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The University's College Science and Engineering and College of Medicine, Biological Sciences, and Psychology provide complete programmes of researcher development training for science and engineering postgraduate researchers. These cover a broad range of discipline specific and generic skills. The programmes are staged so that students can take advantage of training opportunities appropriate for each stage of the research degree.

The Graduate School's Guide to Researcher Development Training is a key tool for doctoral researchers and their supervisors. It describes the University's approach to researcher development training and provides details on the range of opportunities available through our Colleges, centrally, and externally. Doctoral researchers are encouraged to use the Guide in preparing a Training Plan at the start of their research degree and then again at the start of each new year as part of a process of reflecting on their progress and revising their Plan.

Research staff and PGR students can obtain a qualification in addition to a working knowledge of an internationally recognised standard for project management, by running the course on-site the participants' costs (£415) are much lower compared to attending this course externally (~£1000).

An interdisciplinary postgraduate-focused research conference designed to develop communication skills, team work and innovation as well as fostering international cooperation.

Volunteering is an often-overlooked route to skills development. Working with the Guild of Students, the Graduate School promotes a range of volunteering options to enable postgraduates to develop a range of invaluable skills while also helping the local (and wider) community.

This was a two hour event aimed at increasing awareness of the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers.

This is an optional course aimed at second or third year PhD students. It has been designed to enable students to build a career in a direction which recognises their own strengths and weaknesses, either in the world of academia or business and industry. Topics covered include: Managing yourself; Planning your career; Launching an academic career; Marketing yourself to employers; The work environment; Legal, business and other aspects. The course is assessed via 1) a reflective log of the development of students' career plans; 2) production of a CV; 3) submission of a mock grant bid with associated costings and staff requirements 4) a role play activity.

This session gives participants an opportunity to reflect on their transferable skills and to articulate them in a manner that would be relevant to future employers.

Inclusion of Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) in small group teaching of 1st / 2nd year undergraduates

A Postgraduate Seminar in the morning involves employer presentations on ‘Career Options with Your PhD’. This will be followed by a session on graduate applications and selection processes with an employer’s exhibition in the same venue during the afternoon.