As the colder weather sets in, so comes the temptation to hibernate. It’s all too easy in postgrad life to disappear into one’s lab or office, put on a cosy pair of slippers, and withdraw from human company. But isolation is the enemy of inspiration; so get out there, meet your fellow researchers, and learn some new skills!
There is a bumper crop of well over 30 workshops this month, including some new titles. A particular highlight: check out ‘Communicating your research identity‘ on 8 May and 31 May for ideas about where you fit as a researcher. Who else has a similar researcher identity to you, and how can you learn from their careers? How can you define and communicate who you are as a researcher? This workshop is pure solid gold inspiration for visualising and clarifying your unique research contribution, especially if you are planning an academic career.
Don’t miss the Postgraduate Mix & Mingle and Doctoral Scholarship Award Ceremony on 25 May. We will celebrate those who have been awarded doctoral scholarships, and have a chance to socialise over free non-alcoholic drinks & nibbles. Register to attend here.
Coming up on May 24 we have a Write-Away Day at South campus with free food, expert advice, and quiet company to help you maximise your writing progress. Applications close on 3 May, so get in quick! Fill out the short application form here.
And if you’re planning to present at the PG Symposium this year, or any other symposium or conference, check out ‘Writing an abstract for a conference or symposium‘ on 23 May for a detailed breakdown of how to write an abstract that has the best chance of being accepted.
Postgraduate Research Workshops in May
| What? | Where? | When? |
|---|---|---|
| Literature searching for postgraduate research This Library workshop will take you through an advanced literature searching process: developing a search strategy, using different search techniques and best practices for recording and managing results. Participants will have a chance to practise and ask questions. | Online | Mon 1 May, 10:00am – 11:30am |
| Getting started with library research A Library workshop for new AUT postgrads or those returning to study. We aim to give you a good understanding of the types of resources available from the Library and databases and/or search engines you may use in your literature research. | Online and City campus | Mon 1 May, 2:00pm – 3:30pm and Fri 19 May, 10:00am – 11:30am |
| Thesis writing: Discussions An overview of the structure of discussion sections within 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. | Online | Tue 2 May, 5:30pm – 7:30pm |
| Literature searching for ECM postgraduate research This workshop focuses on literature searching using specialist Engineering, Computer and Mathematical Sciences databases such as IEEE Xplore and ACM Digital Library. | City campus | Wed 3 May, 10:00am – 11:30am |
| Preparing for a doctoral oral examination Engage in this informative session where you will find out about the doctoral oral examination process, how to prepare for it and what to expect. The facilitator will lead the discussion and answer any questions you may have about the process. | Online | Wed 3 May, 10:00am – 12:00pm |
| Getting started with writing Focuses on strategies to help researchers digest reading in preparation for writing about what you’ve read. Participants try freewriting and mapping concepts as strategies to get words on the page and then create more structured writing. | City campus and Online | Wed 3 May, 12:00pm – 2:00pm and Tue 23 May 5:30pm – 7:30pm |
| Dimensions and Altmetric Explorer for researchers Dimensions provides multiple content types and a tool for analysing your scholarly impact. Altmetric Explorer helps you analyse the online attention your research outputs are receiving to build a broader picture of research impact. | Online | Wed 3 May, 1:00pm – 2:30pm |
| Finding scholarship funding for postgraduate studies This workshop will show you how to search for and find various scholarship and research funding avenues. There are different sources of funding for every postgraduate course and for every type of candidate. | Online | Thu 4 May, 10:00am – 11:00am |
| Writing about 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. | Online | Thu 4 May, 5:30pm – 7:30pm |
| NVivo core skills for students 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 | Fri 5 May, 10:00am – 3:00pm |
| Communicating your research identity Focuses on thinking through who you are as a researcher for the purpose of generating and refining content for research profiles and considering where to publish. Suited to doctoral and non-doctoral students (masters, honours) who want to develop and communicate their research identity. | Online | Mon 8 May, 12:00pm – 2:00pm and Wed 31 May, 5:30pm – 7:30pm |
| Publishing your research This Library workshop will help you find relevant publications for your research. You will learn about the elements of a publishing strategy, how to find open access publishing options, and how to find and evaluate journals to publish in. | City campus | Mon 8 May, 12:00pm – 1:30pm |
| Research impact This Library workshop discusses what research impact is, and the importance of planning for and maximising the impact of your research. The workshop introduces various metrics and the citation analysis tools used for measuring research impact. | City campus | Tue 9 May, 10:00am – 11:30am |
