Development Co-ordinator Senior Research Associate ePortfolio update Richy Hetherington Development Co-ordinator Simon Cotterill Senior Research Associate These notes can be found on the web.

National Changes A quick reminded of the reason we do all this Of all reaserchers One in four is lightly to stay in academic research following their research degree one in twenty five might end up with a career permanent career in academic research and less one in 200 might expect to become a professor. As you area in a faculty with an excellent research record in a research intensive university, with relatively well funded discipline we hope that your prospects of an academic career are better than these national averages. Still this many of you will use the broader range of skills you gain in your future employment rather than the subject specific skills. It is also important you are aware an academic career is not the only successful career outcome for a doctoral graduate, many academic may think this is true but if average salaries are used as a measure Stats from HESA & Vitae Number of doctoral graduates has doubled in last 14 years Full time academic positions have not 2

Joint Skills Statement Research Councils UK list was used as the frame work for the ePortfolio Research Skills and Techniques (B) Research Environment (C) Research Management (D) Personal Effectiveness (E) Communication Skills (F) Networking and Team working (G) Career Management Around 10 years ago the Research Council Joint Skills Framework included a list of headings that PhD students could use to assess their professional development and this was the framework on which the ePorfolio you have been using was made.

Researcher Development Framework The Joint Skills Statement has now been replaced by one framework which is intended to be useful for the professional development of researchers at all levels. The RDF maps l to the Joint skills statement, and the 12 level subdomains of the RDF have been used as the basis of your ePortfolio system. The RDF is a quite broad framework for researchers at all levels so some of the sub-domains w. It is split into 4 main domains and 12 subdomains with 63 descriptors. Since not all of these descriptors are relevant the 12 subdomains have been used as the structure for the new ePorfolio.

Mapping JSS headings to the RDF RDF Headings JSS Headings Knowledge base (A1) A3, A4, B6, C2, C3, C4,E1 Cognitive abilities (A2) A1, A2, A5, A6 Creativity (A3) D1, D2, D7, E3 Personal qualities (B1) B3, D5, D6, D7 Self-management (B2) Professional & career development (B3) D4, F1, G1, G2, G3, G4 Professional conduct (C1) B2, B4 Research management (C2) C1 Finance, funding & resources (C3) B5 Working with others (D1) E5, F2, F3 Communication & dissemination (D2) E2 Engagement & impact (D3) B1, B7, E4 The RDF headings have been mapped to the and all of the things you have previously added to your ePortfolio will now appear mapped across to those RDF headings.

Booking sessions and Evaluation Booking on to development programme sessions and attending them will populate the ePortfolio’s courses and conferences section. However it is up to you to consider how the sessions attended have helped your development. It is also something we want to determine. We were satisfied the basic requirements of the courses were OK from a few years of asking, the usual questions about quality of delivery etc. so we moved the evaluation to assess how the sessions were meeting the skills development needs by mapping the evaluation to the Joint Skills Headings, we hope that this also helps you to reflect on how the sessions are helping you with your development. The data has been very useful and has indicated some surprises good and bad. We have also used this in conjunction with some cohort studies to show that attending sessions does have a positive impacts. Students who go to sessions about completing their first year assessment are more likely to complete their assessment successfully and in a timely fashion. Those attending academic writing and document management, and reference management are less likely to need to complete corrections on the thesis.

The new system will be more flexible blog based where you can link in skills according to the RDF. I’ll let simon take you through the system.

Before I pass over to Simon one part of the system that remains largely unchanged is the section for recording meetings with your supervisor. All evidence suggests students who are making and recording their meetings are less likely to run into difficulties so we would strongly suggest you use this section. Notes don’t need to be long and can be uploaded.

ePortfolio (Research Training Portfolio - Online) https://portfolio.ncl.ac.uk Simon’s part

What’s Changed? Blog (integrated with RDF / My Skills) Self-Assessment (RDF) Recording Meetings Other changes: Sharing Communities

Why the Change? Your Data University ePortfolio modernised To support tutoring/supervision & employability Combines both taught and research Data and files migrated into the new portfolio Reflections/Evidence are now private blog entres Your Data

About the Portfolio Portfolio: Includes support for research skills Continue to use if you do a PhD. Recording meetings with tutors/supervisors Record and Reflect on Achievements Awareness of transferable and specialist skills Promoting your role in actively developing your research skills -- be more effective during your Masters / PhD -- broader research & transferable skills for your career Express your skills and relate them to potential employers Portfolios

