Events for Arts & Humanities researchers

I've just come across two things that are coming up for researchers in Arts and Humanities subjects.

The first, on the 15th Feb, is a focus group at the British Library, designed to gain a better understanding of how BL services meet the needs of Arts & Humanities researchers within the Higher Education community. A payment of £50 will be given to anyone taking part. Each group will last for approximately 1.5 hours, and they will run between lunchtime and 5:30pm.
Anyone interested in participating should email David Mort at IRN Research at dmort@irn-research.com giving details of their subject area, institution, and general research experience (i.e. first-year PhD, early career researcher, established academic) PLUS a telephone number where they can be contacted in advance of the group.

The second event is at King's College London on 28th Feb:

"Graduates’ Day, King’s College London, 28th February 11-4, Anatomy Theatre Museum, 6th Floor, King's Building, King's College London

Refreshments and lunch provided

What is the public value of Arts and Humanities?

It is no secret: There were less difficult times for Arts and Humanities. Time is short and finances are scarce. So: Why study Shakespeare? Why think about politics and the world religions? Why explore national history? Why reflect upon moral issues?

The first Arts and Humanities Graduates’ Day at King’s College London invites PhD students from Arts and Humanities in the University of London to engage with these issues and discuss the importance of Arts and Humanities in the contemporary world. It will also be an opportunity to meet fellow research students working in the field of Arts and Humanities.

This free event will take place on Monday 28th February, 11-4 in the Anatomy Theatre Museum, 6th Floor, King's Building, King's College London, Strand Campus:

http://www.anatomytheatreandmuseum.kcl.ac.uk/location

If you would like to join us for this free event, please email Sarah Hayward (sarah.hayward@kcl.ac.uk) to book your place. Refreshments and lunch will be provided."

The Thesis Whisperer

I've recently come across this blog, The Thesis Whisperer, which has tonnes of great posts and articles about aspects of doing and surviving a PhD. I'll put a link to it at the side of this blog so you can easily see new posts.

Cafe Scientifique - 3rd February

The next Café Scientifique event for PhD students and postdoctoral researchers from all disciplines is being held on Thursday 3rd February. It will be a chance for researchers to get together and meet each other in a relaxed setting. This is an informal and fun evening event involving free wine & pizza, three short presentations from researchers and some other activities such as a quiz and/or creative challenges!

The presentations at this event will be from Mark Stevenson (Biological & Chemical Sciences), Peter Kirby-Harris (Politics) and Emily Collins (Geography).

The evening will start at 6pm at Mucci, Library Square on the Mile End campus. For further information and to book a place please contact Dr Jo Cordy (j.m.cordy@qmul.ac.uk).

PCs at Queen Mary

If any of you ever need to use the PCs that are available around the QM campuses, this should be of use to you: IT Services have recently launched a new website showing how many PCs are free in all the labs and other locations around campus.

Junk the Jargon 2011

Junk the Jargon 2011 is nearly here!

Can you make your research clear and entertaining to a wide audience in only 3 minutes? If you think so, or would just like to try, then enter the competition!

Faculty Heats

Humanities & Social Sciences: Tues 8th Feb, 4pm in Lock-keeper’s Cottage, Mile End

Science & Engineering: Wed 9th Feb, 4pm in People’s Palace LT1, Mile End

Medicine & Dentistry: Thurs 10th Feb, 5pm in Perrin LT, Blizard Building, Whitechapel

The Final

The final will be on Thursday 17th Feb in People’s Palace Lecture Theatre 1 from 5pm. It will be followed by prize-giving and a drinks reception in the People’s Palace foyer. Prizes of £500, £250 and £100 will be awarded for the top three presentations, and there will also be a separate prize awarded based on the audience’s vote.

Judges for the final are:

Prof. Evelyn Welch, Vice-Principal (Research & International Affairs)
Prof. Colin Jones, President of the Royal Historical Society
Nicola Horne from Cancer Research UK
Rhian Harris, Director of the V&A Children’s Museum
A representative from the science communication organisation Guerilla Science

To find out more, or to book a place at one of the faculty heats, please contact Jo Cordy: j.m.cordy@qmul.ac.uk.

Cafe Scientifique - Next week!

The next Café Scientifique event for PhD students and postdoctoral researchers from all disciplines is being held on Thursday 9th December. It will be a chance for researchers to get together and meet each other in a relaxed setting. This is an informal and fun evening event involving free wine & pizza, three short presentations from researchers and some other activities such as a quiz and/or creative challenges!
The speakers at this event are Carol Rivas, from the Institute of Health Sciences Education, Allan Pang from the School of Biological & Chemical Sciences, and Kathryn Cassidy from the School of Geography.
The evening will start at 6pm at Mucci, Library Square on the Mile End campus. For further information and to book a place please contact Dr Jo Cordy (j.m.cordy@qmul.ac.uk).

National GRADschools 2011

The dates for the Vitae National GRADschools 2011 have just been announced. They are:

GRADschool 1: Windermere, 1 - 4 March

GRADschool 2: Bournemouth, 14 - 17 June

GRADschool 3: Windermere, 11 - 14 October

More information on GRADschools can be found here, but basically they are residential courses for PhD students, that aim to do the following:

'Our vision is to create an inspirational, challenging and experiential learning environment in which all participants will learn something new about themselves and take away skills, tools or information which will motivate them to complete their studies, further realise their potential, and enable them to make more informed choices about their future careers.'

The courses are aimed at PhD students in their second year or above. If you are research council funded you will be eligible for a funded place on a GRADschool subject to availability. If you are a non-research council funded researcher you may apply for a national GRADschool but you or your department/school will need to cover the cost of your place and you will need to provide invoice details.

More details about the 2011 courses, and how to book, can be found here.

Having been on one of these courses myself during my PhD, I can't recommend them highly enough and I would strongly urge anyone to attend one. If you are interested, you should book as soon as possible, as the places are open to any PhD students in the country and they will get taken fast!