Tagged / research

EPSRC/ESRC Invitation for Outlines: Consortia for Exploratory Research in Security

                                                                                                                                                                                                         

As part of their contribution to the RCUK Global Uncertainties Programme, EPSRC and ESRC are jointly inviting proposals for research consortia (PDF 79KB) to explore current and future cyber security challenges.

CEReS consortia are encouraged to work across or between established disciplines and to draw on expertise from multiple research organisations wherever necessary. They particularly welcome proposals with significant novel mathematics and/or social science content.

Initially, outline proposals will be assessed for their novelty and fit to the aims of the call. Successful outline applicants will be invited to submit full proposals later in 2012.

EPSRC and ESRC have made available up to £4M available to fund full proposals funded through the CEReS call. They expect to support a range of projects which is broad in terms of scale (likely to be between £500k and £1M for each consortium), duration (two to four years), mix of disciplines (with single discipline proposals being the exception rather than the norm) and subject matter (although all must focus on cyber security-related challenges in the broadest sense).  Activities funded through CEReS are limited to those currently allowed on EPSRC grants. As a result they will not be able to accept applications which request funding for PhD studentships, even if they are outside EPSRC’s remit.

CEReS is a call for exploratory research. Consortia should identify ambitious goals with far-reaching impacts on future research and, potentially at least, practice in cyber security. Projects which continue or extend current work in a straightforward or obvious way will not be supported. Collaboration between disciplines is strongly encouraged. Although it is not essential that all projects include cross- or intra-disciplinary working it is likely that the assessment process will select positively for consortia which adopt this approach.

Although it is being managed by EPSRC the CEReS call is also open to researchers eligible to apply for targeted funding from ESRC. There is no quota of applications or funding based on Research Council remits. It is possible for the same researcher(s) to be associated with more than one consortium application.

For further information visit the call website: http://www.epsrc.ac.uk/funding/calls/open/Pages/ceres.aspx and read the call documentation: http://www.epsrc.ac.uk/SiteCollectionDocuments/Calls/2012/CEReSCall.pdf. Outline proposals should be prepared and submitted using the Research Councils’ Joint electronic Submission (JeS) System (https://je-s.rcuk.ac.uk/).

The RKE Operations team can help you with your application.

The closing date is 14 June 2012.

Sociological Cinema recommends Jones’ short video for teaching

The Sociological Cinema, (“designed to help sociology instructors incorporate videos into their classes”) has recently recommended one of Dr Kip Jones’ (HSC and the Media School) earliest stabs at visualizing research data via audio/visual production.  Produced in his bedsit and in a friend’s studio in Leicester, Jones used photographs on loan from the National Trust and dialogue retrieved in his PhD research on informal care to produce this short A/V work on an antiquated PC, using an inexpensive camera to film it.

The Sociological Cinema suggests that ‘I Can Remember the Night’could be useful in a class on cognitive sociology, highlighting how cognitive processes, such as memory, are shaped by socio-cultural events, such as divorce. In addition to using the clip as a way to interrogate biography and narrative as sociological methods of research, the clip could also be a nice launching pad from which to introduce an assignment where students create their own videos, using their own biographical narratives as a window through which to explore larger sociological phenomena, much in the way C.W. Mills suggested’.

The video itself is available on Vimeo and portrays “Polly”, a 65 year old woman from the Midlands in the UK, who recalls the time as a child when her parents sat her down and asked her which of them she wanted to be with. Her story, re-narrated by three players, represents how this traumatic event became an enduring memory throughout the various stages of her life.

Polly’s story is also told in more depth in two academic journal articles:

Jones, K. (2006) “Informal Care as Relationship: the Case of the Magnificent Seven” Journal of Psychiatric & Mental Health Nursing, 13: 214-220.

Jones, K. (2005) “The Art of Collaborative Storytelling: arts-based representations of narrative contexts”. Invited paper for: International Sociological Association Research Committee on Biography and Society RC38 Newsletter, October 2005.

Other audio/video productions are also freely available on Jones’ Vimeo pages.

The KIPWORLD blog and website offer further resources.

Impact revealed…

 

 

 

I just learnt the other day of an excellent example of some modest impact, which really made me feel that my work was worthwhile. It is so exciting when a student takes some theory and puts it into practice – successfully!

