August brings the countdown to AUT Wiki Rangahau / Research Week 2026, which kicks off Monday 31 August. The full programme is now live and registrations are open – highlights for postgrads include the Postgraduate Research Symposium (1 September), the AUT 3MT Competition Finals (3 September), the African Postgraduate Research Symposium (2 September), and a hands-on workshop on using AUTGPT or Copilot to turn a published paper into something readable beyond your discipline (31 August). Head to our full Research Week round-up for the complete programme and how to register.
Alongside all that, this month there are 25 workshops and events on offer for postgraduate research students, covering thesis writing, literature reviews, systematic reviews, qualitative and quantitative data analysis, and Tiriti-led research practice.
If you’re preparing to present at a conference or the AUT PG Research Symposium, we have two workshops tailored just for you:
- For oral presentations: Crafting an oral presentation for a conference or symposium (6 August)
- For poster presentations: Designing research posters that pop (19 August)
And if data analysis is next on your list, check out the SPSS Quick Start (18 August), NVivo Quick Start (27 August), or Introduction to Mixed Methods (4 August) workshops.
Two sessions from the Tiriti-Led Research Webinar Series also run this month: Putting Te Tiriti into Practice in Research Environments (13 August) and Treaty-Referenced Relationships: Culture, Power and Cultural Safety in Research (27 August). These are great options for those interested in exploring how Te Tiriti o Waitangi plays a role in your research project and your relationships with participants, collaborators, and stakeholders.
New doctoral candidates, don’t forget the Doctoral Induction on 19 August. It’s a great starting point for getting oriented with the support and resources available to you. If you’re eligible to attend, you will receive an invitation directly.
And if you’re part of our international or distance-based postgraduate community, the International and Distance Students’ Group is meeting on 25 August – get in touch with the group leaders (their details are at the link above) if you’d like to join.
Read on for the full August workshop listings.
PG Workshops in August 2026
| What? | Where? | When? |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction to mixed methods This workshop will provide a foundational understanding of mixed methods research. Attendees will explore the key principles of mixed methods, including design strategies, implementation techniques, and methods of data interpretation. | Online | Tue 4 Aug, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM |
| Getting started with research writing Focuses on strategies to help researchers digest reading in preparation for writing about what you’ve read. Try free-writing and mapping concepts as strategies to get words on the page and then create more structured writing. We will also explore how Copilot can assist with the research writing process. Bring your device and an article you have read recently. | Online | Tue 4 Aug, 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM |
| Publishing Part 2: Finding and evaluating journals to publish in This Library workshop is designed to guide you through the process of finding relevant and credible publications for your research. Understand elements of a publishing strategy; use databases and online tools to find relevant journals to publish in; and evaluate journals for suitability and quality. | Online | Wed 5 Aug, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM |
| Developing a systematic search strategy to find literature This Library workshop will take you through a systematic literature searching process: developing a search strategy; using different search techniques; and best practices for recording and managing results. Please have your research question handy so you can use it to develop and practice your search during the workshop. | Online | Wed 5 Aug, 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Crafting an oral presentation for a conference or symposium This workshop is designed for students who aim to present their research at a conference or symposium. It will cover how to communicate complex ideas with clarity, structure your talk for maximum impact, design slides that enhance (rather than overwhelm) your message, and manage nerves on the day. | Online | Thu 6 Aug, 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM |
| Thesis writing: Introductions An overview of the structure of an Introduction section of a thesis. Identifies typical functions and distinctive features of this section in relation to the whole research project. Participants analyse and discuss text examples and relate these to their own writing. We also apply knowledge from the workshop to explore how Copilot can assist with the research writing process. Bring your device! | Online | Thu 6 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Fono 2: Pacific Methodologies: What does it mean to do research the Pacific way? Join us for a talanoa exploring Pacific research methodologies such as Talanoa, Kakala, and Fa’afaletui. This session invites you to move beyond methods as tools, and consider research as a relational, culturally grounded practice. Open to all staff and postgraduate students interested in engaging more meaningfully with Pacific approaches to research. | City campus | Tue 11 Aug, 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM |
| Responsible use of AI in research This workshop will introduce a selection of popular AI tools for research, exploring their benefits and the ethical considerations associated with their use. | City campus | Tue 11 Aug, 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM |
| Thesis writing: Understanding thesis structure Discusses how the different parts of a thesis connect to each other. We will analyse examples and practise using language to clearly show how existing knowledge connects to new research, to what others may do with it in the future, and where that information gets organised across a thesis. We also apply knowledge from the workshop to explore how Copilot can assist with the research writing process. Bring your device, plus an article you have read recently and a sample of your own writing. | Online | Tue 11 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Publishing Part 3: Using AUT’s Open Access Publishing Agreements Te Mātāpuna Library & Learning Services has agreements with some publishers that enable AUT authors to publish open access in some journals without paying the Article Processing Charge. Find out the context of Open Access Publishing agreements, what they are for, which publishers and journals are included, how to use the agreements, and what to watch out for! | Online | Tue 11 Aug, 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM |
