Attracting funding: writing & applying for postdoctoral fellowships

Training course:

Attracting funding: writing and applying for postdoctoral fellowships

9th September 2021

For PhD students & early career researchers

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Dates & times

This course consists of two components: 

1) A live online workshop session taught via Zoom on the morning of 9th September 2021 (0930 – 1230*)

2) An asynchronous online course that participants can complete after part (1) in their own time on the Electv Online Training Platform.

The second component is optional and participants can choose to fit it around their own schedules. Once they finish the second component, participants will be awarded a certificate of completion.

*All times are UK time.

Overview

A career in research is exciting, varied and gives you the opportunity to be at the cutting edge of discovery in your chosen field. It is also a highly competitive environment and researchers from all over the world aspire to reach the top of the profession. If you are aiming for a career in research it is crucial to publish regularly, be independent, grow an international network of contacts and attract funding for your own unique projects. You can start to do this early in your research career: if you are awarded a postdoctoral fellowship, not only will you stand out from the crowd, but you will demonstrate that you can propose innovative projects that attract research funding – this is a key requirement for a successful academic career. 

How do you go about the process of applying for your own postdoctoral research fellowship? There is more to it than filling in an application form: you will have to propose and design an innovative project, identify a senior researcher to advise you and approach them about being involved in your project, convince the application reviewers that you are the right person, name referees and much more. To be successful requires planning and preparation and you will need to use your network and be proactive. This workshop is suitable for PhD students (from 2nd year onwards) and will include information on what to expect, a walkthrough of a relevant application form, individual exercises and the instructor’s own experience of successfully obtaining a postdoctoral research fellowship.

The course includes a set of resources that participants can explore in their own time and consists of short lectures, discussions, individual exercises and anecdotes from the instructor’s own experience of obtaining a fellowship. Participants will also be given access to an additional online course that they can complete in their own time.

At the end of this course participants will have:

  • been introduced to the funding application process;
  • an understanding of what steps are involved, time frames, what a fellowship involves, international options, how to apply, the different types of fellowships available;
  • planned out a project and application strategy using the unique Electv® funding planning tool.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for PhD students (2nd year onwards) and early career postdocs working in scientific disciplines. No prior experience of writing funding applications is necessary and the course is open to all. Please note that this course will be online only.

Course content

Part 1: Live online workshop  (0930 – 1230)

  • Expectations of the applicant
  • The application process
  • Your project idea
  • Walkthrough of a sample application form 
  • Mapping out your application with the Electv® funding planning tool
  • List of relevant fellowships

The above content will be delivered as a live webinar via Zoom in the morning (0930 – 1230) of 9th September. At the end of the session, participants will be given access to Part 2 of the course: an additional, optional online training course for them to complete in their own time on the Electv Online Training School

Who is the instructor?

This course is delivered by Electv Training, a division of The Scientific Editing Company. We are based in the UK and we deliver training courses to PhD students and postdoctoral researchers at universities and research institutes around the UK & Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and we specialise in both face to face and online training. We also organise and manage the popular annual scholarly publishing event, the ReConEvent Conference, in Edinburgh every year and have done so since 2013; the conference attracts hundreds of delegates and we have hosted speakers from a range of scholarly journals, universities, funding agencies and companies over the years.

The instructor for this course will be Dr Joanna Young. Joanna obtained a BSc in Microbiology, then proceeded on to a four year Medical Research Council scholarship, gaining an MSc in Informatics and a PhD in Neuroscience and Informatics from the University of Edinburgh. After her PhD, Joanna completed a three year postdoctoral position at the University of Edinburgh, prior to being awarded a Humboldt postdoctoral fellowship in 2010. She has published several papers and has been training researchers for the last ten years.

Testimonials from previous participants

“Competent, encouraging and inspiring! Thank you for sharing your own experience of getting a fellowship too, very useful!” 

“Approachable, knowledgeable, well delivered and facilitated. Thank you!” 

“Excellent. Practical, hands-on mentorship that gets you into the fellowship funding rationale and provides you with the tools to proceed. I would recommend it to all early-career researchers.”

“Joanna was an excellent facilitator – the best online training session I have attended!”

Course fees

We are offering a special, discounted early bird rate for PhD students and postdocs if you book your place before the 7th September. The course fees are as follows:

  • PhD student or postdoc – early bird rate:         £30 + VAT       (£36) *
  • PhD student or postdoc – standard rate:          £50 + VAT       (£60)
  • Corporate rate:                                                   £100 + VAT     (£120)

*Early bird rate is available for booking before 7th September only.

You can book your ticket by clicking the “Register for the course” button above. Registration will give you access to the full course including: the live taught online session (part 1), an additional online course that you can complete in your own time (part 2), extra resources and an invitation to join the Electv community.

Funding to attend

Several of the previous participants on our courses have had their places funded/ reimbursed by their institutions. If you are a PhD student or member of staff at a university or research institute then you may be able to ask your department or institute to pay for your place on the course. You may wish to contact your superviser or training and skills department directly to ask about this. Please note we cannot manage these queries on your behalf.

For researcher developers & graduate schools: block bookings are available for this course. If you would like to book places for several students you can do so via the ticketing page or we can send you an invoice (please email us at enquiries@electv.net if you would prefer to pay via invoice.)

register button

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Designing publication quality figures & graphics

Training course:

Designing publication quality figures & graphics

25th August 2021

For PhD students & early career researchers

Dates & times

This course will run as a live online workshop session taught via Zoom on:

Wednesday 25th August 2021, 0930 – 1230*

*All times are UK time.

Overview

Displaying information in a visual format is an excellent way for researchers to communicate their work. Figures, tables and diagrams are key components of a published research paper (and a PhD thesis), and readers are often drawn to these before turning to the main text of the article. It is therefore important to plan, organise and design your figures carefully, considering aspects such a diagram type, titles, legends and the best way to visualise the data. Journals have specific requirements for figures so understanding what is expected of authors and preparing your graphics correctly can increase your chances of publication success.