A few years ago I started researching menu description and menu engineering (publishing in the International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management), where I found that consumers are increasingly anxious to know where products have come from and how they are produced, satisfying the current “nostalgia” climate, which reminds of a time when “real”, “healthy”, “authentic”, “traceable” and “wholesome” were associated with food. I shared this information with participants on the School of Tourism CPD course and immediately Ben from The Drax Arms in Bere Regis put this theory into practice. Instead of sourcing his lamb for lamb burgers from a major supplier he made contact with his local farmer – wrote a story about this for his consumers to read and the burgers are now in his words ‘flying off the menu’. Based on the experience he is now actively sourcing other promising alliances.

This is a brilliant example of where research has impinged on practice and demonstrates the potential influential partnership between academics and the local business community.

Footnote:

Ben Holden, licensee of the Drax Arms is sponsored by regional brewer and pub operator Hall & Woodhouse Ltd. The CPD programme that Hall & Woodhouse students follow is designed to develop management and leadership skills consistent with the needs of a very dynamic and competitive brewing and pub operating industry. Upon completing the programme, students achieve a Certificate in Higher Education in Hospitality and Business Management and then progress to a Foundation degree as part of their ongoing personal development. For further information on School of Tourism CPD provision, contact Keith Hayman, (Head of CPD) khayman@bournemouth.ac.uk .

Meet your Food – Drax Arms

Drax Arms are proud to be supporting local Dorset farmers and being that the Lamb for our Burgers are farmed 6.6 miles away, we thought we would share the secrets as to why Dorset Lamb is the best tasting in the world.

Sarah Clarke of Fishmore Hill Farm says our Dorset Lamb is especially good which we attribute to being able to enjoy a natural lifestyle grazing on the down land.

You can find out more information about the farm and also the picturesque surroundings for their B & B by visiting Fishmore Hill Farm

View Keynote Speeches from the FSBI 2011 conference

The Fisheries Society of the British Isles (FSBI) 2011 Annual International Conference took place at BU in July last year.

The week-long event organised by the FSBI and BU focused on the damage being done to aquatic ecosystems and fish communities, and discussed how scientific evidence could be used to benefit the world’s fisheries.

The conference attracted many esteemed Scientists from a total of 22 countries who presented their research over five days.

Four of the keynote speeches, as well as an overview of the conference, can be seen below.

An overview of the Fish Diversity and Conservation: Current State of Knowledge

Julian Olden (University of Washington) Invasive Species and Alternative Global Futures for Freshwater Ecosystems

Ya-hui Zhaoyh (Chinese Academy of Science) – Out of Sight Out of Mind: Current Knowledge on Chinese Cave Fish

David Dudgeon – Asian River Fishes in the Anthropecene – Conservation Challenges in an era of Rapid Environmental Change

Steve Railsback – Behaviour in Fish Conservation Models: Getting From “why” to “how”

Paul Skelton – Walking the Tightrope: Trends in African Freshwater Systematic Ichthyology

Santander Universities USA programmes 2012

For the second year, Santander Universities UK is pleased to be able to inform you of the details about 6 key summer programmes supported by Santander at Harvard, Brown, UCLA and the University of Pennsylvania, with the opportunity to participate being made available to all partner institutions within of our Santander Universities global network.

These initiatives are designed to attract a distinguished audience interested in issues such as global law, sustainability, leadership and research.

Students, alumni and academic staff from your university, as part of the Santander Universities network are eligible for these opportunities, and we believe, with an opportunity like this not to be missed, we would really like to see a strong contingent from UK students and staff benefiting from this support.

US PROGRAMS 2012 

US PROGRAMS 2012

1) BROWN BIARI – Brown – Updated Flyer

Brow International Advanced Research Institutes – BIARI Program Dates:

9th – 23rd June 2012 Deadline for applications: 17th February 2012

The Brown International Advanced Research Institutes (BIARI) is directed to young faculty and professionals from around the world to address pressing global issues through innovative research and pedagogy. The program takes place from June 9th-23rd, 2012.