| Tiriti-Led Research: Putting Te Tiriti into practice in research environments This workshop builds on foundational Treaty knowledge and turns toward the challenges of applying that learning within research environments. Participants examine what Treaty responsibility can mean in their own roles and consider how research questions, priorities, relationships, funding, methods, governance, interpretation, and institutional systems can either support or constrain Hāpū authority and aspirations. Best suited to those who have completed Making Sense of the Treaty in a Research Context, or who already have confidence in their foundational Treaty knowledge. | Online | Thu 13 Aug, 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM |
| Copilot writing lab: Using GenAI for discussion sections of a thesis/dissertation Explores how we can use Copilot for aspects of the research writing process. We begin by summarising important knowledge about Discussion sections and then introduce a ‘choice map’ to outline the types of tasks we could ask Copilot to perform. Together we will craft and refine prompts and continuously critique responses. Bring your own reading and writing as we dynamically use Copilot for research writing. | City campus | Thu 13 Aug, 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM |
| Using literature 1: To support your view Discusses writing strategies and choices for bringing in past research to support your own arguments. Participants will practise precise language that changes the extent to which you may agree or disagree with the views of others. We also apply knowledge from the workshop to explore how Copilot can assist with the research writing process. Bring your device, an article you have read recently, and a sample of your own writing. | Online | Thu 13 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
| SPSS quick start SPSS is designed to assist researchers in the analysis of quantitative data, and is one of the most user-friendly and popular packages on the market today. | Online | Tue 18 Aug, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM |
| Thesis writing: Connecting sections and chapters Explores how we can organise research writing so that our readers clearly see how paragraphs and sections within a chapter and different chapters connect. Participants will use the principle of ‘writing in layers’ to critically examine their own reading and writing samples. This principle can be applied to writing theses, dissertations, book chapters, and journal articles. We also explore how Copilot can assist with the research writing process. | Online | Tue 18 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Systematic Review 1: An introduction What is a systematic literature review and how is it different from a literature review? Why do people use the same terminology but seem to have different ideas on what a SLR actually is? This workshop outlines key differences between types and involves activities to help you decide which one is right for you. This workshop is one of a series of three SLR workshops. Attend any one or all three. | Online | Wed 19 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Designing research posters that pop Learn how to design a research poster that is visually engaging and communicates your work clearly and effectively. This workshop covers layout principles, use of visuals, and key design decisions that will help your poster stand out at conferences and symposiums. | Online | Wed 19 Aug, 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Using literature 2: For clear and persuasive arguments Considers fundamental differences between writing descriptively and persuasively. Participants will look closely at why some arguments are easy to follow. We also consider the way language enables us to control how much we align with other points of view. We also apply knowledge from the workshop to explore how Copilot can assist with the research writing process. Bring your device, an article you have read recently, and a sample of your own writing. | Online | Thu 20 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Systematic Review 2: The search process Part 2 of a three-part series. Learn advanced literature searching and search strategies; search databases in a systematic way, where to locate existing systematic reviews, how to create alerts and learn best practices for recording and managing results. | Online | Thu 20 Aug, 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Thesis writing: Discussions Discusses writing strategies and choices for bringing in past research to support your own arguments. Participants will practise precise language that changes the extent to which you may agree or disagree with the views of others. We also explore how Copilot can assist with the research writing process. Bring your device, plus an article you have read recently and a sample of your own writing. | Online | Tue 25 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Using literature 3: For research significance Explores where and how you can make your research findings stand out. Participants will consider ‘what matters’ and ‘who cares’ and where this information goes across a thesis or research output. We also apply knowledge from the workshop to explore how Copilot can assist with the research writing process. Bring an article you have read recently and a sample of your own writing. You will need a device to participate in reading and writing activities. | Online | Wed 26 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Tiriti-Led Research: Treaty-referenced relationships – culture, power and cultural safety in research This workshop builds on ideas introduced in Putting the Treaty into Practice in Research, including relationships, positionality, power, racism, and cultural safety, and explores them in greater depth. Participants explore how relationships are shaped by culture, positionality, institutional power, colonisation, and histories of harm, and consider what supports safer, more equitable, and more accountable Treaty-referenced relationships. | Online | Thu 27 Aug, 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM |
| NVivo quick start This course is targeted at researchers wanting an efficient means of handling and analysing their qualitative data. No prior knowledge of the software is assumed; however a basic understanding of qualitative analysis procedures would be helpful. | Online | Thu 27 Aug, 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM |
| Systematic Review 3: Writing the introduction and method Builds on content covered in sessions one and two by providing an overview of the structure of introduction and method sections for a systematic literature review. Identifies common parts and distinctive features of these sections. Participants analyse and discuss text examples and relate these to their own writing or reading. | Online | Thu 27 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
| Thesis writing: Conclusions An overview of the structure of a Conclusion section of a thesis. Identifies typical functions and distinctive features of this section in relation to the whole research project. Participants analyse and discuss text examples and relate these to their own writing. We also apply knowledge from the workshop to explore how Copilot can assist with the research writing process. Bring your device! | Online | Thu 27 Aug, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM |
