All University Information Services - Staff Learning & Development courses

We can all write well. It’s our job! But how can we make our content more user centred? User-centred content helps our users and ultimately helps us.

Come to this session to:

• understand how cognitive burden affects comprehension
• use some of the methods and tools that we’ve been demonstrating over the past year
• get help and feedback from your Content Community colleagues

For this session you need to bring:

• a piece of content from your website or intranet
• any thoughts, feedback or queries you’ve had about the content
• your goals for the content. For example, you might want to:
  • improve readability
  • check that it’s accessible
  • re-organise the structure
  • test understanding of a complex subject

We all use search engines to look for information, whether it's to buy a second-hand sofa, or check when to repot the begonia.

If your content isn't optimised, people won't be able to find it easily through online search. Good SEO will help more people find your content more easily.

Come to this workshop to:

• Get a quick recap on best SEO practices.
• Try some of the SEO methods and tools that we’ve been demonstrating over the past year.
• Get help and feedback from your Content Community colleagues and us.

For this session you need to bring:

• one or two links to web pages that you want to optimise
• any SEO or keyword information you already have
• any ideas you have about why the content is or isn't performing well

We will also be running this workshop in August.

We all use search engines to look for information, whether it's to buy a second-hand sofa, or check when to repot the begonia.

If your content isn't optimised, people won't be able to find it easily through online search. Good SEO will help more people find your content more easily.

Come to this workshop to:

• Get a quick recap on best SEO practices.
• Try some of the SEO methods and tools that we’ve been demonstrating over the past year.
• Get help and feedback from your Content Community colleagues and us.

For this session you need to bring:

• one or two links to web pages that you want to optimise
• any SEO or keyword information you already have
• any ideas you have about why the content is or isn't performing well

Join content colleagues to talk about how we can use data that seems quite abstract to tell us about our content. Come to this workshop to:

• recap some general principles
• discuss some examples and sources of data
• do small-group exercises in Microsoft Teams break-out rooms

You will want to be able to look at the exercise information, and possibly some example websites in your browser, while in the MS Teams meeting. If you have access to a desk offering a second screen, that may be the most convenient.

This session is for beginners who are not confident in interpreting analytics or similar data. No preparation is required. You do not need to be familiar with any software other than MS Office 365 and your browser.

Join content colleagues to talk about how we can use data that seems quite abstract to tell us about our content. Come to this workshop to:

• recap some general principles
• discuss some examples and sources of data
• do small-group exercises in Microsoft Teams break-out rooms

You will want to be able to look at the exercise information, and possibly some example websites in your browser, while in the MS Teams meeting. If you have access to a desk offering a second screen, that may be the most convenient.

This session is for beginners who are not confident in interpreting analytics or similar data. No preparation is required. You do not need to be familiar with any software other than MS Office 365 and your browser.

During this session, you'll practice the skills we use in our content design work that you can use when creating or editing your website.

We'll provide sample content for you to re-write, so you only need to attend. You'll have a go in small groups in break-out rooms. Each one will have a content designer on hand to help.

Spaces are limited, to ensure that everyone is able to participate in the small-group activity, so please book as soon as possible.

We are providing four workshops to learn new skills or refresh existing ones, with the Content Community this month. You'll also put knowledge into practice with interactive examples.

During this session find out how to improve engagement with your content by using tactics that account for how people read differently online.

Led by content designer Eloise Hayes from University Information Services (UIS).

See related courses below.

My Cambridge Application is a ‘Go’ for launch in September for the 2024 admissions cycle.

Join us online for an overview of the project and what to expect from the September release.

We'll walk you through the application process and the improvements we've made to make it easier to complete, understand, administer, audit and trust. We'll cover:

• our vision and goals for My Cambridge Application
• what we have delivered and what that means for applicants and colleges
• what will be delivered post launch, and what will be done by the 2025 admissions cycle
• show the video walk through for My Cambridge Application
• take any questions

Find out more about Digital Admissions and the My Cambridge Application project: https://universityofcambridgecloud.sharepoint.com/sites/UoC_DigitalAdmissions

The Digital Admissions project aims to support the transformation of the information systems, processes and tools used in the undergraduate admissions process.

At this 'town hall' event, you will hear from project members who will show the progress made to the service and invite you to ask questions.

On World Accessibility Day, understand why inclusivity and accessibility is important and the University’s plans to increase the accessibility of its online content and things we can all do to improve our documents, publications and online content.

The Digital Presence Programme is a five year programme responsible for improving how we provide and support websites and intranets for the University of Cambridge (amongst other things). It's important that departmental and institutional heads are aware of the programme's goals and intentions to make significant changes to the University's digital landscape.

This presentation will offer you an opportunity to feed into the programme, and provide answers to your questions about it.