2) HARVARD IGLP Workshop – Harvard – US PROGRAMS

Harvard Law School – Institute for Global Law&Policy IGLP Workshop

Program Dates: May 30th – June 8th 2012 Deadline for applications: Feb 15th

The Harvard Law School offers the IGLP program: The Workshop is designed for doctoral and post-doctoral scholars and aims to promote innovative ideas and alternative approaches to issues of global law,economic policy and social justice in the aftermath of the economic crisis. The program dates are from May 30th to June 8th 2012.

3) UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA  Trendlab on Sustainability – UPenn – US PROGRAMS

THE WHARTON SCHOOL Trendlab on Sustainability Program Dates: April 9th – 13th 2012 Deadline for applications: March 1st The Pen Lauder CIBER Summer Institute Program

Dates: June 10th – 15th 2012 Deadline for applications: April 16th 2012

Through the Lauder Institute, the University of Pennsylvania offers two programs. One is a workshop and conference from faculty and researchers designed to bring together a group of scholars and policy makers with backgrounds in science, engineering, management, and the social sciences. The program dates are: April 9th-13th, 2012

The other program is the CIBER Summer Institute, which trains educators in curriculum and lesson planning oriented toward professional content and contexts, focusing on a learner-centred approach to business language instruction. This workshop takes place from June 10th-15th, 2012. 

CIBER Summer Institute – UPenn – US PROGRAMS

4) ANDERSON SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT UCLA Negociations Program – UCLA – US PROGRAMS

Negotiation Program for Administration in University Program Dates:

May 9th – 11th 2012 Deadline for applications: March 26th 2012

W50 Leadership Program for Women W50 Program – UCLA – US PROGRAMS

Program Dates: June 10th – 15th 2012

Deadline for applications: March 26th 2012

Santander Scholarships Announced

 

 

 

 

The results of the Santander Scholarships have been announced.  The University received 13 applications and 7 were successful.  Each successful applicant has been awarded up to £5,000 to travel to a university in the Santander Overseas Network to build or develop relationships.  The successful applicants are a mixture of PhD students and early career researchers.

 

Miguel MoitalSenior Lecturer in Events Management

Internationalisation of Brazilian Tourism Research – mapping the training needs and identification of funding opportunities.

The purpose of this project is to examine the barriers and opportunities to the internationalisation of Brazilian tourism research.

 

Lauren Kita- PhD student in Psychology

Developing Sleep Skills in America.

“The purpose of the visit is to meet with colleagues in Boston who are conducting research similar to mine.  Brown University has an excellent sleep department and it would be a fantastic experience to meet with others who have similar research interests. The aim of the trip is to establish contacts, gain ideas for my PhD project and to learn more about a new technique in measuring sleep (spectral analysis). This will provide me with a new perspective for my PhD.  The visit will involve visiting Brown University to meet colleagues, and will culminate in the 5 day Sleep 2012 meeting.”

 

Fiona Mellor- PhD student in HSC and Associate clinical research doctoral fellow/research radiographer

A biomechanical assessment of passive recumbent inter-vertebral motion in the mid lumbar spine in symptomatic and healthy participants.

“This fellowship will facilitate important links between BU and SUNY by allowing me to become involved in their biomechanical cadaveric testing of spinal motion. In return I will show them how to capture this data in living people and share results to date from my PhD which is examining the differences in spinal motion in those with chronic LBP versus healthy controls.”

 

Jane ElsleyLecturer in Psychology

Are all bindings created equal? Exploring feature binding in visual short-term Memory.

“I will undertake a research visit to the Universidad De Islas Baleares to work with Dr. Fabrice Parmentier. The proposed visit will build upon the applicant’s recent ESRC Small Grant (RES-000-22-3930) completed (July, 2011) in collaboration with Dr. Parmentier (Universidad De Islas Baleares) and Prof. Maybery (University of Western Australia).”

 

Dr Anita Diaz- Senior Lecturer in Ecology

Building Latin American university partners for an application to Action 2 of the ERASMUS Mundus Programme.

“Erasmus Mundus Action 2 supports the formation of cooperation partnerships between universities in Europe and Third countries that enable mobility of students and staff. I wish to develop a proposal for Erasmus Mundus Action 2 funding for a partnership, coordinated by Bournemouth University, between Latin American universities and European universities in the field of conservation ecology. While strongly rooted in the science of ecology, this partnership will also encompass societal factors particularly aspects of tourism and green economy.”

