Escaping the bubble

In this post, Olivia Langford, a PGR in the Shakespeare Institute, shares her experience of a placement with the Royal College of Physicians, the ways it has enriched her research and CV, and her tips for other PGRs considering a placement.

As a PhD student belonging to the College of Arts and Law, opportunities to work with non-academic institutions are perhaps more limited than other disciplines. However, wanting to gain valuable and real-life work experience, increase my range of skills in a field I would like to enter post-PhD, increase my networking connections, and, let’s face it, escape the bubble of academia for a little while made me want to pursue a placement.

The Royal College of Physicians, London.
Image credit: Paul the Archivist, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

I was lucky enough to carry out my placement with the support of AHRC Midlands4Cities, who as well as funding my travel expenses, actively encourage and facilitate placement opportunities for all their students. Whilst M4C have a number of placement partners, I wanted to identify my dream institution to work with who I felt could aid my project and who I felt I could benefit during my placement. After visiting them for archival research, I chose the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) in London and based my project around analysing their collection of recipe books from c.1580 – 1660, considering the recipes relating to maternity. This was closely tied to my thesis research, which considers non-English motherhood in William Shakespeare’s plays. The RCP were very accommodating from the outset and helped me to not only put together a feasible project, with mainly remote working involved, but also one that had a suitable timescale as the placement would involve a more relaxed approach to my thesis development. Not every institution will have the staff, time and funding to enable this to happen, however, so it is worth getting in contact with them initially to see if the organisation will suit your individual requirements.

It is important to identify what you hope to gain from the placement, both in relation to your project, and additional skills that the placement organisation may offer you. Before my placement started, I agreed with my primary contact at the RCP that I would publish a blog post on their website, aimed at the general public. This improved my writing capabilities, as I gained experience of being able to produce content for a non-academic audience. I also outlined that I would aim to write an article on my project findings, which the RCP were happy to support. The RCP provided special collections handling, such as knowing how to work with rare and delicate manuscripts whilst I was on-site, and this has really improved my experience when considering heritage jobs post-PhD. I gained skills whilst carrying out the placement itself, such as developing my palaeography skills whilst transcribing the early modern recipe books, which has expanded the scope of my thesis research. It is worth considering how you could use your placement research to improve your public impact and engagement – for example, I presented my placement findings at the 2023 Fertility, Folklore and the Reproductive Body conference.

Outside of all these listed skills and outcomes, however, it is important to consider whether being out of your comfort zone may make you a more capable and flexible researcher. Having lived all my life in a small town in the West Midlands, travelling to London, working in an office and seeing the busy behind-the-scenes of a heritage organisation was all incredibly new, but also incredibly enriching, to me. Take account of your finances, family and research commitments, but also consider broadening your horizons – your placement may just be the beginning of a brilliant career!

Employer Engagement during the PhD

In this post, Alice Kinghorn, PGR External Engagement Project Officer in Careers Network, shares her tips for engaging with employers outside of academia to gain insights into different careers, develop key skills, and build your network.

Engaging with employers outside of academia during your PhD can be daunting. Whether this be through an internship, attending careers event, or building informal relationships with employers, many PhD students have reservations. Perhaps you are concerned about your supervisor’s support in seeking a career beyond academia, or maybe you’re worried about the time needed to build a professional profile.

There are, however, an increasing range of external engagement opportunities (to meet, interact, and develop relationships with employers) that don’t require the time commitment of an intense work-placement or internship. This blogpost explores two ways to do this: building a professional network through LinkedIn, and attending events with external employers. Both are useful ways to gain insights into non-academic careers and to develop professional skillsets.

The University of Birmingham’s LinkedIn profile page, with the “Alumni” section highlighted.

Have a Conversation with your Supervisor

You may be worried about your supervisor’s response if you want to explore opportunities beyond academia, either because they want you to stay in academia, or because they are concerned about time away from your studies. However, recent research at the Universities of York and Sheffield have shown that supervisors of PhD students who undertake external engagement opportunities appreciated the valuable skills they had gained. These included professionalism, adaptability, confidence, and interpersonal skills.

External engagement and support from employers does not replace your academic supervisors. Instead, it can provide critical insights into the world beyond academia. Consider explaining to your supervisor that you are interested in exploring career opportunities. They may even share employer and industry contacts with you.

Use LinkedIn to Grow your Network

LinkedIn is a great tool to grow your network in sectors you are interested in outside of academia without having to dedicate time to attending an event. A good starting point is to see where alumni in your research field are currently working:

1. Head to the University of Birmingham’s LinkedIn page
2. Click ‘Alumni’
3. Search ‘PhD’
4. Filter your subject in ‘What they studied’

Scroll down to start viewing search results. Where do alumni work now? Where have they worked? Are there any fields you are interested in?

Ask to connect with people in your field of interest. In your message, explain who you are, and why you would like to connect. What insights would you like to gain? Why do you think the connection is worthwhile? Growing your professional network this way is quick and easy, allowing you to keep up-to-date in sectors of interest.

Attend Employer-led Events

A further straightforward introduction to external engagement is through events organised by the postgraduate team at Careers Network. Here, you can learn how to draw on transferable skills, key differences working within and beyond academia, and how develop your professional skillset.

For example, engaging with employers requires a different skillset than talking to an expert academic audience about your research. Can you think instead about the skills gained during your research? Project management, problem solving, data analysis, presentation, and interpersonal skills are just some of those that you will already possess. Employer led discussions increase your exposure to external engagement whilst highlighting skills that employers are looking for, how to talk about these skills in interview, and how to develop them during your studies.

