D4 - The professional identities of researcher developers; in their own words
| Day | Day 2 |
|---|---|
| Session | D |
| Start time | 13:40 |
| Strand |
Researcher developers |
| Code | D4 |
| Presenters |
Dr Anna Price, Head of Researcher Development, Queen Mary University of London Dr Richard Freeman, Senior Lecturer in Research Methods, University College London Alison Mitchell, Director of Development, Vitae Dr Susan Ann Brooks, University Research Training Co-ordinator, Oxford Brookes University |
Workshop overview:
This workshop builds on the survey-based study presented as a workshop at the 2015 Vitae conference, which looked at the responses of over 100 researcher developers to illuminate how the researcher developer community define themselves regarding their roles, responsibilities and professional identities. Building on the findings of the survey, we interviewed a selection of researcher developers representing the diversity in the role regarding gender, age, levels of experience, professional background from a range of HEIs of different sizes across the country including Russell Group and non-research-intensive institutions. Key themes emerging from the interviews will be presented and discussed. The workshop will provide opportunities to explore what these results might mean for researcher developers, as individuals and as a community, with regard to informing their current practices, collaborating with others, their future career aspirations and their professional development. Participants will have the opportunity to consider their own career development with reference to the Vitae Careers Framework for Researcher Developers (CFRD) - the framework to support the aspirations of all who work in researcher development.
Workshop topics covered:
- Identity and self-identification
- How do researcher developers compare to researchers and academics?
- What do researcher developers actually do and how are they perceived?
- What skills are necessary for researcher developers?
- Career progression and CPD for researcher developers
Themes covered:
- Evaluation and impact studies of researchers careers to further our understanding and knowledge of the researcher career landscape in UK and internationally
Workshop outcomes:
- Understanding the diversity of roles and individual lived experiences of researcher developers across the UK
- Reflecting on career progression opportunities and continuing professional development needs of researcher developers
- Understanding the Career Framework for Researcher Developers
- Creating and exploring your individual profile, using CFRD
Format:
Workshop