 

Natalia Tejedor GaravitoPhD Researcher

Tropical Andes Red List Assessment

To assess the extinction risk of tree species of the Tropical Andean montane forests, with particular reference to the potential impacts of climate change

 

Dr. John R. StewartLecturer in Palaeoecology

The Ecological Background to Neanderthal Extinction and Evolution

The aims of this proposal are to initiate a collaboration between the applicant and Professor José Carrión who have similar research interests and are planning an ERC grant proposal (together with C.P.E. Zollikofer, M.S. Ponce de León of the Anthropological Institute and MultiMedia Laboratory, Department of Computer Science, University of Zurich, Switzerland) on the ecological context of Neanderthal extinction.

 

 

Bournemouth University Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) Consultancy Service

What is the Consultancy Service?

BUCRU has developed a consultancy service aimed at organisations that have an interest in health and wellbeing. Members of the team have many years experience of providing consultation services to the NHS, public bodies, charities and businesses. In addition to research projects we can also advise on audit projects, clinical evaluations, service evaluations and other areas where the collection and analysis of good quality data is important.

How can it help?

The service is flexible and tailored to the client’s requirements. Typically an initial meeting will involve finding out about the client’s needs and discussing the ways in which we can help. Our involvement could range from a single meeting to discuss a particular issue, through to conducting a project on behalf of the client.

Some examples are:

¨                  Advising on or conducting clinical trials, surveys, epidemiological studies, pilot and feasibility studies

¨                  Study design

¨                  Advice on sample size

¨                  Questionnaire design and validation

¨                  Outcome measures

¨                  Data collection and management

¨                  Statistical analysis and interpretation

¨                  Qualitative and mixed methods approaches

¨                  Design and evaluation of complex interventions such as found in medicine, psychology, nursing, physiotherapy and so on.

¨                  Managing and running studies

¨                  Advice on ethics and governance approval processes.

¨                  Involving patients and the public in research

¨                  Troubleshooting

How do I find out more?

For further information about, and access to, our consultancy service please contact:

Louise Ward (administrator):

Bournemouth University Clinical Research Unit

R505 Royal London House

Christchurch Road

Bournemouth BH1 3LT

BUCRU@bournemouth.ac.uk

Tel: 01202 961939

http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/bucru/

Research within the Bournemouth University Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU)

In previous blogs we have described how BUCRU can help in developing grant applications. In this blog we describe some of the funded projects we are involved in.

BUCRU led research

Fatigue management in multiple sclerosis (MS):  We have just completed a multi-centre randomised trial of a cognitive behavioural approach to fatigue management in people with multiple sclerosis1. This project was funded by the MS Society (http://www.mssociety.org.uk).

Improving activity and wellbeing in people with MS: We are just starting a MS Society funded pilot study to look at the Nintendo Wii home gaming system as a method of helping people with MS increase their activity levels and wellbeing.

Systematic review of psychological interventions for people with MS: A small grant to update our existing Cochrane review2

BUCRU collaborative projects

IDvIP: A National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Research for Patient Benefit (RfPB) (http://www.ccf.nihr.ac.uk/RfPB/Pages/home.aspx) funded project. This is a multi-centre trial comparing 2 methods of pain relief for women in labour; diamorphine and pethidine3. The Chief Investigator is a Consultant in one of the local hospitals and a member of the Bournemouth University Visiting Faculty. BUCRU staff were involved in the design of the study, applying for the grant, data management, statistical analysis and interpretation, and advice on project management.*

WEIGHTED: A small grant from the College of Emergency Medicine held by a local Consultant/ member of the Visiting Faculty. This study is about to start and aims to develop a robust method of estimating the weight of patients attending a hospital emergency department. Many patients require a weight dependent dose of potentially life saving medication, but are too ill to be actually weighed.  BUCRU were involved in designing the study and securing funding, and will be involved in ongoing advice on project and data management, statistical analysis and interpretation.

PEARLS: A large multi-centre trial of training maternity staff in assessing and repairing tears to the perineum acquired during labour and delievery4. This project is funded by the Health Foundation (http://www.health.org.uk) and run under the auspices of the Royal College of Midwives. BUCRU has been involved in data management, statistical analysis and interpretation.

