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Recently there has been growing interest in an alternate business model, social enterprise. This is a different way of doing business that trades for a social purpose whereby the social or environmental aims of the business are of equal importance to its commercial activities. Consequently the skills required for running a successful social enterprise combine those typical of enterprise activities generally with a strong motivation and passion for social improvement. We have found that this aspect is useful in engaging researchers because at the heart of social enterprise is a strong commitment to achieving a better society, a motivation that resonates with that which typically drives the research agenda and researchers themselves. This collaborative project with Vitae has been successful in developing written and associated video materials to explore enterprise skills with early career researchers. There are plans to disseminate the resources via Vitae as part of the ongoing move to produce development resources that are freely available to HEIs as part of the research skills development agenda, this is likely to be in January 2011.

We have developed a PGR progress tracking system called ‘MyPGR’ which is an online tool capable of managing and monitoring PGR students. The system provides a record of interactions between students, supervisors and professional services staff. It also allows for the prompt provision of management information related to PGR students. The system will be operational for all students on MPhil/EdD/Phd programmes from commencement of the 2010/11 academic year.

A drop-in day at the Careers Advisory Service for postgraduate researchers, with bespoke resources and mini-presentations advertising the range of services available.

A five-part progamme covering all aspects of career management, from choosing what career is right for you, through the application process and beyond to continued career 'healthchecks'.

PhD students are given a budget to use to organise their own seminar series, both of their peers, who typically are not invited to Departmental seminars and 'big' names who are often monopolised by staff.

Several ‘Careers in Academia’ workshops have been held, covering all subject cohorts, in which the steps needed to secure an academic position were discussed. The workshops were supported by the staff from the careers unit as well as senior and junior academics from across the university.

This one day intensive workshop aims to prepare researchers to gain the most out of attending research conferences. The day begins with an exploration of what the benefits of conference attendance are, then focuses down on practical considerations of preparing poster presentations and ends with an engaging look at making an impact during presentations.

Training needs handbook and log for research postgraduates – combining guidance on training needs analysis, space for planning and reviewing personal and professional development and provides examples of training and development activities.

A half day workshop intended as a starting point for any researcher interested in applying for independent research funding.