchers together. Yet, as any of us who’ve scampered around to meet a grant deadline knows all too well, network building and collaborative bidding requires workload time and institutional support. This got some of us thinking about ways we might be able to foster educational research through CEMP. Borrowing a best practice employed at many research centres around the world, we asked ourselves: What if CEMP had internal fellows?

These CEMP Fellows could be culled from BU’s existing educational research community. Provided dedicated time in their schedules to meet together, they could share their previous scholarship and develop new collaborative projects. CEMP could create annual or bi-annual themes to guide this knowledge exchange and facilitate initiatives, offering a programmed series of meetings and events. For example, CEMP might run a Fellow programme on a topic like ‘Games and Education,’ bringing together researchers exploring the use of educational gaming across all schools.  As evidence that these fellows already exist amongst us, just two weeks ago at the VS Games conference hosted at BU by Dr. Christos Gatzidis and Dr. Jian Zhang of DEC, we saw BU participants from Tourism, the Centre for Digital Entertainment, Animation, Corporate Communication and more. Together we shared innovations in educational gaming.  Could CEMP Fellows be a way forward for fostering fusion?