PREVIEW: A pilot randomised trial comparing two methods of looking after tears to the perineum. The Chief Investigator is based in Birmingham, and the study is funded by the NIHR RfPB funding scheme. This study has recently started, and BUCRU was involved in the design of the study and the funding application. Further involvement will be in advising on project management, data management and statistical analysis.

Clinical Doctoral Research Fellowship: (http://www.nihrtcc.nhs.uk). Award held by BU and won by a radiographer based at the Anglo-European College of Chiropractic. The project involves tracking and measuring spinal motion. The research may have important implications in diagnosing people with chronic lower back pain. BUCRU were involved in the study design and funding application, and 2 members of staff are supervisors for her PhD.

Contact us:

In the first instance please contact

Louise Ward (administrator):

Bournemouth University Clinical Research Unit

R505 Royal London House

Christchurch Road

Bournemouth BH1 3LT

BUCRU@bournemouth.ac.uk

Tel: 01202 961939

 http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/bucru/

1 Thomas, P.W., Thomas, S., Kersten, P., Jones, R., Nock, A., Slingsby, V., et al., 2010. Multi-centre parallel arm randomised controlled trial to assess the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a group-based cognitive behavioural appoach to managing fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis. BMC Neurology, 10:43

2 Thomas, P.W., Thomas, S., Hillier, C., Galvin, K., and Baker, R. (2006). Psychological interventions for multiple sclerosis. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (Vol. Issue 1, pp. Issue 1. Art. No.: CD004431. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD004431.pub2): John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

3 Wee, M.Y.K., Tuckey, J.P., Thomas, P., Burnard, S. 2011. The IDvIP Trial: A two-centre randomized double-blind controlled trial comparing intramuscular diamorphine and intramuscular pethidine for labour analgesia. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 11: 51

4 Bick, D.E., Kettle, C., MacDonald, S., Thomas, P.W., Hill, R.K., Ismail, K.. 2010. PErineal Assessment and Repair Longitudinal Study (PEARLS): protocol for a matched pair cluster trial. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 10:10.

Bournemouth University Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) Events and Services

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 Grant application workshop.

This workshop is going to be held at Bournemouth University on the 29th February 2012 (http://www.rds-sw.nihr.ac.uk/grant_workshop.htm). Although the official deadline for applying has recently passed, it is worth contacting us to see if there are any remaining places. The workshop will also be held in other locations in the South-West region in the near future.

This is a one-day workshop for researchers who are developing proposals with the intention of applying for a grant. The workshop does not provide detailed training in research methodology; rather it more generally 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 will need to send in advance the latest draft of their research proposal. As a minimum they should have a plan for a project but, ideally, a worked up proposal, perhaps even one that has been previously rejected. All proposals will receive detailed written feedback from the RDS team.

Topics include

  • The application as a marketing document, selling the topic, selling the method, and selling the team;
  • The balanced team;
  • Clarity of description and explanation;
  • Feasibility issues;
  • Identifying and avoiding potential pitfalls

 

RDS Residential Research Retreat

The Residential Research Retreat (http://www.rds-sw.nihr.ac.uk/rrr_home.htm) 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.

This Research Retreat is open to health professionals and academics working within the South West. Applications to attend the Retreat should be submitted by a team of three people with varied skills. Applications are reviewed competitively and places awarded to the most promising team proposals. The deadline for the next Research Retreat has passed, but it is anticipated that applications will be invited again later in the year.  

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.

In addition, the Residential Research Retreat helps participants develop the key skills needed to conduct research in a clinical setting as well as nurturing presentation skills and giving them the confidence to tackle research problems. 

 

RDS Scientific Committee

The RDS Scientific Committee (http://www.rds-sw.nihr.ac.uk/scientific_committee.htm) provides an excellent opportunity for researchers in the south-west 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 fed back.

Committee meetings take place approximately 9 times per year. To submit a study for review at the meeting, study paperwork must be provided to the Committee via BUCRU two weeks prior to the meeting date, and preferably a couple of months before the intended funding deadline.

