Vitae researcher development conference 2010: realising the potential of researchers 06 September 2010 - 07 September 2010

Event overview

Plenary and workshop slides are now available to download from the website. To access plenary slides click on the relevant session in the 'Programme' tab and the presentation will be in pdf format on the right hand side. To access workshop slides click on the relevant session in the 'Workshop' tab and the presentation will be in pdf format on the right hand side.

Please note that not all presenters are able to make their slides available.

The Vitae annual conference was for everyone with a strategic or practical role in the development of researchers. In the current climate of national and global change and challenge, it has surely never been more important to focus on the effective development of researchers and to ensure that researchers make a valuable contribution to the wider community and economy. We also need to build a case for sustaining the investment in our researchers in order to build research capacity and remain globally competitive.

‘HEIs need to be more pro-active in providing postgraduates with the opportunity to develop the core competencies they need to succeed in a competitive job market... [and] should ensure that transferable skills training is embedded as standard in the funding and design of all postgraduate research programmes'

One Step Beyond: Making the most of postgraduate education, March 2010

'Activity is required to broaden support for the Concordat and embed good practice in institutions... to maintain momentum and ensure that practice becomes permanent'

Report from the Concordat Strategy Group to the Funders Forum, December 2009

The conference addressed the following topics: 

• researching and evaluating the impact of researcher development and of researcher careers, including a major update on the evaluation activities across the sector mapped against the Rugby Team Impact Framework
• implementing the Concordat, including major updates on progress and the announcement of the outcomes of the survey of HEI responses to the Concordat
• the latest developments in policy relating to postgraduate researchers, including the initial outcomes of the RCUK independent review of the Roberts transferable skills and career development agenda
• evolving practice to support cost-effective researcher skills and career development; including the announcement of the winners of Vitae Innovate funding 2010

The conference also addressed priorities emerging from the new government.

Speakers included:

• Professor Sir Ivor Crewe, Master of University College, University of Oxford
• Professor Barbara Evans, Dean, Faculty of Graduate Studies and Professor of Zoology, University of British Columbia
• Professor Andrew George, Professor of Molecular Immunology, Imperial College London
• Dr Alison Hodge MBE, Chair, Independent Review of Roberts’ Recommendations and University Partnerships Director, QinetiQ
• Dr Katrien Maes, Chief Policy Officer, League of European Research Universities
• Professor Rick Rylance, Chief Executive, Arts and Humanities Research Council

Special event: launch of the latest 'What do researchers do?' publication -  '3.5 years after graduation' 

Participants:

• explored the political context for researcher development
• discussed strategic and practical ways of sustaining professional and career development for research staff and postgraduate researchers
• had access to the latest policy, information and research related to this field
• shared ideas and practice with a network of all those who have a stake in developing the UK's researchers.

Participants at the 2009 conference said:

'The conference had a well devised programme, plenty of variety in topics and speakers'

'Lots of networking, very informative - demonstrates the huge progressive/enhancement of the researcher development agenda in the past five years'

'It was a great way to increase my professional knowledge of the researcher development arena and to grow my skills as a staff/student developer'