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The Arts Graduate Centre (AGC) offers a unique social and training space which has been developed specifically for Arts Faculty postgraduates. Its main activity is grouped around building a community for postgraduates in the Arts Faculty, developing skills and improving employability. It has a centre which provides a place to study, socialise and find out information. AGC has a strong web presence which includes an interactive researcher portal using a workspace platform. This year it is piloting a compulsory training prrogramme, offering 3 days of bespoke training to Arts Faculty PGRs per year, alongside an an annual events programme (approx 30 instances) which is bespoke to the Arts Faculty and complimentary to the cross-Faculty Graduate School training offer at Nottingham. AGC also runs larger-scale conferences and networking events, often with a knowledge transfer or an interdisciplinary focus. These include interdisciplinary symposia, speed-conferencing evenings, HE fairs and research poster competitions. AGC has a strong history in arranging paid placements opportunities (30 per year) which are uniquely supported by regular guided groupwork (reflective practice sessions) and one-to-one support. AGC also supports postgraduate-led initiatives with project planning and proposal-writing advice. These have included a feminist reading group, the Nottingham Poetry Series (funded by Arts Council & Lottery Fund) and Mind the Skills Gap (funded initiaive to bring consultancy-level business training to Arts Faculty postgrads trhougha series of 8 full or half-day workshops.) . AGC also seeks additional funding annually to develop a special interest strand which speaks to training, social and networking needs amongst the postgraduate community as well as the knowledge transfer agenda. Last year we ran AGC Year of the Writer which had a Writer in Residence who coordinated a series of writing workshops (poetry, novels, for broadcast), author talks, a creative writing competition and local schools-based writing activities (co-ordinated by 2 paid postgraduate interns.) This year we received AHRC funding to run ResearcherCurator - a placement-like programme where participants are offered 4 days of specialist trainign and mentoring to design and deliver an element of public programming at the Galleries of Justice, Nottingham (see separate database entry). Part of the AGC events programme is also available to final-year undergraduates in order to support Faculty postgraduate recruitment. AGC is also piloting an alumni mentoring programme - Bridges - which is designed to match postgraduate students up with alumni already established in a range of career sectors for a 6-month e-mentoring relationship. Alumni have been an integral part of our Moving On series which uses alumni to deliver short training interventions designed to be responsive to the requirements of key potential employers. This included 'Copywriting and proofreading skills ofr publishing' (delivered by Publishing Operations Manager at Hodder & Stoughton. The Arts Gradaute Centre also works in collaboration with another Graduate Centre to offer training/information/social events to early career researchers.

The Short Introduction to Project Management is aimed at postgraduate researchers in the early stages of their research degree. It forms part of a portfolio of Project Management programmes of different lengths and levels of depth that postgraduate researchers can use to tailor their own development. Resources required are fairly basic - a training room with projection equipment and pen and paper for the interactive sections. The session is delivered by a single trainer.

In addition to a programme of inductions, traditional information skills classes and one-to-one sessions throughout the year, the History Librarian organises three learning events in the course of the academic year: Information Fair for Graduates and the Thesis Fair are opportunities for students to explore and discover in their own time and amongst 20+ stalls what primary sources (archives, books, databases) and useful IT tools are available to them and to connect with the relevant local experts and with other students. An experienced graduate contributes by presenting the Top Tips of a Survivor. The events are embedded in the academic curriculum and are followed up with specific information skills sessions relating to aspects of locating material, organising references and using databases effectively. Canapés with Clio (CwithC) invites academics to attend brief talks on various aspects of electronic resources followed by a sponsored buffet lunch. It is a chance for library staff to meet academics, update each other of projects and ask questions.

An overview of TST courses in the Graduate School of Life Sciences addressing the entire Roberts agenda, and run across the whole school or within individual Departments and Institutes; but run for the individual student rather than for the yeargroup or the course.

A 2 x ½ day compulsory Introductory session for all new graduate students emphasises the importance of transferable skills training and provides an introduction to the nature of Research Degrees, the Cambridge University system, scientific ethics, enterprise and IP. It includes a wide range of speakers from Academia and Industry, with an aim to introduce at least two academic research names and one external business celebrity that the students will have heard of before arrival in Cambridge.

In one intensive three-hour session gives participants a general understanding of the media, including how journalists work, how to get coverage, how to prepare for interviews, and how to manage expectations. This is followed by individual coaching and mentoring in interview techniques, during which the participant is interviewed twice with video playback and analysis afterwards.

As part of our Skill's Development Training programme in 2008/9, this one-day workshop was introduced and aimed at PGR's who are required to do presentations, running seminar groups, examinations or anything where they find they need to overcome their ‘nerves’ or other anxieties.

Make Some Noise is an annual series of linked training, practise and awareness raising events linked by competitions, all of which aim to develop strong communication and public engagement skills. it is also a means of celebrating the excellent research work taking place in the Faculty of Engineering.

In this 3 hour session, we invited an expert panel comprising journal editors, funders, academics, journalist and a science communication charity to discuss peer review with our PhD students and postdoc - looking at peer review from the academic community’s point of view and how the public gauges if scientific evidence is robust or not.

Six fortnightly workshops to support final year PhD students with the writing up process. Each session is run from 2-3 in the afternoon and tea and cake is provided to promote an informal and collegiate atmosphere. The aim is to help the students support one another as well as offering them helpful advice. The themes of the sessions are as follows: 1) University of Nottingham regulations and formatting your thesis properly from the beginning - delivered by a member of research staff. 2) Supervisor’s comments – how much should you give them how often, and not taking the first draft edits personally - delivered by a supervisor. 3) Getting started with/problems with referencing and Endnote - delivered by information services. 4) How to get over a blank screen and what to do on the days the writing just isn’t happening - delivered by a lecturer. 5) The viva: the examiner’s side of the table - delivered by two supervisors who have acted as external examiners 6) The viva: the PhD student’s side of the table - delivered by two former PhD students. The sessions are designed as an informal complement to the more in-depth training on these subjects provided by the Graduate School of the University of Nottingham.