Creating high quality figures can be challenging and there are many different ways to display data, from charts and tables to microscopy photographs and flowcharts. Data and information visualisation is a vast and rapidly growing field and creating good graphics takes time and practice. This course is designed to introduce participants to the subject & pique their interest, providing them with a set of resources that can be explored in their own time; it will not cover every aspect of information graphics, nor will it demonstrate any particular software (though a list of relevant software will be introduced and discussed), as these go beyond the scope of this short course.

This short course will introduce participants to the principles of creating figures for publication, including examples of good visualisations, common pitfalls and figures from the instructor’s own publications. The course includes a set of resources that participants can explore in their own time and consists of short lectures, discussions, individual exercises and anecdotes from the instructor’s own experience. 

At the end of this course participants will:

  • understand what is expected of them regarding creating publication quality figures;
  • have been introduced to the principles of good information visualisation;
  • have considered appropriate types of figures for using in their own research;
  • have been given a range of resources to explore in their own time;
  • have a list of relevant software to explore in their own time.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for PhD students and early career researchers from any discipline. No prior experience is necessary and the course is open to all. Please note that this course will be online only. 

Course content

Agenda  

  • The importance of figures
  • Initial considerations
  • Journal & thesis expectations
  • Planning & designing figures 
  • Types of graphics
  • Common pitfalls
  • Copyright & Creative Commons
  • Relevant visualisation software
  • Resources & references

The above content will be delivered as a live webinar via Zoom. At the end of the session, participants will be given access to an additional, optional online training course, Intellectual Property Essentials, which they can complete in their own time on the Electv Online Training School

Who is the instructor?

This course is delivered by Electv Training, a division of The Scientific Editing Company. We are based in the UK and we deliver training courses to PhD students and postdoctoral researchers at universities and research institutes around the UK & Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and we specialise in both face to face and online training. We also organise and manage the popular annual scholarly publishing event, the ReConEvent Conference, in Edinburgh every year and have done so since 2013; the conference attracts hundreds of delegates and we have hosted speakers from a range of scholarly journals, universities, funding agencies and companies over the years.

The instructor for this course will be Dr Joanna Young. Joanna obtained a BSc in Microbiology, then proceeded on to a four year Medical Research Council scholarship, gaining an MSc in Informatics and a PhD in Neuroscience and Informatics from the University of Edinburgh. After her PhD, Joanna completed a three year postdoctoral position at the University of Edinburgh, prior to being awarded a Humboldt postdoctoral fellowship in 2010. She has published several papers and has been training researchers for the last ten years.

Testimonials from previous participants

“Thank you for this wonderful workshop! It was really helpful.”

“Excellent. A useful introduction to displaying information in academia. Highlights what to do and what not to do.”

“It was very informative with easy to understand slides. I learnt a lot of things I did not know about how data can be presented.” 

“I really enjoyed the webinar, thank you Joanna!” 

“Excellent. Very insightful webinar providing helpful tips as well as providing useful resources.”

“Enjoyed it very much! Great exercises that get you thinking!”

“Very useful! Presented with energy and enthusiasm, sets valuable context & emphasises the value of figures. Many quality resources provided to think about.” 

“Great course, would recommend to anyone who actively presents information and data.”

Course fees

We are offering a special, discounted early bird rate for PhD students and postdocs if you book your place before 22nd August. The course fees are as follows:

  • PhD student or postdoc – early bird rate:         £30 + VAT       (£36) *
  • PhD student or postdoc – standard rate:          £50 + VAT       (£60)
  • Corporate rate:                                                      £100 + VAT     (£120)

*Early bird rate is available for booking before 22nd August only.

You can book your ticket by clicking the “Register for the course” button above. Registration will give you access to the full course including: the live taught online session, extra resources, an invitation to join the Electv community and an additional online course that you can complete in your own time.

Funding to attend

Several of the previous participants on our courses have had their places funded/ reimbursed by their institutions. If you are a PhD student or member of staff at a university or research institute then you may be able to ask your department or institute to pay for your place on the course. You may wish to contact your superviser or training and skills department directly to ask about this. Please note we cannot manage these queries on your behalf.

For researcher developers & graduate schools: block bookings are available for this course. If you would like to book places for several students you can do so via the ticketing page or we can send you an invoice (please email us at enquiries@electv.net if you would prefer to pay via invoice.)

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Academic careers: expectations, planning & preparation

Training course:

Academic careers: expectations, planning & preparation

25th June 2021

For PhD students & early career researchers

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Dates & times

This course will run as:

A live online workshop session taught via Zoom on the morning of 25th June 2021 (0930 – 1230*)

*All times are UK time.

Overview

Are you interested in pursuing an academic career? Many early career researchers are attracted to the academic life and consider it to be the next logical step in their career, however they may be unsure as to how to plan and prepare so that they can optimise their chances for success. Academic research is an exciting and challenging career choice that gives you the opportunity to build your own research group and be at the cutting edge of your field; it is also a highly competitive environment and researchers from all over the world aspire to reach the top of the profession. In order to succeed, you will need to publish regularly, apply for funding, plan strategically, network and develop a long term plan for your research. This course aims to demystify the academic career pathway, it encourages you to consider your ambitions and plan a career strategy that works best for you. 

If you are interested in continuing in academia then it is never too early to start planning your career trajectory and thinking about what direction you want to go. This workshop will give an insight into the realities of academic careers, including case studies and examples from the instructor’s own experience. Participants will be asked to consider their career strategy going forward, regarding their research field, their accomplishments to date and their next steps.

The course includes a set of resources that participants can explore in their own time and consists of short lectures, discussions, individual exercises and anecdotes from the instructor’s own experience. Participants will also be given access to an additional online course (part 2 of this course) that they can complete in their own time.