| CV, cover letter & job interview tips for academic roles Getting a job in academia is hugely competitive. If you want to stand a chance of succeeding, you’ve got to stand out. This workshop can help you understand what you should be adding to your CV or articulating in a job interview for a role in the academic world. | Online | Tue 9 May, 10:00am – 12:00pm |
| Connecting your research Explores how writers use language to connect to both past and future research. Participants will have time to analyse examples relevant to them and practice using common language patterns to clearly show readers how new research fits in to the wider field. | City campus | Wed 10 May, 12:00pm – 2:00pm |
| Using Google Scholar This Library workshop covers how to get the most out of Google Scholar: searching, accessing full text, managing search results, exporting to reference managers, and other useful features. We will also discuss the benefits and drawbacks of using Google Scholar to find academic literature. | Online | Wed 10 May, 3:00pm – 4:30pm |
| CV, cover letter & job interview tips for working in industry This workshop can help you understand what you should be adding to your CV or articulating in a job interview for a job in industry. | Online | Thu 11 May, 10:00am – 12:00pm |
| Preparing a PGR9 research proposal This session is specifically for doctoral students who are preparing their PGR9 research proposal, and postgraduate research supervisors. It will describe the PGR9 process and cover the key elements required for writing a proposal for a doctoral research project at AUT. | Online | Thu 11 May, 1:00pm – 3:00pm |
| Library essentials for postgraduates Learn about the wide range of resources, spaces and support available at Te Mātāpuna Library & Learning Services for Postgraduate students. | City campus | Thu 11 May, 2:00pm – 3:30pm |
| Thesis writing: Literature reviews An overview of the structure of literature reviews within a thesis. Identifies typical functions and distinctive features of this section in relation to the whole research project. Participants analyse, discuss and relate text examples to their own writing. Systematic reviews are not covered. | Online | Thu 11 May, 5:30pm – 7:30pm |
| Using Dimensions database This Library workshop provides an overview of the Dimensions multidisciplinary database, its content, discovery tools, and research impact analysis tools. | City campus | Fri 12 May, 2:00pm – 3:30pm |
| Thesis formatting: The works This workshop focuses on the best ways to use Microsoft Word to handle a long document such as a thesis. Topics covered will include: using styles, section breaks, table of contents, page numbering and using various techniques to move around a long document easily. | City campus | Sat 13 May, 9:00am – 2:00pm |
| Bringing in literature Discusses writing strategies and reasons for bringing in past research to support your own arguments. Participants will practice precise language that changes the extent to which you may agree or disagree with the views of others. | Online | Tue 16 May, 5:30pm – 7:30pm |
| Tools for editing your writing Introduces ProWritingAid as a tool for editing. Focuses on using statistics to examine draft writing. These statistics are related to choices about paragraph structure, and where to condense your writing or elaborate. Participants will have time to use the tool to edit their own work. | City campus | Wed 17 May, 12:00pm – 2:00pm |
| Postgrad students wellness toolkit session – Resilience: self-care and self-compassion The session covers self-care and self-compassion, helping you to enhance your resilience, to better manage stressors and challenges, and for greater personal wellbeing and academic success. | Online | Wed 17 May, 2:00pm – 3:00pm |
| 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. | Online | Thu 18 May, 5:30pm – 7:30pm |
| SPSS core skills for students SPSS is designed to assist researchers in the analysis of quantitative data. This training course will teach participants how to successfully set-up SPSS data files and also run some basic analyses. No statistical knowledge is required for this workshop; however, the focus of the session will be on the SPSS software rather than statistical theory. | Online | Fri 19 May, 10:00am – 12:00pm |
| Writing an abstract 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 the principles of writing an abstract for a presentation. | Online | Tue 23 May, 1:00pm – 2:00pm |
| Preparing for fieldwork: Becoming a successful field researcher The key goal of this workshop is for participants to gain an understanding of the risks involved in gendered fieldwork, so they can prepare for their field work experience. | City campus | Thu 25 May, 10:00am – 12:00pm |
| Writing up qualitative research Moving from the analysis and interpretive stages to the writing phase can be challenging for qualitative researchers, and many people struggle with this stage of the research process. This training course covers tips and tricks for managing this process. | Online | Fri 26 May, 10:00am – 12:00pm |
| Thesis formatting: Introduction This workshop provides an introductory to MS Word for academic writing. Learn formatting, editing and file management skills – tailored to answer your questions and clear up your confusion. | City campus | Sat 27 May, 9:00am – 12:00pm |
| Writing clear and persuasive arguments Considers fundamental differences between writing descriptively and persuasively. Participants will look closely at why some arguments are easy to follow. | Online | Tue 30 May, 5:30pm – 7:30pm |
| 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. | City campus | Wed 31 May, 12:00pm – 2:00pm |