Importance of skills and competencies in gaining employment Source: http://www.vitae.ac.uk/policy-practice/107611/What-do-researchers-do-.html

Generic/transferable skills used in employment

“We spend more time planning our holidays than we do planning our lives !” Incidentally – PhD students also use portfolio evidence for Annual Progression

Postgraduate Training Programme -Workshop Booking System (FMS) Via: http://www.ncl.ac.uk/fms/postgrad/ Feeds attendance records into ePortfolio

Portfolios: why do it online ? Secure access from a range of locations Sharable / facilitate interaction Transportable (take the data with you when you leave) Multi-purpose eg. formative & summative = reduced duplication Highly customisable Multiple structures / views Easier cross-referencing Reduced admin Not left on the bus ! My Portfolio Easier cross-referencing eg. linking a record for course with one ore more learning outcomes this has a pedagogic impact as it encourages a more ‘longitudinal outlook’ rather than just simply completing a linier sequence of forms. Shareable potential for formative input and peer-learning Transportable can be output in a variety of formats Reduced admin monitor form completion and automate reminders

Demonstration

Blog integrated with “My Skills”

Record your meetings with your supervisor(s)

Workshop Task #1 If you didn’t already do so register for this workshop on the training programme pages: http://faculty-tools.ncl.ac.uk/training Log on to the portfolio: https://portfolio.ncl.ac.uk Spend some time exploring each section. Add a few records to your CV. Questions / Issues ?

Personal Development Planning Cycle During your research, it is important to .. Identify gaps in skills and knowledge Identify opportunities to develop experience Set goals and targets and get involved Record what you did, how you did it, skills and knowledge used and the final result Review progress regularly and use progress meetings to cover professional development Remind this is not a one-off activity Draw link between PDP process and Careers Management Cycle of development ……not a one-off activity. Remind that there will be overlap between the skills for example: G1 – F1, G4 – E1, G1 – E4

Self Assessment/PDP Level description Unaware At this stage you think that a skill/ technique might be of use to you but you don't know anything about it. Aware At this point you are learning about the skill/ technique, perhaps by going on a training course, reading a book on it or informally from your supervisor or research colleagues. Informed Now you are ready to look for suitable opportunities, where appropriate, to put this into practice, but it will take conscious effort to use the new skill/ technique. Capable You are now using the new skill/ technique routinely, and are consciously aiming to improve by other methods. Recognised The people around you recognise the change in skill level and you are now so practised that the skill has moved from your conscious level to the subconscious.

Evidence can be drawn from… Research & Development Programme Work experience Interests Conferences – posters, presentations Committees and societies Academic awards & funding success Professional courses (Vitae, sponsors) Publications – research articles Formal and informal opportunities exist and are equally valid Highlight suggestions in RTP Appendix E – Research Training Programme, Grad school Supervisor support and mentoring Self taught Departmental/School support Workshops Conferences Elective training courses – university based, Professional bodies Industry sponsors etc.

Workshop Task #2 https://portfolio.ncl.ac.uk/ - Self Assessment/PDP Have a look at section F - Networking and Team-working Working with others Understanding teams Giving and receiving feedback Assess your current skill level and record what you might do to develop further. If you have scored ‘recognised’ for each skill, you should list evidence of what you do/have done to achieve this level of competence. Purpose of this exercise is to make the recording of skills development meaningful and useful to you. The process used is the same whatever the skill you are assessing. Working individually (at the start) then in pairs/small groups, you have 20 minutes to look at section F, assess your current level and discuss and record what you might do to develop your skills. (Skills audit and PDP) If you have ‘scored’ recognised for each skill, you should list evidence of what you do/have done to achieve this level of competence. Raise hand if already attempted self assessment audit? Work with others in the same position? Share ideas with others in your group. Group depending upon audience – size, composition Discussion - Refer to guidance sheet for suggestions. How did you find it? What did you find difficult? What did you find easy? Shared advice How do you benchmark your progress? Key points: -self assessment needs to be honest and accurate, may need feedback, -identify opportunities – take responsibility, seek and create opportunities, -set goals to make things happen -record and review progress

The Good News The good news is across the sector it seems to be working