At the end of this course participants will have:

  • an overview of research careers and an understanding of the pathway to being an independent academic group leader;
  • what is expected of early career researchers;
  • an understanding of the next steps that they need to take to enhance their career prospects; 
  • an understanding of the skills they have and those that they would like to develop further.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for PhD students (2nd year onwards) and early career postdocs working in scientific disciplines. No prior experience is necessary and the course is open to all. Please note that this course will be online only.

Course content

Agenda  (0930 – 1230)

  • Academic career paths 
  • Planning your research strategy
  • Expectations
  • Your skills & motivation
  • Networking
  • Resources

The above content will be delivered as a live webinar via Zoom in the morning (0930 – 1230). At the end of the session, participants will be given access to an additional, optional online training course for them to complete in their own time on the Electv Online Training School

Who is the instructor?

This course is delivered by Electv Training, a division of The Scientific Editing Company. We are based in the UK and we deliver training courses to PhD students and postdoctoral researchers at universities and research institutes around the UK & Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and we specialise in both face to face and online training. We also organise and manage the popular annual scholarly publishing event, the ReConEvent Conference, in Edinburgh every year and have done so since 2013; the conference attracts hundreds of delegates and we have hosted speakers from a range of scholarly journals, universities, funding agencies and companies over the years.

The instructor for this course will be Dr Joanna Young. Joanna obtained a BSc in Microbiology, then proceeded on to a four year Medical Research Council scholarship, gaining an MSc in Informatics and a PhD in Neuroscience and Informatics from the University of Edinburgh. After her PhD, Joanna completed a three year postdoctoral position at the University of Edinburgh, prior to being awarded a Humboldt postdoctoral fellowship in 2010. She has published several papers and has been training researchers for the last ten years.

Testimonials from previous participants

“The session was great! It was very enlightening, practical and implementable.” 

“It’s great to go to training events where you can share your experiences in such a supportive atmosphere! Thanks for all of the tips and suggestions Jo!” 

“I highly recommend this course. Understanding that what to do after your PhD is a common concern for early career researchers and that I am not “alone” in this indecision was really good to know, also liked how openly we talked about the topic among the group.” 

“The course was great, very clear and engaging. I loved the activities, they were very helpful!”

Course fees

We are offering a discounted early bird rate for PhD students and postdocs if you book your place before the 20th June. The course fees are as follows:

  • PhD student or postdoc – early bird rate:         £30 + VAT       (£36) *
  • PhD student or postdoc – standard rate:          £50 + VAT       (£60)
  • Corporate rate:                                                      £100 + VAT     (£120)

*Early bird rate is available for booking by 20th June only.

You can book your ticket by clicking the “Register for the course” button above. Registration will give you access to the full course including: the live taught online session, an additional online course that you can complete in your own time, extra resources and an invitation to join the Electv community.

Funding to attend

Several of the previous participants on our courses have had their places funded/ reimbursed by their institutions. If you are a PhD student or member of staff at a university or research institute then you may be able to ask your department or institute to pay for your place on the course. You may wish to contact your superviser or training and skills department directly to ask about this. Please note we cannot manage these queries on your behalf.

For researcher developers & graduate schools: block bookings are available for this course. If you would like to book places for several students you can do so via the ticketing page or we can send you an invoice (please email us at enquiries@electv.net if you would prefer to pay via invoice.)

register button

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Attracting funding: writing & applying for postdoctoral fellowships

Training course:

Attracting funding: writing and applying for postdoctoral fellowships

26th May 2021

For PhD students & early career researchers

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Dates & times

This course consists of two components: 

1) A live online workshop session taught via Zoom on the morning of 26th May 2021 (0930 – 1230*)

2) An asynchronous online course that participants can complete after part (1) in their own time on the Electv Online Training Platform.

The second component is optional and participants can choose to fit it around their own schedules. Once they finish the second component, participants will be awarded a certificate of completion.

*All times are UK time.

Overview

A career in research is exciting, varied and gives you the opportunity to be at the cutting edge of discovery in your chosen field. It is also a highly competitive environment and researchers from all over the world aspire to reach the top of the profession. If you are aiming for a career in research it is crucial to publish regularly, be independent, grow an international network of contacts and attract funding for your own unique projects. You can start to do this early in your research career: if you are awarded a postdoctoral fellowship, not only will you stand out from the crowd, but you will demonstrate that you can propose innovative projects that attract research funding – this is a key requirement for a successful academic career. 

How do you go about the process of applying for your own postdoctoral research fellowship? There is more to it than filling in an application form: you will have to propose and design an innovative project, identify a senior researcher to advise you and approach them about being involved in your project, convince the application reviewers that you are the right person, name referees and much more. To be successful requires planning and preparation and you will need to use your network and be proactive. This workshop is suitable for PhD students (from 2nd year onwards) and will include information on what to expect, a walkthrough of a relevant application form, individual exercises and the instructor’s own experience of successfully obtaining a postdoctoral research fellowship.

The course includes a set of resources that participants can explore in their own time and consists of short lectures, discussions, individual exercises and anecdotes from the instructor’s own experience of obtaining a fellowship. Participants will also be given access to an additional online course that they can complete in their own time.

At the end of this course participants will have:

  • been introduced to the funding application process;
  • an understanding of what steps are involved, time frames, what a fellowship involves, international options, how to apply, the different types of fellowships available;
  • planned out a project and application strategy using the unique Electv® funding planning tool.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for PhD students (2nd year onwards) and early career postdocs working in scientific disciplines. No prior experience of writing funding applications is necessary and the course is open to all. Please note that this course will be online only.

Course content

Part 1: Live online workshop  (0930 – 1230)

  • Expectations of the applicant
  • The application process
  • Your project idea
  • Walkthrough of a sample application form 
  • Mapping out your application with the Electv® funding planning tool
  • List of relevant fellowships

The above content will be delivered as a live webinar via Zoom in the morning (0930 – 1230) of 26th May. At the end of the session, participants will be given access to Part 2 of the course: an additional, optional online training course for them to complete in their own time on the Electv Online Training School

Who is the instructor?