 

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 Annual Symposium will be held on the 11th September 2012 at the Bournemouth University Talbot Campus. These successful annual conferences have been running for the past nine years and have featured themes such as ‘Professionalism and Collaboration’, ’Research Innovation’ and ‘Interprofessional Learning’. This year’s theme will be on using ‘Social media techniques in healthcare research and education’.  The conference is open to all healthcare professionals and academics.  More information will be posted on our website in due course and you will be able to register online nearer the time.  For further information on the symposium please contact Audrey Dixon, Conference Manager (adixon@bournemouth.ac.uk ).

Contact us: For further information about, and access to, the Grant applications workshop, the Residential Research Retreat and the Scientific Committee please contact:

Louise Ward (administrator):

Bournemouth University Clinical Research Unit

R505 Royal London House

Christchurch Road

Bournemouth BH1 3LT

BUCRU@bournemouth.ac.uk

Tel: 01202 961939

http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/bucru/

Colleague supervision – and maximising research opportunities

This blog post considers two aspects of research – supervision and publication. The two came together in article of mine recently been published online by the Journal of Further & Higher Education (JFHE) http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2011.644774.

In 2008/09, I undertook the PGCert Research Degree Supervision to further develop supervision skills. For the second assignment, I made a study of colleague supervision – the supervision of staff doctoral students by their colleagues and, sometimes, managers. From it, an academic paper was developed and later submitted to JFHE. The article was an opportunity to maximise the outcomes of my study of research supervision and to create insights (possibly “new knowledge”) into a sometimes contentious and little researched area.

The starting point was a claim by Pam Denicolo (2004) that colleague supervision was “a role relationship that has been largely ignored or undervalued by [university] administration” (p. 693) and colleague students and supervisors “felt more vulnerable” than other students/supervisors (p. 706). At the time, I was Deputy Dean (Education) in the Media School and had, at BU and a previous university, observed colleague students often struggling to manage the roles of teacher, researcher, colleague and administrator. So the aim of my qualitative study amongst students and supervisors was to gain greater insight into the colleague students’ research journey and to consider how their working lives could be better structured.

Broadly, the indications from this small-scale study were:

  • The students and supervisors did not feel they were “ignored”, “undervalued” or “vulnerable.” There were some advantages of easy access to supervisors that other PGRs don’t have;
  • More effort is needed on the research training of colleague students. Those coming into doctoral studies from professional backgrounds said that they often learnt “on the hoof”;
  • Some students, in 2009 interviews, feared for their jobs without achievement of a doctoral qualification. Others saw it as an essential part of their development of academic research and professional skills;
  • Although Denicolo posited “vulnerability” as a power imbalance between supervisors and staff, the general attitude was that their supervisor was a “friendly facilitator” and supportive;
  • Confidentiality of performance on doctoral studies was expected by students as part of their relationship with the colleague supervision;
  • The use of group supervision by HSC to support students was seen as very beneficial in aiding cohort progress and reducing the loneliness of the doctoral student’s research journey.

This was a small-scale study (six students and five supervisors) and thus there are limitations of its generalisability, but it indicates that colleague supervision needs to be considered as a special case and not just part of the academic “day job”.

Prof Tom Watson, The Media School

Article:  Watson, T., 2011. Colleague supervision – ‘ignored and undervalued’? The views of students and supervisors in a new university. Journal of Further & Higher Education. DOI: 10.1080/0309877X.2011.644774.

Reference: Denicolo, P., 2004. Doctoral supervision of colleagues: Peeling off the veneer of satisfaction and competence. Studies in Higher Education, 29 (6), 693-707.

Swedes spend tenth of research time applying for funding

How long do you spend writing funding proposals and how does this compare elsewhere in Europe? According to a recent analysis by the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education, Swedish researchers spend 10% of their research time applying for funding. Based on data from 2009, lecturers spend 40 per cent of their time on research and of this, 10% is spent applying for external funds, which makes up roughly half of the research funding at Sweden’s universities.

Grant writing – an art or a science?

Martin Pickard from GrantCraft came to the university last week to deliver grant writing workshops focusing on applying to the research councils. Martin has an excellent track record of helping universities win funding and provided some top tips on how to prepare a better application.  His main aim was to encourage participants to start thinking of applications as a sales document – how to make an impact with every part of the application and convince the funder to ‘buy’ the research.  Fundamentally your research doesn’t change but it’s how you package it that matters.

