Key skills for PhD Students

Employers are looking for more than technical expertise from their new PhD recruits.

Across disciplines employers are seeking flexible PhD graduates who are self-aware, can make sound decisions, innovate and anticipate. They want team workers as well as leaders. As a "career for life" becomes a distant memory, employers are seeking staff who can grow and adapt.

Graduate Training programmes are established to provide our PhD students with formal training in personal and professional development skills. Planning for their PhD, Presenting Research at Conference, Creative Thinking and Problem Solving, Time Management and even Research Project Management.

The Roberts funding specifically supports training programmes for your PhD students to develop generic skills forfuture career development.

The recommendations are for
10 days core skills training per year.

Courses meeting Research Councils' requirements include:

• PostGrad Studies: Survive and Thrive!
• Presenting Your Research;
• Managing Pressure Positively;
• Research Project Management;
• Time management
• Confident Speaking at Meetings;
• How to Write an Abstract;
• How to Write a Research Paper;
• Planning and Writing a PhD Thesis;
• Using Creativity to Make Writing Enjoyable;

Each programme can be tailored to meet the needs of your University, of your Graduate School.

The content and examples used will be directly relevant to their experience.

What key skills?

Institutions in receipt of "Roberts' funding" are expected to explain how they provide training in the following skills and how they assess its effectiveness :

• Research skills and techniques
• Research environment (academic context, standards, health and safety etc)
• Research management
• Personal effectiveness
• Communication skills
• Networking and team working
• Career management

Do contact us to discuss delivery of courses to meet your particular training needs or to complement your existing programmes for supporting postdoctoral researchers.

Do visit the Workshops page for a full list.

Please do contact me on 0208 123 0099 or by email.

Please do call me to find out more.