This course is delivered by Electv Training, a division of The Scientific Editing Company. We are based in the UK and we deliver training courses to PhD students and postdoctoral researchers at universities and research institutes around the UK & Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and we specialise in both face to face and online training. We also organise and manage the popular annual scholarly publishing event, the ReConEvent Conference, in Edinburgh every year and have done so since 2013; the conference attracts hundreds of delegates and we have hosted speakers from a range of scholarly journals, universities, funding agencies and companies over the years.

The instructor for this course will be Dr Joanna Young. Joanna obtained a BSc in Microbiology, then proceeded on to a four year Medical Research Council scholarship, gaining an MSc in Informatics and a PhD in Neuroscience and Informatics from the University of Edinburgh. After her PhD, Joanna completed a three year postdoctoral position at the University of Edinburgh, prior to being awarded a Humboldt postdoctoral fellowship in 2010. She has published several papers and has been training researchers for the last ten years.

Testimonials from previous participants

“Competent, encouraging and inspiring! Thank you for sharing your own experience of getting a fellowship too, very useful!” 

“Approachable, knowledgeable, well delivered and facilitated. Thank you!” 

“Excellent. Practical, hands-on mentorship that gets you into the fellowship funding rationale and provides you with the tools to proceed. I would recommend it to all early-career researchers.”

“Joanna was an excellent facilitator – the best online training session I have attended!”

Course fees

We are offering a special, discounted early bird rate for PhD students and postdocs if you book your place before the 24th May. The course fees are as follows:

  • PhD student or postdoc – early bird rate:         £30 + VAT       (£36) *
  • PhD student or postdoc – standard rate:          £50 + VAT       (£60)
  • Corporate rate:                                                      £100 + VAT     (£120)

*Early bird rate is available for booking before 24th May only.

You can book your ticket by clicking the “Register for the course” button above. Registration will give you access to the full course including: the live taught online session (part 1), an additional online course that you can complete in your own time (part 2), extra resources and an invitation to join the Electv community.

Funding to attend

Several of the previous participants on our courses have had their places funded/ reimbursed by their institutions. If you are a PhD student or member of staff at a university or research institute then you may be able to ask your department or institute to pay for your place on the course. You may wish to contact your superviser or training and skills department directly to ask about this. Please note we cannot manage these queries on your behalf.

For researcher developers & graduate schools: block bookings are available for this course. If you would like to book places for several students you can do so via the ticketing page or we can send you an invoice (please email us at enquiries@electv.net if you would prefer to pay via invoice.)

register button

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Careers outside academia: expectations, skills & preparation

Training course:

Careers outside academia: expectations, skills & preparation

13th April 2021

For PhD students & early career researchers

Dates & times

This course will run as:

A live online workshop session taught via Zoom on the morning of 13th April 2020 (0930 – 1230*).

Participants will also be given complimentary access to a self-paced online course that they can choose to complete in their own time after the session via the Electv Online Training School. 

*All times are UK time.

Overview

There are a number of options outside of academia that are open to researchers. Not everyone chooses to climb the academic ladder and many researchers are unaware of the variety of other options that are available. 

During their career, researchers develop a range of skills that they can utilise in a variety of other positions, whether these are related to their research or not. In order to find a career outside academia, you will need to present yourself well online, network effectively, describe your skills clearly and explain your academic experience in a way that appeals to employers. 

This workshop will highlight a number of different careers and provide resources for participants to explore in their own time. We will include overviews of a variety of different roles and case studies of researchers who have moved into non-academic careers. In addition, participants will be invited to complete an individual ElementsTM skills evaluation to help them with future applications and interviews. 

The course includes a set of resources that participants can explore in their own time and consists of short lectures, discussions, individual exercises and anecdotes from the instructor’s own experience.

At the end of this course participants will have:

  • a clear understanding of their transferable skills and how to communicate these on their CV; 
  • an understanding of how to present themselves and be visible online; 
  • an overview of a range of non-academic career options. 

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for PhD students and early career postdocs from any field. No prior experience is necessary and the course is open to all. Please note that this course will be online only.

Course content

Agenda  (0930 – 1230)

  • Your skill set & experience
  • An overview of other non-academic careers
  • Your online profile
  • Networking effectively
  • Resources

The above content will be delivered as a live webinar via Zoom. At the end of the session, participants will be given access to an additional, optional online training course for them to complete in their own time on the Electv Online Training School

Who is the instructor?

This course is delivered by Electv Training, a division of The Scientific Editing Company. We are based in the UK and we deliver training courses to PhD students and postdoctoral researchers at universities and research institutes around the UK & Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and we specialise in both face to face and online training. We also organise and manage the popular annual scholarly publishing event, the ReConEvent Conference, in Edinburgh every year and have done so since 2013; the conference attracts hundreds of delegates and we have hosted speakers from a range of scholarly journals, universities, funding agencies and companies over the years.

The instructor for this course will be Dr Joanna Young. Joanna obtained a BSc in Microbiology, then proceeded on to a four year Medical Research Council scholarship, gaining an MSc in Informatics and a PhD in Neuroscience and Informatics from the University of Edinburgh. After her PhD, Joanna completed a three year postdoctoral position at the University of Edinburgh, prior to being awarded a Humboldt postdoctoral fellowship in 2010. She has published several papers and has been training researchers for the last ten years.

Testimonials from previous participants

“The workshop was very interactive with a lot of opportunities to get to know the other workshop participants. Very valuable.”  

“Enthusiastic, engaging & encouraging workshop. I especially liked the dynamic style of the presenter.” 

“I got some great career advice. Thanks for the excellent course!” 

“I highly recommend this course. Understanding that what to do after your PhD is a common concern for early career researchers and that I am not “alone” in this indecision was really good to know, also liked how openly we talked about the topic among the group.” 

Course fees

We are offering a discounted early bird rate for PhD students and postdocs if you book your place before the 8th April. The course fees are as follows:

  • PhD student or postdoc – early bird rate:         £30 + VAT       (£36) *
  • PhD student or postdoc – standard rate:          £50 + VAT       (£60)
  • Corporate rate:                                                      £100 + VAT     (£120)

*Early bird rate is available for booking by 8th April only.

