1. Doing an Overseas Institutional Visit during your PhD Emma Blakey Department of Psychology University of Sheffield

2. Why did I decide to go on a lab visit?

3. As soon as I heard about the scheme at the ESRC welcome event I knew I wanted to do it. I love travelling and I wanted to try working somewhere else for a bit (I did my BSc and MSc at Sheffield… and I’m from Sheffield)! I just needed to decide where to go and who to work with. I took time to think about this (your opinions of researchers will change throughout your PhD). Because my research involves testing children, for me, it had to be a country that spoke English as I don’t speak another language. But I wanted to try working in a different kind of lab environment to the UK. I also wanted to learn a new research technique, and of course, work with a world class researcher in my field.

4. What I did

5. Where did I go?

6. My Project The neural correlates of cognitive control in 2- to 4-year-olds  Because I was learning a new technique, I decided to go for three months

7. What did I get out of it?

8.  The single best thing was that I got to learn (from scratch) a new research technique  I got so much feedback from my work: I did two departmental talks, presented a poster, and did a one day lab visit at the University of Calgary where I gave a talk there too. One bonus of going towards the end is you have all your data.  I worked as an RA on other projects so I learned other skills e.g., administering different tests, analysing data using new software  I now have a collaboration with an eminent researcher in my field  Drafting grant bids for postdoctoral work  Working in a different “lab” environment  Experience living abroad

9. Added Bonuses I made some lovely friends and was able to do some travelling. I stayed an extra week after finishing the project, and the visit was also well timed with some bank holidays so I tried to travel around Alberta and British Columbia as much as I could. It was amazing.

10. If you’re interested, what schemes can you apply to?

11. ESRC Overseas Institutional Visit Scheme  Only ESRC funded students can apply  Administered by the White Rose Team  Three calls a year  Decision within two months of applying  Up to £4000 and no more than 3 months  You get a full paid extension to your PhD  Guidance notes on the website

12. Psychology

13. Most disciplines have a society with a helpful website on different funding schemes e.g., Italian Association for Artificial Intelligence (AI*IA) issues the Association Incoming Mobility Grant Also, make sure to research subject specific schemes

16. Hints and Tips

17.  Does it build on your PhD work?  Are you learning a new skill or running a project that you couldn’t at your home institution?  Justification for the host institution – Is it the best place in the world to do this research?  Value for money  Will there be opportunities to present work or attend workshops (if you can tie it in with a local conference even better)  How will you build on the work/maintain the collaboration afterwards?  What will you bring to their department?  Be specific on what the outputs will be (e.g., conference presentations, publications, departmental skills training) What are committees looking for in a good proposal?

18.  Who is a key researcher in your field who you can learn from/would want to do post-doctoral research with? You could pre-empt your application by approaching them at a conference/emailing them some time beforehand  If your supervisor knows them – great! If not, don’t be shy. But remember it’s you that has to do the work. Have an idea before emailing them  Think carefully about when is the best time to go. I went in the middle of final year when I had finished my data collection. Also consider that some schemes work on a rolling basis, some quarterly, some only once a year  Allow plenty of time (visas, paperwork, ethics, HoD signatures take time)  Try to propose a study you can go and complete from start to finish that will result either in very helpful pilot work or a publication. If you can learn a new skill in the process even better Things to think about