Session Information
ERG SES E 03, Network Workshop NW 22
Workshop
Contribution
Patrick Baughan, City University London, UK
Prof. Dr. Liudvika Leisyte, TU University Dortmund, Germany
This workshop is primarily aimed towards Doctoral students and early career or ‘emerging’ researchers, although it is open to any delegate who would find it useful to attend.
For the first part of the workshop, each of the facilitators will provide a short presentation based on their research on / experiences about early career researchers who are seeking to develop academic and research based careers. Patrick’s presentation will draw on a recent project which examined career trajectories of newer researchers who research higher education itself (NRHEs), considering the impacts of a specific professional award on their career trajectories. Patrick will also draw upon his experience of being a former Convenor of the Society for Research into Higher Education (SRHE) Newer Researcher’s Network (www.srhe.ac.uk/networks/newer_researchers.asp) and co-chair of its conference. Liudvika’s presentation will focus on ‘managing’ your career, considering major bottlenecks and how to overcome them from an international perspective, and based on views from different disciplines. The presentation will draw on Liudvika’s extensive experience as a Chair of the Female Faculty Network at the University of Twente, as well as research carried out in the US, UK, Dutch, Lithuanian, German and Czech contexts.
The larger part of the session will be given over to workshops and discussions about key issues for early career researchers, spanning careers guidance, opportunities in higher education, and challenges and pitfalls involved in academic and research careers. Participants will be invited to actively contribute, drawing on their own experiences and aspirations, as well as raise their own questions, ideas and concerns. Specifically, the topics (which are all inter-related with one another) that will be addressed include:
• Carving out a career in academic research
• The ‘fragmented’ nature of researchers’ career trajectories
• Identifying and using sources of support
• The role of the mentor
• Managing the competing demands of academic life
• Getting published
• Applying for grants
• The value of prizes and awards
• Networking and presenting at conferences
• Bottlenecks in academic careers
• Maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
The discussions will be linked to several research studies about career planning and development strategies for early career researchers. The facilitators will draw out a number of ‘tips and take-home points’ for participants, and a summary of the session will be made available on-line to everyone after the event, which will also include ideas for follow-up reading.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Akerlind, G. (2008). Growing and Developing as a University Researcher. Higher Education, 55, 2, 241-254. Archer, L. (2008). Younger academics' constructions of ‘authenticity’, ‘success’ and professional identity. Studies in Higher Education 33, 4, 385-403. Baughan, P. (2013). Locating yourself in higher education research: the role of sources of support. Seminar provided at The Society for Research in Higher Education (SRHE), London, 17 October. Baughan, P., Boz, C. and Raddon, A. (2013). Fragmented trajectories: impacts and effects of professional awards on newer researchers in higher education. Paper presented at The European Conference of Educational Research (ECER), Istanbul, Turkey, 19-22 September. Enders, J. (2004). Research training and careers in transition: a European perspective on the many faces of the Ph. D. Studies in Continuing Education, 26, 3, 419-429. Hemmings, B. (2012). Sources of research confidence for early career academics: A qualitative study. Higher Education Research and Development, 31, 2, 171-184. Leisyte, L. (2013). Academic roles and identities in the context of the duality between professions and organizations. Evidence from the U.S. and Europe. Paper presented at the American Sociological Association Annual Conference, New York, 9-13 August. Leisyte, L. and Hosch-Dayican, B. (2013). Changing academic roles and shifting gender inequalities: A case analysis of the influence of teaching-research nexus on academic career perspectives of female academics in the Netherlands. Manchester Critical Management Studies Conference, 10-12 July. Leisyte, L. and Westerheijden, D. (2013). Research Evaluation and its implications for Academic Research in the UK and the Netherlands. Paper presented at the Council for European Studies (CES) Conference, Amsterdam, June 25-27. Leisyte, L. and Dee, J. (2012). Understanding Academic Work in a Changing Institutional Environment. Faculty Autonomy, Productivity and Identity in Europe and the United States. In Smart, J. and M. Paulsen (eds.) Higher Education: Handbook of Theory and Research. Dordrecht: Springer. Manathunga, C. (2009). The challenge of being ‘new’ in higher education research: deconstructive opportunities? Keynote paper presented at SRHE Postgraduate and Newer Researchers’ Conference, December 2009. Tight, M. (2012). Researching Higher Education, Maidenhead, Open University Press, 2nd edition.
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