One of the things that Martin advised was that when you give your applications to colleagues to review ask them to give you 10 reasons why they wouldn’t fund it.  You may not agree with everything they say but it gives you some constructive feedback and can help you think about whether you have fully defended your project.  The people reviewing your application for the funder may not be as close to the field as you and everyone has had those comments from reviewers where you wonder if they have a clue.  Don’t give your reviewers a chance to think, give them all the answers even if you think it’s obvious.

The other big message from Martin’s sessions was that you need to think about what the overarching problem is that your research is addressing and make that clear from the start.  This is bigger that just the research need that you are addressing and you need to think outside the box!  Once you start to think bigger, about where your research fits within other research, with practitioners and within society, it makes the section on impact much simpler because the message is there throughout your application.

And finally give yourself enough time…to think about it, prepare several drafts and get feedback from colleagues.

Martin is coming back in the new year to deliver a few more sessions. In January he is running a session aimed at staff preparing their first research grant and in February he is running two sessions on EU funding – one particularly looking at the Marie Curie scheme and the other at EU funding in general. If you’re interested in attending these sessions please contact Susan Dowdle from the Research Development Unit.

Exploring research impact

Why do I need to think about the impact of my research?

Given the current economic situation, tighter spending reviews and increasing constraints on public spending, there is more of a need than ever to demonstrate the economic, social and cultural benefits of publicly funded research to wider society. This broad definition of research impact is gradually being adopted and used in a number of ways by various funding bodies that need to be accountable for the money they distribute, such as the Research Councils UK (RCUK), the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and some charities and trusts.

Consequently, there is now greater impetus to involve researchers more directly in demonstrating the impact of their research. Researchers therefore need to actively think about how to demonstrate the value of their research and its wider impact, from the application stage through to project completion, dissemination and beyond.

This impact pathway is a fluid process and research impacts can occur at any stage in the research life cycle – often they can stem from unexpected or unintended outcomes as well as from planned activity. The key is to start thinking about potential beneficiaries and pathways to impact during the project planning stage and to continue to monitor the outcomes in an ongoing way. This will help you to make new connections and partnerships beyond the project itself, and to put in place resources and activities that enable you to make the most of opportunities for achieving impact when they arise. Keeping a record of activity related to a project, and gathering evidence to support impacts and outcomes achieved, is recommended to enable you to effectively fulfil any current and future reporting requirements.

What are funders looking for in terms of impact?

Many funding bodies, particularly larger ones such as RCUK, have a section on their funding application form that specifically asks you to consider the potential pathways to impact as appropriate for the nature of the research you’re proposing to conduct. This is to enable funders to support you in undertaking these activities – you’re not being asked to predict the actual outcomes that the research will achieve.

Each funder understands that there is great diversity in the kinds of impact that are possible; they also acknowledge that this diversity is a great strength of the research community in addressing such things as urgent social issues, remaining competitive in global markets and improving quality of life. It is about embracing the ways in which research-related knowledge and skills benefit individuals, organisations and nations.
In thinking about potential impacts, you might find it useful to consider the potential beneficiaries of the research – innovative and creative approaches to engaging beneficiaries and fostering impact are generally strongly encouraged by the funders. For more specific information about completing the impact sections on the RCUK application forms and for an indication of the potential range of impacts that can be generated from research, visit the RCUK impact web-pages.

Furthermore, the RCUK has just launched the Research Outcomes Project, which requires all RCUK grant holders to upload information about the various outcomes that have resulted from each of the RCUK-funded projects they are responsible for, and one of those categories is impact.

What is HEFCE looking for in terms of research impact for the Research Excellence Framework (REF)?

As part of submitting to the REF, HEFCE requires higher education institutions to provide evidence of research impact that has been realised within the assessment period but which stems from research undertaken at that institution within a number of years prior to the assessment period. Therefore, rather than looking forward to the kinds of impact that might stem from a research project, HEFCE is asking for information about impacts that are being, or have already been, achieved within a set timeframe. More information about how HEFCE is approaching impact in the REF is available from the HEFCE REF web-pages.