You can book your ticket by clicking the “Register for the course” button above. Registration will give you access to the full course including: the live taught online session, an additional online course that you can complete in your own time, extra resources and an invitation to join the Electv community.

Funding to attend

Several of the previous participants on our courses have had their places funded/ reimbursed by their institutions. If you are a PhD student or member of staff at a university or research institute then you may be able to ask your department or institute to pay for your place on the course. You may wish to contact your superviser or training and skills department directly to ask about this. Please note we cannot manage these queries on your behalf.

For researcher developers & graduate schools: block bookings are available for this course. If you would like to book places for several students you can do so via the ticketing page or we can send you an invoice (please email us at enquiries@electv.net if you would prefer to pay via invoice.)

register button

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A short list of upcoming postdoctoral fellowship opportunities in 2021

Are you an early career researcher thinking about pursuing a career in academia? Then it is worth considering applying for a postdoctoral fellowship as your next career move. Fellowships enable you to take that next step towards independence and they are designed to help early career researchers transition to becoming a research group leader.

Applying for a fellowship takes a considerable amount of time, preparation and perseverance. However, if you are successful then it can give you a real competitive advantage when you come to apply for permanent academic positions. There are now a several different fellowships available for early career postdocs (and final year PhD students) and we have included a short list of five upcoming UK opportunities in the table below that might be of interest to researchers at this stage.

Funding organisation & fellowship typeEligibilityNext deadlineLink & more information
Leverhulme Trust Early Career FellowshipsAll postdocs25.02.21https://www.leverhulme.ac.uk/early-career-fellowships
Sir Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral FellowshipsFinal year PhD & early career postdocs23.03.21https://wellcome.org/grant-funding/schemes/sir-henry-wellcome-postdoctoral-fellowships
Wellcome Research Fellowships in Humanities and Social ScienceAll postdocs16.06.21https://wellcome.org/grant-funding/schemes/research-fellowships-humanities-and-social-science
Royal Society University Research Fellowship3 – 8 years of postdoctoral experience07.09.21https://royalsociety.org/grants-schemes-awards/grants/university-research/
Dorothy Hodgkin FellowshipPostdocs (with up to a max six years of postdoc research experience since PhD)10.11.21https://royalsociety.org/grants-schemes-awards/grants/dorothy-hodgkin-fellowship/
* Due to the short time frame, January deadlines have been excluded from this table.

There are many more fellowships available and they all have different eligibility requirements and expectations of applicants. Therefore, the eligibility parameters for a particular fellowship scheme may mean that it is only open to researchers from within a specific career stage (e.g. within 3 years of your PhD), a certain subject area or to those who can meet certain international mobility requirements.

If you are interested in applying for a postdoctoral fellowship then we recommend that you explore the range of available fellowships and select the ones that are most relevant to you. For a more comprehensive list of fellowships, you may wish to explore Research Professional database, which contains a freely available list of opportunities.

Our upcoming Electv Training half day course, Attracting funding: writing & applying for postdoctoral fellowships, will be running on Friday 15th January and will focus on how to apply for a fellowship. The course is open to anyone to attend and will include further information on the application process, expectations of applicants, details from the instructor’s own experience of obtaining a fellowship and a more detailed list of upcoming fellowship opportunities and deadlines in 2021.

The course is run by Electv Training and will be delivered online. This is a popular course and it runs every three months, the next course will be in spring 2021. If you have any questions about the course then please email us at enquiries@electv.net

Designing publication quality figures & graphics

Training course:

Designing publication quality figures & graphics

19th February 2021

For PhD students & early career researchers

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Dates & times

This course will run as a live online workshop session taught via Zoom on:

Friday 19th February 2021, 0930 – 1230*

*All times are UK time.

Overview

Displaying information in a visual format is an excellent way for researchers to communicate their work. Figures, tables and diagrams are key components of a published research paper (and a PhD thesis), and readers are often drawn to these before turning to the main text of the article. It is therefore important to plan, organise and design your figures carefully, considering aspects such a diagram type, titles, legends and the best way to visualise the data. Journals have specific requirements for figures so understanding what is expected of authors and preparing your graphics correctly can increase your chances of publication success.

Creating high quality figures can be challenging and there are many different ways to display data, from charts and tables to microscopy photographs and flowcharts. Data and information visualisation is a vast and rapidly growing field and creating good graphics takes time and practice. This course is designed to introduce participants to the subject & pique their interest, providing them with a set of resources that can be explored in their own time; it will not cover every aspect of information graphics, nor will it demonstrate any particular software (though a list of relevant software will be introduced and discussed), as these go beyond the scope of this short course.

This short course will introduce participants to the principles of creating figures for publication, including examples of good visualisations, common pitfalls and figures from the instructor’s own publications. The course includes a set of resources that participants can explore in their own time and consists of short lectures, discussions, individual exercises and anecdotes from the instructor’s own experience. 

At the end of this course participants will:

  • understand what is expected of them regarding creating publication quality figures;
  • have been introduced to the principles of good information visualisation;
  • have considered appropriate types of figures for using in their own research;
  • have been given a range of resources to explore in their own time;
  • have a list of relevant software to explore in their own time.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for PhD students and early career researchers from any discipline. No prior experience is necessary and the course is open to all. Please note that this course will be online only. 

Course content

Agenda  

  • The importance of figures
  • Initial considerations
  • Journal & thesis expectations
  • Planning & designing figures 
  • Types of graphics
  • Common pitfalls
  • Copyright & Creative Commons
  • Relevant visualisation software
  • Resources & references

The above content will be delivered as a live webinar via Zoom. At the end of the session, participants will be given access to an additional, optional online training course, Intellectual Property Essentials, which they can complete in their own time on the Electv Online Training School

Who is the instructor?