The Digital Presence Programme has been busy since 2020 exploring and researching how we could better build and support the University's intranets and websites. Join us for a day of demonstrations and hands-on workshops where we'll share with you our progress so far and help you to prepare for migration to the Intranet in a Box and Website in a Box templates, due for release in 2024.

We'll share;

• programme objectives and the roadmap
• intranet in a box progress and demonstration
• website in a box research, progress and demonstration
• interim guidance and expert led workshops

Join us in person at The Triangle Building, Cambridge University Press & Assessment's spectacular headquarters near Cambridge Train Station.

Refreshments will be available.

Hear an update on recent activities from members of the Digital Presence Programme. You can post your questions in advance and during the event via the Teams Live Q&A feature.

Hear an update on recent activities from members of the Digital Presence Programme. You can post your questions in advance and during the event via the Teams Live Q&A feature.

Join us for an exciting session of discovery and celebration, as we showcase the hidden talents of our colleagues at University Information Services (UIS). In this one-of-a-kind event, we will unveil the diverse and creative talents that often go unnoticed in our day-to-day work and their impact on our workplace culture and the professional development of our colleagues. By recognizing and encouraging these talents, we create a more inclusive and supportive environment that values individual strengths and diverse perspectives.

In July's content community session, we look under the hood of email marketing. Whether you're sending newsletters to your staff or event invitations to an external audience, this session is for you, with a blend of the strategic and the operational.

Email continues to defy the prophecies of its impending demise, surviving Slack, instant messaging and even WeChat/Weixin (for the most part). As email turns 50, we'll explore whether iOS 15 will end the newsletter boom, where trustworthiness and personalisation fit in to your email strategy, and if you even need email when there are social media, messenger apps and collaboration tools?

• Liam Morgan will describe how he creates high-quality newsletters that are both effective and audience-centric
• Ashley Coidan will discuss how a strategic approach to the channel can have benefits for recipient and sender alike (and he'll be seeking volunteers to be involved in developing guiding principles for the University's email marketing)

The Staff Review and Development (SRD) process provides the opportunity for Line managers to engage in constructive discussion with their staff about current and future work and their learning and development. This interactive online course will focus on an overview of the process, practical advice and useful reminders of good practice to help you to make the most of SRD

We will show you how to build a content inventory and do a content audit on your website or intranet.

You might be migrating to a new content management system (CMS), or just want to tidy up your site, an inventory and audit reveals gaps and opportunities. It’s the first step to understanding user behaviour and gathering evidence to help you make decisions about your content.

Join us for our monthly 30-minute coffee morning session! It's a safe space for mentors to clarify doubts, share best practices, and resources, and receive ongoing support to enhance their mentoring relationships. Grab your coffee or tea, connect with fellow mentors, and let's grow together.

Learn more about the barriers people face when they read content. We will show you how to write content that’s accessible and do a few practical exercises. Making content accessible, makes it better for everyone.

Join us on Friday 22 October for a whistle-stop tour of common areas of Google Analytics and scenarios its data can help you analyse.

We will focus more on the Universal Analytics interface than Google Analytics 4, as that's the version we believe most people with Google Analytics on University websites are using.

Search engine optimisation (SEO) for beginners. SEO 'is the process of improving a website or web page so it increases organic traffic quality and quantity from search engines' (Webopedia).

Put simply, the goal of using SEO tactics, for many web editors across the University, is to help users find the content that they are looking for when they use a search engine. In practice, this means a webpage appears as high up the list of relevant search results as possible. To do this, content editors need to have a basic understanding of how search engines work and what users are searching for.

This session will include a potted history of SEO and practical tips to use on your webpages. Attendees will also be able to ask questions.

The session will begin with a quick update from the Digital Presence Programme.

An informal guidance session for anyone thinking about joining the IT Community and UIS Mentoring Scheme. Professional Development Manager, Rinku Raina will give a brief overview about what you can expect from joining the scheme. You'll have the chance to ask informal questions and hear from previous members of the scheme.

An informal guidance session for members of the IT Community and UIS Mentoring Scheme. The session will provide the opportunity to meet with other mentees enrolled on the scheme. You’ll be able to talk openly as a group and share any successes or challenges while being a mentee. Please think of examples before coming along so we can discuss in the session and this will hopefully encourage confidence to help you gain the most out of your mentoring relationship and the scheme.

An informal guidance session for members of the IT Community and UIS Mentoring Scheme. The session will provide the opportunity to meet with other mentors on the scheme. You’ll be able to talk openly as a group and share any successes or challenges while being a mentor. Please think of examples before coming along so we can discuss in the session and this will hopefully encourage confidence to help you gain the most out of your mentoring relationship and the scheme.