To further develop your skillset through employer led events, sign up to the PG Skills Canvas Course. See the latest events on the University Graduate School Events page.

3 lessons we can all take from 3MT

It’s nearly my favourite time of year! The University of Birmingham 3 Minute Thesis competition is coming up, and I really, really love it. It’s the point in the year where some of UoB’s brilliant PGRs share their research and their enthusiasm for it in three-minute presentations, and it always gets me how interesting and impactful all the research is and how engaging our PGRs are.

The UoB 3MT 2021 winner

If you want to participate in this year’s 3MT competition, there’s still time to sign up – the deadline for expressions of interest is Sunday 10 April. However, there are three key lessons I think all researchers can learn from 3MT, whether or not they participate.

The Value of Research Placements for PGRs

In this post, Laura Clark, a PGR in the Centre for Byzantine, Ottoman and Modern Greek Studies, shares her experience of undertaking a placement in the Home Office during her PhD, and the skills she developed as a result.

I began my PhD with a vague idea that I would look for a placement without any specific thoughts about what, where, or the things I would like to get out of the experience. After a year of trying to find something suitable, I came across the URKI Policy Internships Scheme, a three-month placement at an influential policy organisation in a parliamentary department, government department, or non-government body. It was based on the needs of the department, which meant I did not need to spend a lot of time planning out the placement, and my research topic was irrelevant providing I could demonstrate I had the required skills. I applied and, after a long process, was offered a placement with the Home Office.

The headquarters of the Home Office, in London, which Laura didn’t visit because her placement took place during COVID-19 restrictions.
Photo credit: Steve Cadman

First, recruit your team

When you’re at the very beginning of a research programme, it can feel like there’s an overwhelming amount of stuff that you are encouraged to engage with (including induction and Welcome) on top of getting started on your research.

Image credit: Montclair Film

My advice? Prioritise the activities that will help you build relationships with people. Yes, sometimes even over your research activity. It’s the people around you who can make all the difference to your PGR experience.

Building your research community

In this post, Raeni, a PGR in the Department of Accounting, and Isbahna Naz, a PGR in the Department of Management, share some tips that they found beneficial in developing their sense of community during their PhDs.

3- 4 years doing a PhD is a long time. Some may say, “Life is on hold while doing my PhD”.

We are, of course, all on different journeys but with the same aim. Before COVID-19, we have a study space in the Muirhead Tower, where we could meet, interact and create a community within our cohort even though we are from different research interests. Having a sense of belonging with our peers alongside the journey is essential in numerous ways.

A pre-COVID-19 reading group session – Raeni is at the far right.

Being a member of a research community allows us to stimulate research progress, access an excellent seminar programme, discuss opportunities, and recognise other organisations beyond the campus. The community also sometimes directs us to get opportunities, for instance, acting as teaching or research assistants. Keeping us busy while engaging with others also helps our wellbeing.

Online groups for international networking and collaboration

In this post, Joanne McCuaig, a distance learning PGR in the College of Arts and Law, explains how and why she set up online discussion groups using Twitter.

I’m a part-time, distance student in my 2nd year, in the department of English Language and Applied Linguistics. I’m a Canadian, living in South Korea, studying with a UK institution; I wanted to take advantage of any networking opportunities. First, I set up my Academic Twitter account – regular Twitter but used as a research profile to share about your skills and work.

I then decided to start two different student groups. I got the idea after attending an online conference that had breakout sessions for PhD students. It was energising to be able to share about our research, ask questions to others, and offer suggestions for literature, methods, or approaches.  A few months after the conference I contacted, via Twitter, a few of the students I’d “met” at the conference to ask if they wanted to continue the conversation. 

Tips for First-Year PhD students

In this post, Chris Featherstone, a final year PhD student in the Department of Political Science and International Studies (POLSIS), shares his advice for new PGRs. For more, see Chris’s personal blog about being a PGR.

Everyone who starts a PhD comes into it with expectations; as is the way with expectations, some are correct, and some are way off. This post gives a few tips for people in their first year of the PhD, helping with work, and surviving the process. I am two weeks from submitting my own thesis, and so I thought this was a good point to pass on tips that I have picked up in the process.

Building a Supportive Network

In this post, Yaru Chen, a new UoB PGR in Corpus Linguistics, tells us about an event on “Building a Supportive Network” she attended in the College of Arts and Law on Wednesday 15 January 2020.

What was “Building a Supportive Network” about?

This event, organised by the Postgraduate Student Experience Officer (a recently graduated PhD from CAL, also a trustworthy person from whom I always seek advice) in the College of Arts and Law Graduate School, was designed to help us improve our networking skills and develop our supportive networks. These supportive networks are not only beneficial in offering us emotional and academic support during our PhD study, but are also helpful for giving us career support once we have graduated.

Yaru’s Supportive Network

The thesis is not enough… (part 2)

Representing the University as a Postgraduate Ambassador

One role I have had is that of Postgraduate Ambassador. You might think that as a Postgraduate Ambassador during open days you mostly stand outside holding an umbrella when it is windy and rainy waiting to provide directions to potential students. Although this might be part of the role it is also a great opportunity to meet new people. As a Postgraduate Ambassador you get the chance to meet and advise prospective students from a variety of disciplines on open days and other University events, which can be very rewarding.