This course is delivered by Electv Training, a division of The Scientific Editing Company. We are based in the UK and we deliver training courses to PhD students and postdoctoral researchers at universities and research institutes around the UK & Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and we specialise in both face to face and online training. We also organise and manage the popular annual scholarly publishing event, the ReConEvent Conference, in Edinburgh every year and have done so since 2013; the conference attracts hundreds of delegates and we have hosted speakers from a range of scholarly journals, universities, funding agencies and companies over the years.

The instructor for this course will be Dr Joanna Young. Joanna obtained a BSc in Microbiology, then proceeded on to a four year Medical Research Council scholarship, gaining an MSc in Informatics and a PhD in Neuroscience and Informatics from the University of Edinburgh. After her PhD, Joanna completed a three year postdoctoral position at the University of Edinburgh, prior to being awarded a Humboldt postdoctoral fellowship in 2010. She has published several papers and has been training researchers for the last ten years.

Testimonials from previous participants

“Thank you for this wonderful workshop! It was really helpful.”

“Excellent. A useful introduction to displaying information in academia. Highlights what to do and what not to do.”

“It was very informative with easy to understand slides. I learnt a lot of things I did not know about how data can be presented.” 

“I really enjoyed the webinar, thank you Joanna!” 

“Excellent. Very insightful webinar providing helpful tips as well as providing useful resources.”

“Enjoyed it very much! Great exercises that get you thinking!”

“Very useful! Presented with energy and enthusiasm, sets valuable context & emphasises the value of figures. Many quality resources provided to think about.” 

“Great course, would recommend to anyone who actively presents information and data.”

Course fees

We are offering a special, discounted early bird rate for PhD students and postdocs if you book your place before the end of January. The course fees are as follows:

  • PhD student or postdoc – early bird rate:         £30 + VAT       (£36) *
  • PhD student or postdoc – standard rate:          £50 + VAT       (£60)
  • Corporate rate:                                                      £100 + VAT     (£120)

*Early bird rate is available for booking before end of January only.

You can book your ticket by clicking the “Register for the course” button above. Registration will give you access to the full course including: the live taught online session, extra resources, an invitation to join the Electv community and an additional online course that you can complete in your own time.

Funding to attend

Several of the previous participants on our courses have had their places funded/ reimbursed by their institutions. If you are a PhD student or member of staff at a university or research institute then you may be able to ask your department or institute to pay for your place on the course. You may wish to contact your superviser or training and skills department directly to ask about this. Please note we cannot manage these queries on your behalf.

For researcher developers & graduate schools: block bookings are available for this course. If you would like to book places for several students you can do so via the ticketing page or we can send you an invoice (please email us at enquiries@electv.net if you would prefer to pay via invoice.)

register button

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Academic careers: expectations, planning & preparation

Training course:

Academic careers: expectations, planning & preparation

15th December 2020

For PhD students & early career researchers

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Dates & times

This course will run as:

A live online workshop session taught via Zoom on the morning of 15th December 2020 (0930 – 1230*)

*All times are UK time.

Overview

Are you interested in pursuing an academic career? Many early career researchers are attracted to the academic life and consider it to be the next logical step in their career, however they may be unsure as to how to plan and prepare so that they can optimise their chances for success. Academic research is an exciting and challenging career choice that gives you the opportunity to build your own research group and be at the cutting edge of your field; it is also a highly competitive environment and researchers from all over the world aspire to reach the top of the profession. In order to succeed, you will need to publish regularly, apply for funding, plan strategically, network and develop a long term plan for your research. This course aims to demystify the academic career pathway, it encourages you to consider your ambitions and plan a career strategy that works best for you. 

If you are interested in continuing in academia then it is never too early to start planning your career trajectory and thinking about what direction you want to go. This workshop will give an insight into the realities of academic careers, including case studies and examples from the instructor’s own experience. Participants will be asked to consider their career strategy going forward, regarding their research field, their accomplishments to date and their next steps.

The course includes a set of resources that participants can explore in their own time and consists of short lectures, discussions, individual exercises and anecdotes from the instructor’s own experience. Participants will also be given access to an additional online course (part 2 of this course) that they can complete in their own time.

At the end of this course participants will have:

  • an overview of research careers and an understanding of the pathway to being an independent academic group leader;
  • what is expected of early career researchers;
  • an understanding of the next steps that they need to take to enhance their career prospects; 
  • an understanding of the skills they have and those that they would like to develop further.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for PhD students (2nd year onwards) and early career postdocs working in scientific disciplines. No prior experience is necessary and the course is open to all. Please note that this course will be online only.

Course content

Agenda  (0930 – 1230)

  • Academic career paths 
  • Planning your research strategy
  • Expectations
  • Your skills & motivation
  • Networking
  • Resources

The above content will be delivered as a live webinar via Zoom in the morning (0930 – 1230) of 15th December. At the end of the session, participants will be given access to an additional, optional online training course for them to complete in their own time on the Electv Online Training School

Who is the instructor?

This course is delivered by Electv Training, a division of The Scientific Editing Company. We are based in the UK and we deliver training courses to PhD students and postdoctoral researchers at universities and research institutes around the UK & Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and we specialise in both face to face and online training. We also organise and manage the popular annual scholarly publishing event, the ReConEvent Conference, in Edinburgh every year and have done so since 2013; the conference attracts hundreds of delegates and we have hosted speakers from a range of scholarly journals, universities, funding agencies and companies over the years.

The instructor for this course will be Dr Joanna Young. Joanna obtained a BSc in Microbiology, then proceeded on to a four year Medical Research Council scholarship, gaining an MSc in Informatics and a PhD in Neuroscience and Informatics from the University of Edinburgh. After her PhD, Joanna completed a three year postdoctoral position at the University of Edinburgh, prior to being awarded a Humboldt postdoctoral fellowship in 2010. She has published several papers and has been training researchers for the last ten years.

Testimonials from previous participants

“The session was great! It was very enlightening, practical and implementable.” 

