All Graduate School of Life Sciences courses

Come over to our introductory workshop to research data management and learn how not to get lost in our own research data (and how not to lose your data!).

The workshop will cover the following aspects of research data management:

• Data storage and backup;

• Data organisation;

• Strategies for file exchange with collaborators;

• Sharing research data;

• How to create data management plans.

The workshop is open to all students and postdocs, and refreshments will be provided.

About the trainer:

The course trainer is managing the Research Data Services in Cambridge (http://www.data.cam.ac.uk/open-data-team) and was a PhD student in life sciences at the Gurdon Institute at the University of Cambridge.

This new half-day workshop has been designed to explore the ideas and techniques of the new discipline of Design Thinking as applied by companies such as IDEO www.ideo.com and the D-School at Stanford University in California www.dschool.stanford.edu

In this half-day course we will explore new ways to project manage that are personally authentic, quick and motivational. We won’t do GANTT charts (they have their place!) but we will look at daily habits such as setting iterative goals and having purpose and vision. We’ll also explore individual and collaborative 'modeling' techniques that allow a more creative and responsive approach to the complexities of our research projects (and their communication). Finally we will look at how creative companies use techniques such as 'prototyping' to test through activity rather than just thinking.

This course is for you if you want to understand how to design your projects to reflect your personality and the complexity and creativity involved in their design, implementation and outcomes.

You are encouraged to attend with an open mind 'beginners mind' and a willingness to discuss real issues and problems that would benefit from a creative solution. You will be encouraged to compete a short action plan to focus on next steps in the design, prototype and feedback process.

How to succeed in your PhD! A one day course which prepares final year PhD students for finishing the writing up, surviving the viva and moving on into postdoc or other employment. All research students in the Graduate School of Life Sciences are expected to attend this highly-recommended course at some point in their final year.

A crash course in what you need to know about scientific writing. This lecture is aimed at those writing scientific papers, but many of the principles apply equally to writing a doctoral dissertation. The examples given are mostly in the area of of Biochemistry research, but applicable to many others.

A participative session including group and individual work considering how setting boundaries can be helpful, which boundaries to set and how to establish and maintain them.

Why is YouTube popular? Because people love watching videos. A research video can be a great way to get your message across to your collaborators, your friends, and the wider world as well as being a condition of some funding bodies.

But it isn't easy to do well - and this is where this course will make a difference. Come along and learn the skills needed to plan and shoot high quality footage for research videos so that your video can stand out from the crowd. You just need yourself, a camera phone and your enthusiasm!

Why is YouTube popular? Because people love watching videos. A research video can be a great way to get your message across to your collaborators, your friends, and the wider world as well as being a condition of some funding bodies.

But it isn't easy to do well - and this is where this course will make a difference. Come along and learn the skills needed to plan and shoot high quality footage for research videos so that your video can stand out from the crowd. You just need yourself, a camera phone and your enthusiasm!

A 2 hour event for new PhD students to begin developing the skills and knowledge that will be an essential part of their PhD in the Graduate School of Life Sciences.

This course is organized by the Software Carpentry Project. Python will be used to explore program design, but we aim to cover principles that are applicable to other programming languages, so if you are an R or Matlab user you can also learn something useful. The course will include sessions covering command line UNIX, Version control with Git and programming, testing and debugging in Python.

Applicants for this course are required to complete the survey that can be found here. Applicants will be accepted on condition that their background and motivation fit the course content.

Further information is available here.

Please note that if you are not eligible for a University of Cambridge Raven account you will need to book by linking here.

A one day master class in communication from an external trainer who has previously been employed as a hostage negotiator and detective in the Metropolitan Police Force. Participants will gain a practical insight into how professional communicators communicate, and how it can be applied in everyday life.

At the end of the session participants will:

• Know how to persuade and influence effectively
• Understand how to have greater impact when communicating
• Have practiced the fundamental tools of professional communicators

Topics:

• Levels of communication
• Trust
• Stages of active listening
• Non-judgmental language
• Achieving win/win
• Building rapport
• Do's and don'ts

This short course covers the what, why and how of public engagement and communication. The course is for research staff and PhD students who want to gain the skills and confidence required to plan and deliver an impactful public engagement project.

Ever wanted to bring comedy into your public engagement projects? This is for you, as trainer Steve Cross helps researchers to improve their communication skills, build confidence and find creative ways of communicating their research.

Shot your research video? Got lots of video clips, photographs & audio you want to bring together to make one research video to share with public audiences around the World? Attendees on this course will learn how to cut, add soundtracks and do audio-mixing to edit their very own research video.

It is strongly recommended that you also attend The Engaged Researcher: Shooting Your Research Video session.

We all love a good story- whether it’s the latest bestselling fiction book or a cheesy soap. And science is full of stories- stories of discovery, of persistence, of hope. Finding these stories can help take your public engagement to the next level, whatever medium you use to communicate.

This workshop introduces how to design an effective impact evaluation.

This short course covers the what, why and how of public engagement and communication. The course is for research staff and PhD students who want to gain the skills and confidence required to plan and deliver an impactful public engagement project.

This course gives an introduction into how to engage with the public through media. It will cover the differing types of media, what makes research newsworthy, how to work with the communications office to gain media coverage, what to expect from an interview (print, pre-recorded, live) and how to communicate well in interviews

Come to this Public Engagement Seminar to hear about an inspirational patient and public involvement (PPI) project from one of your colleagues in the University, Dr Anna Spathis. The PPI project won a prize at the 2018 Vice-Chancellor's public engagement with research awards.

This is also an opportunity to network with others interested in Public Engagement and to talk to a member of the Public Engagement Team.

Why not bring your lunch with you?

This 2 hour workshop will discuss "why does research matter and how do we share it?"

This workshop provides top tips and guidance on developing an impact evaluation survey that is robust. This will include helping participants identify and avoid common pitfalls in impact evaluation questionnaire design, as well as accounting for key issues such as representative sampling. Participants will also have the opportunity to develop their own survey questions with feedback and support during the workshop.

Everyone is watching video on Social Media these days. So it is a great place to share your research. Learn about the best ways to create & upload video for, as well as go live on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. You just need yourself, a smartphone and your enthusiasm!

Why is YouTube popular? Because people love watching videos. A video is a great way to spread the message of your research to different public audiences across the World! Attendees will be equipped with the skills needed to plan and shoot high quality footage for your very own research-video.

It is strongly recommended that you also attend The Engaged Researcher: Editing Your Research Video session.

Whether at a conference, a science festival or in the pub, all scientists need to be able to talk about their work in an engaging and understandable way. This practical, hands-on session will help scientists develop their communication skills, so they are confident talking to diverse audiences in a range of environments.

Stories weave together fact and emotion, helping people to understand the world. They can also be a powerful tool for you to share your research with the public.

This whole day workshop run by the internationally acclaimed Story Collider, will help you to understand how narrative can enrich your science engagement. Through a combination of creative techniques and empirical science, you will brainstorm, develop and refine your own research stories.

A highly interactive and fun session including group and individual work that takes a looks at what active listening is, how to use it, what impact it can have on our day to day communication and how to build an active listening practice.