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

2. Today’s session Why do you need this stuff? A very brief history
The Development Programme
A quick demo of the systems
Time for you to use your ePortfolio
Identifying sources of help & support
Ask questions at any time
ePortfolio and Personal Development Plans are relatively new so why do research students need them now when they didn’t before. This is obviously very early in your time here so I won’t labour on why you need to do them we’ll just explain how it works and hopefully you will see the value as you use it. This is an explanation for supervisors as much as for students.
Simon Cotterill will then show you how the ePortfolio system works
Then you can give it a try and see how it works
Of course feel free to ask any questions

3. Roberts’ Report 2002
“Many employers do not initially pay those with PhDs any more than they would a new graduate, viewing the training (particularly in transferable skills) that PhD students receive as inadequate preparation for careers in business R&D.”
“Institutions are not adapting quickly enough to the needs of industry”
The government commissioned a report this showed that many employers did not consider the skills research students had gained really made them better than graduates.

4. Joint Skills Statement & Recording
UK research councils devised a list of skills research students should gain
The Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) adopted this list and made it a requirement that research students should be able to record these skills
QAA oversees the quality of output of universities.
Again recognised the need for postgraduate researchers to be able to record progress, identify skills and discuss development as part of their pathway throughout the PhD process.

5. www.vitae.ac.uk (UK Grad)
Finally an important resource to mention is Vitae which is what has become of UK Grad except it now deals with research students and research staff. It is there to provide a range of resources and support sessions. UK Grad schools have been cut back but are still available so if you want to attend one there are still funded places for UK research council funded students but you will have to book as soon as dates are released. 3 national grad schools this year.

6. 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The Joint Skills Statement has now been replaced by one framework which is intended to be useful for the professional development of researchers at all levels.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 loosely to the Joint skills statement, The 12 level subdomains of the RDF have been used as the basis of your ePortfolio system.

7. ePortfolio has been developed so you can...
…record your research progress
…plan and monitor your professional development (PDP)
…reflect upon the skills you have gained
Those of you with clinical training will probably be familiar with the use of a portfolio system and with reflective practice, this is where ePortfolios were first used. Using a system that helps you monitor your development and reflect on the skills you are gaining is a good way to meet the skills development criteria suggested by the research councils and QAA.

10. 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.

11. ePortfolio (Research Training Portfolio - Online)
Simon’s part

12. 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

13. Importance of skills and competencies in gaining employment
Source:

14. Generic/transferable skills used in employment

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

16. Presentation Skills using PowerPoint
Recording Meetings
Is it compulsory to record meetings in ePorfolio?
Formal supervisory meetings are an opportunity for you to discuss your progress, describe your findings, and alert your supervisors to any problems.
These meetings are an important part of your working relationship with your supervisory team and will play a big role in shaping how effective that relationship is; so it is important that you spend some time thinking about what you can do to make these meetings as constructive as possible.
© 2010 SMSED, Newcastle University.

17. How many formal supervisory meetings should I have?
Presentation Skills using PowerPoint
How many formal supervisory meetings should I have?
For full-time, a minimum of 10 per year.
For part-time, a minimum of 5 per year.
Meetings can be face-to-face or substantive electronic communications. Not all meetings should be recorded, only those which review progress and plan work.
The meetings should be held on a regular basis and not more than 8 weeks apart.
© 2010 SMSED, Newcastle University.

18. Who should record the meetings?
Presentation Skills using PowerPoint
Who should record the meetings?
All students are required to maintain and record formal supervisions, training and progress in ePortfolio.
Your supervisor(s) can add their comments to your meeting notes in ePortfolio and will be asked to confirm that the meeting took place.
© 2010 SMSED, Newcastle University.

19. Why should I record the meetings?
Presentation Skills using PowerPoint
Why should I record the meetings?
They are a record of agreed actions which are used to refer back to.
They demonstrate regular engagement with your supervisor(s).
They provide a useful record of your progress.
It is good professional practice to do so.
It is normal practice to minute meetings in the workplace.
They confirm engagement and attendance.
If meetings are not recorded you may be contacted by the Research Student Support Team (HaSS and SAgE) or the Graduate School staff (FMS) to find out if there are any issues preventing the recording of them.
© 2010 SMSED, Newcastle University.

20. Who can see the meeting records?
Presentation Skills using PowerPoint
Who can see the meeting records?
Only you and your supervisor can see the content of the recorded meeting notes.
For quality assurance purposes School Administrators/Research Student Support Team and Graduate School staff will be able to see dates, venues and attendees of meetings but not the notes.
© 2010 SMSED, Newcastle University.

21. Demonstration

22. Record your meetings with your supervisor(s)

23. How to Record a Meeting

24. Blog integrated with “My Skills”

25. Please ensure that you record the attendees
Prof Fred Smith
Please ensure that you record the attendees

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

28. 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

29. 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.

30. 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.

31. Sources of Support Supervisor(s) and tutors (Graduate School)
Postgraduate Student Development Programme
Careers Advisers and information staff
Professional bodies and networks
Graduate Connections
Employers/Sponsor
Your own network - other students
BACK TO RICHY

32. Resources Researchers’ Handbook Professional bodies Research Councils
Careers Service
Prospects
Vitae (UK Grad)

33. Careers Service Level 1 Kings Gate
No appointment required – just call in!
Advice & Guidance available
Monday to Friday 11am – 4.30pm
Open from 10am term-time and vacation
Finish with information on where to find us and how to get in touch ….
Please make a note of the Career Service’s location, contact details, opening hours and website.
Commitment to accessibility for all students
Accessible venue
Alternative formats
Designated Careers Adviser – Lorna Dargan
Designated Information Officer – Claire Byron