“It’s great to go to training events where you can share your experiences in such a supportive atmosphere! Thanks for all of the tips and suggestions Jo!” 

“I highly recommend this course. Understanding that what to do after your PhD is a common concern for early career researchers and that I am not “alone” in this indecision was really good to know, also liked how openly we talked about the topic among the group.” 

“The course was great, very clear and engaging. I loved the activities, they were very helpful!”

Course fees

We are offering a discounted early bird rate for PhD students and postdocs if you book your place before the 11th December. The course fees are as follows:

  • PhD student or postdoc – early bird rate:         £30 + VAT       (£36) *
  • PhD student or postdoc – standard rate:          £50 + VAT       (£60)
  • Corporate rate:                                                      £100 + VAT     (£120)

*Early bird rate is available for booking by 11th December only.

You can book your ticket by clicking the “Register for the course” button above. Registration will give you access to the full course including: the live taught online session on the 15th December, an additional online course that you can complete in your own time, extra resources and an invitation to join the Electv community.

Funding to attend

Several of the previous participants on our courses have had their places funded/ reimbursed by their institutions. If you are a PhD student or member of staff at a university or research institute then you may be able to ask your department or institute to pay for your place on the course. You may wish to contact your superviser or training and skills department directly to ask about this. Please note we cannot manage these queries on your behalf.

For researcher developers & graduate schools: block bookings are available for this course. If you would like to book places for several students you can do so via the ticketing page or we can send you an invoice (please email us at enquiries@electv.net if you would prefer to pay via invoice.)

register button

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Attracting funding: writing & applying for postdoctoral fellowships

Training course:

Attracting funding: writing and applying for postdoctoral fellowships

15th January 2021

For PhD students & early career researchers

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Dates & times

This course consists of two components: 

1) A live online workshop session taught via Zoom on the morning of 15th January 2021 (0930 – 1230*)

2) An asynchronous online course that participants can complete after part (1) in their own time on the Electv Online Training Platform.

The second component is optional and participants can choose to fit it around their own schedules. Once they finish the second component, participants will be awarded a certificate of completion.

*All times are UK time.

Overview

A career in research is exciting, varied and gives you the opportunity to be at the cutting edge of discovery in your chosen field. It is also a highly competitive environment and researchers from all over the world aspire to reach the top of the profession. If you are aiming for a career in research it is crucial to publish regularly, be independent, grow an international network of contacts and attract funding for your own unique projects. You can start to do this early in your research career: if you are awarded a postdoctoral fellowship, not only will you stand out from the crowd, but you will demonstrate that you can propose innovative projects that attract research funding – this is a key requirement for a successful academic career. 

How do you go about the process of applying for your own postdoctoral research fellowship? There is more to it than filling in an application form: you will have to propose and design an innovative project, identify a senior researcher to advise you and approach them about being involved in your project, convince the application reviewers that you are the right person, name referees and much more. To be successful requires planning and preparation and you will need to use your network and be proactive. This workshop is suitable for PhD students (from 2nd year onwards) and will include information on what to expect, a walkthrough of a relevant application form, individual exercises and the instructor’s own experience of successfully obtaining a postdoctoral research fellowship.

The course includes a set of resources that participants can explore in their own time and consists of short lectures, discussions, individual exercises and anecdotes from the instructor’s own experience of obtaining a fellowship. Participants will also be given access to an additional online course that they can complete in their own time.

At the end of this course participants will have:

  • been introduced to the funding application process;
  • an understanding of what steps are involved, time frames, what a fellowship involves, international options, how to apply, the different types of fellowships available;
  • planned out a project and application strategy using the unique Electv® funding planning tool.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for PhD students (2nd year onwards) and early career postdocs working in scientific disciplines. No prior experience of writing funding applications is necessary and the course is open to all. Please note that this course will be online only.

Course content

Part 1: Live online workshop  (0930 – 1230)

  • Expectations of the applicant
  • The application process
  • Your project idea
  • Walkthrough of a sample application form 
  • Mapping out your application with the Electv® funding planning tool
  • List of relevant fellowships

The above content will be delivered as a live webinar via Zoom in the morning (0930 – 1230) of 15th January. At the end of the session, participants will be given access to Part 2 of the course: an additional, optional online training course for them to complete in their own time on the Electv Online Training School

Who is the instructor?

This course is delivered by Electv Training, a division of The Scientific Editing Company. We are based in the UK and we deliver training courses to PhD students and postdoctoral researchers at universities and research institutes around the UK & Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and we specialise in both face to face and online training. We also organise and manage the popular annual scholarly publishing event, the ReConEvent Conference, in Edinburgh every year and have done so since 2013; the conference attracts hundreds of delegates and we have hosted speakers from a range of scholarly journals, universities, funding agencies and companies over the years.

The instructor for this course will be Dr Joanna Young. Joanna obtained a BSc in Microbiology, then proceeded on to a four year Medical Research Council scholarship, gaining an MSc in Informatics and a PhD in Neuroscience and Informatics from the University of Edinburgh. After her PhD, Joanna completed a three year postdoctoral position at the University of Edinburgh, prior to being awarded a Humboldt postdoctoral fellowship in 2010. She has published several papers and has been training researchers for the last ten years.

Testimonials from previous participants

“Competent, encouraging and inspiring! Thank you for sharing your own experience of getting a fellowship too, very useful!” 

“Approachable, knowledgeable, well delivered and facilitated. Thank you!” 

“Excellent. Practical, hands-on mentorship that gets you into the fellowship funding rationale and provides you with the tools to proceed. I would recommend it to all early-career researchers.”

“Joanna was an excellent facilitator – the best online training session I have attended!”

Course fees

We are offering a special, discounted early bird rate for PhD students and postdocs if you book your place before the 12th January. The course fees are as follows:

  • PhD student or postdoc – early bird rate:         £30 + VAT       (£36) *
  • PhD student or postdoc – standard rate:          £50 + VAT       (£60)
  • Corporate rate:                                                      £100 + VAT     (£120)

*Early bird rate is available for booking before 12th January only.

You can book your ticket by clicking the “Register for the course” button above. Registration will give you access to the full course including: the live taught online session (part 1), an additional online course that you can complete in your own time (part 2), extra resources and an invitation to join the Electv community.

Funding to attend

Several of the previous participants on our courses have had their places funded/ reimbursed by their institutions. If you are a PhD student or member of staff at a university or research institute then you may be able to ask your department or institute to pay for your place on the course. You may wish to contact your superviser or training and skills department directly to ask about this. Please note we cannot manage these queries on your behalf.

For researcher developers & graduate schools: block bookings are available for this course. If you would like to book places for several students you can do so via the ticketing page or we can send you an invoice (please email us at enquiries@electv.net if you would prefer to pay via invoice.)

register button

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Communicating research: An introduction to designing & preparing figures

Training course:

Communicating research: An introduction to designing & preparing figures

6th October 2020

For PhD students & early career researchers

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Dates & times

This course will run as a live online workshop session taught via Zoom on the afternoon of 6th October 2020:

Tuesday 6th October, 1330 – 1630*

*All times are UK time.

Overview

Displaying information in a visual format is an excellent way for researchers to communicate their work. Figures, tables and diagrams are key components of a published research paper (and a PhD thesis), and readers are often drawn to these before turning to the main text of the article. It is therefore important to plan, organise and design your figures carefully, considering aspects such a diagram type, titles, legends and the best way to visualise the data. Journals have specific requirements for figures so understanding what is expected of authors and preparing your graphics correctly can increase your chances of publication success.

Creating high quality figures can be challenging and there are many different ways to display data, from charts and tables to microscopy photographs and flowcharts. Data and information visualisation is a vast and rapidly growing field and creating good graphics takes time and practice. This course is designed to introduce participants to the subject & pique their interest, providing them with a set of resources that can be explored in their own time; it will not cover every aspect of information graphics, nor will it demonstrate any particular software (though a list of relevant software will be introduced and discussed), as these go beyond the scope of this short course.

This short course will introduce participants to the principles of creating figures for publication, including examples of good visualisations, common pitfalls and figures from the instructor’s own publications. The course includes a set of resources that participants can explore in their own time and consists of short lectures, discussions, individual exercises and anecdotes from the instructor’s own experience. 

At the end of this course participants will:

  • understand what is expected of them regarding creating publication quality figures;
  • have been introduced to the principles of good information visualisation;
  • have considered appropriate types of figures for using in their own research;
  • have been given a range of resources to explore in their own time;
  • have a list of relevant software to explore in their own time.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for PhD students and early career researchers from any discipline. No prior experience is necessary and the course is open to all. Please note that this course will be online only. 

Course content

Agenda  (1330 – 1630)

  • The importance of figures
  • Initial considerations
  • Journal & thesis expectations
  • Planning & designing figures 
  • Types of graphics
  • Common pitfalls
  • Copyright & Creative Commons
  • Relevant visualisation software
  • Resources & references

The above content will be delivered as a live webinar via Zoom. At the end of the session, participants will be given access to an additional, optional online training course, Intellectual Property Essentials, which they can complete in their own time on the Electv Online Training School

Who is the instructor?

This course is delivered by Electv Training, a division of The Scientific Editing Company. We are based in the UK and we deliver training courses to PhD students and postdoctoral researchers at universities and research institutes around the UK & Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and we specialise in both face to face and online training. We also organise and manage the popular annual scholarly publishing event, the ReConEvent Conference, in Edinburgh every year and have done so since 2013; the conference attracts hundreds of delegates and we have hosted speakers from a range of scholarly journals, universities, funding agencies and companies over the years.

The instructor for this course will be Dr Joanna Young. Joanna obtained a BSc in Microbiology, then proceeded on to a four year Medical Research Council scholarship, gaining an MSc in Informatics and a PhD in Neuroscience and Informatics from the University of Edinburgh. After her PhD, Joanna completed a three year postdoctoral position at the University of Edinburgh, prior to being awarded a Humboldt postdoctoral fellowship in 2010. She has published several papers and has been training researchers for the last ten years.

Testimonials from previous participants

“Thank you for this wonderful workshop! It was really helpful.”

“Excellent. A useful introduction to displaying information in academia. Highlights what to do and what not to do.”

“It was very informative with easy to understand slides. I learnt a lot of things I did not know about how data can be presented.” 

“I really enjoyed the webinar, thank you Joanna!” 

“Excellent. Very insightful webinar providing helpful tips as well as providing useful resources.”

“Enjoyed it very much! Great exercises that get you thinking!”

“Very useful! Presented with energy and enthusiasm, sets valuable context & emphasises the value of figures. Many quality resources provided to think about.” 

“Great course, would recommend to anyone who actively presents information and data.”

Course fees

We are offering a special, discounted early bird rate for PhD students and postdocs if you book your place before the 30th September. The course fees are as follows:

  • PhD student or postdoc – early bird rate:         £30 + VAT       (£36) *
  • PhD student or postdoc – standard rate:          £50 + VAT       (£60)
  • Corporate rate:                                                      £100 + VAT     (£120)

*Early bird rate is available for booking before 30th September only.

You can book your ticket by clicking the “Register for the course” button above. Registration will give you access to the full course including: the live taught online session on the 6th October, extra resources, an invitation to join the Electv community and an additional online course that you can complete in your own time.

Funding to attend

Several of the previous participants on our courses have had their places funded/ reimbursed by their institutions. If you are a PhD student or member of staff at a university or research institute then you may be able to ask your department or institute to pay for your place on the course. You may wish to contact your superviser or training and skills department directly to ask about this. Please note we cannot manage these queries on your behalf.

For researcher developers & graduate schools: block bookings are available for this course. If you would like to book places for several students you can do so via the ticketing page or we can send you an invoice (please email us at enquiries@electv.net if you would prefer to pay via invoice.)

register button

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