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Best Practice Sharing Workshop

Core Characteristics of the Department PGR Lead’s Role

Aims:

  1. To share good practice regarding the responsibilities of the role of Department PGR Lead from within the University of Sheffield.
  2. To discuss the content of a generic job description and person specification for this role (a first draft is provided).
  3. To provide an opportunity for all departmental PGR leads to connect and network.
  4. To share thoughts on the QA Framework for 2016/17.

Opening Presentation (Professor Ian Douglas, Director of the Doctoral Academy)

­Ian Douglas provided the context for the discussion; he stressed how important the role of the Department PGR Lead is in fulfilling the key aims that TUoS has for its doctoral research students. He highlighted the key aims as being:

  • A world leading, exciting and inclusive experience which will:
  • Maintain a healthy doctoral research student population (growth with quality)
  • Involve adjusting to the demands on, and by the doctoral research students
  • Provide support for progression
  • Provide support for supervisors
  • Producehighly employable doctoral researchers – whether that be in academia or the wider world.

-He emphasised the crucial role of Department PGR Lead including to:

  • Oversee the operational and strategic management of student recruitment and selection; induction; progress monitoring; confirmation review; appointment of examiners; study environment; supporting/training supervisors (Code of Practice); promoting student surveys;
  • Report into departmental management structures

-Ian then gave an insight into his concerns regarding the role of Department PGR Lead including:

  • Recognising the importance of this role including that TUoS, the Faculty and the Department empower the incumbent to fulfil the role effectively; how the post is appointed to; the apportionment of appropriate credit within any workload model;
  • Identifying the support that the Department PGR Lead needs – from the Department, the Faculty, and the Doctoral Academy.

-Ian concluded by highlighting three additional key messages and a couple of concerns from him as the Director of the Doctoral Academy:

Three Key Messages

  • The importance of getting recruitment right – once a student is here, TUoS is committed to them, so they need to be selected carefully;
  • Confirmation Review: This must be done in a timely way to ensure only quality students progress to a doctoral degree. A 12 month review is encouraged but is not essential; however the confirmation process has to be completed by the 18 month review point. The 18 month review is essential and if a student fails this, they will automatically be downgraded to an MPhil.
  • International students may require a different level of support and input: since 2012, 43 students failed their confirmation review at the first attempt, of whom 30 were international students.

Concerns for Department PGR Lead role:

  • The importance of the role. TUoS is at the cutting edge of world-leading research; an exciting and inclusive place to study and doctoral research students play a major part in our outputs. Their progress and support is therefore crucial and the PGR Lead plays a vital role.
  • Identify support that you need to fulfil the role in terms of recognition and empowerment.
  • Identify the support that you need to fulfil the role in terms of recognition and empowerment.

Presentations from two Department PGR Leads sharing their best practices in their provision for doctoral research students. What makes a good Department PGR Lead?

Dan Lambert, Department PGR Lead, Dentistry, FMDH

­Dan Lambert outlined There are a number of points to consider including:

  • The key roles including:
  • Recruitment
  • Monitoring of progress
  • Supporting and advising doctoral research students
  • Supporting and advising supervisors
  • Liaising with Dept., Faculty & R&IS colleagues
  • Practical Considerations:
  • Define the role – being clear what your responsibilities are, your relationship with other senior staff in the department, ensuring supervisors are clear about your role, emphasising that administrative support is crucial to the role; remembering the benefits of the role: it allows innovation e.g. PGR research day, submission review process, recruitment process; it improves oversight e.g. staff and students come to you for advice.
  • Knowledge of TUoS processes including being aware of:

-who the R&IS contacts are

-who the Faculty PGR lead is

-TUoS regulations

-Support available for doctoral research students and supervisors.

-The benefits of knowing TUoS processes include avoiding problems and how to manage them e.g. leave of absences/extensions, UKBE issues, late submissions, supervisors and students will ask you for advice.

  • Being the lead on recruitment:

-know the key/emerging markets

-improving the recruitment process e.g. with regard to the pre-application enquiry system, routing enquiries through one portal

-capitalise on student and staff contacts, both home and overseas

  • The importance of engaging with students

-Ensure the Department has PGR representatives

-Support the establishment of informal societies

-Have feedback sessions – PGR forums, interactive feedback

-The benefits of engaging with students include: discouraging a ‘them and us’ culture, anticipate problems, building social networks between students, can support public engagement activities

  • Main challenges
  • Recruitment- Government policies (UKBA); Funding. Possible solutions highlighted opportunities in course development, and proactive marketing.
  • Submission rates including:

-The impact on the Department – retaining RCUK funding

-It is difficult to enforce

-The different funding arrangements e.g. 3 or 4 year funding, HEFCE placements.

-Possible solutions highlighted: inform students and supervisors of the issue and their impact; close monitoring of the submission rate data.

Stephen Walker, Department PGR Lead, Architecture, FSS.

Stephen provided background and key facts of the Department of Architecture’s doctoral research student community.

He highlighted some practical tips and tricks in fulfilling the role of Department PGR Lead including:

-On a weekly basis: be in responsive mode

-On a monthly/annual basis: time management regarding major tasks - e.g. studentship processing, publicity, confirmation review presentations, research methods modules, PGR committees both Department and Faculty, reporting to the Faculty on key issues - and the importance of blocking out time for these in advance.

He outlined some key challenges and how to manage them:

-Timely completion and research culture: managed by:

  • Fostering a common purpose amongst the doctoral research student cohort
  • Ensuring an even ‘give’ from supervisors, and support from research groups
  • Managing experienced/senior supervisors.

Group Discussion

What are the key requirements of a Department PGR Lead - outline generic job description and person specification?

Key points raised include:

Group 1

  1. Marketing:

-Structure for encouraging keeping in contact with PGR alumni

  1. Split the role if this helps into:

-Admissions

-Interaction and engagement

  1. Consult about targets for recruitment
  2. Emphasise overseeing role
  3. Emphasise induction for staff
  4. Emphasise interaction with Doctoral Research Students

Group 2

  1. General comments on the job description:
  • Fairly accurate - Some said this is multiple people e.g. admissions/progression. Long, but many thought, accurate
  • Too long
  • Too specific/clumsy/repetitive i.e. don't split into two sections (direct responsibilities and responsibilities as a member of the Dept.team.
  • Useful as handover note/capturing breadth of the role
  • Person spec could be useful?
  • Have to want to be involved - interested in PGRs; engaged; supportive. As a sales pitch.
  • Importance of having a link to another colleague, to discuss issues (links to contacts list issue below?
  • Supporting Staff} not HR with communications see my notes
  • Supporting students }
  • Code of practice - should be more prominent.
  • Some departments have split the role: this is ok as long as workis covered.
  • Many combine the role of 'personal tutor' into this role too.
  • Add a contacts list - key people (dept. specific):

- PGR Admin in Department (crucial)

- R&IS contact

- Director of Research

Other Comments

  • What is the sales pitch? People in this ‘group’ love this job.
  • Code of Practice – need to check this against the responsibilities of the Department.
  • Department planning and strategy: some colleagues in this group did not recognise this structure
  • Recruitment and Admissions: add ‘where appropriate, promote progression – UG to PGR, PGT to PGR.
  • Monitoring and reporting: ‘oversee the annual review….’ Should be more strongly worded! Some sit in on all of these as a panel member, others do this for the 2nd attempt only.
  • Communications heading: change to ‘Supporting Students (and Staff). Also delete ‘liaise with Departmental PGR leads……’
  • Human Resources Management heading: change to ‘Supporting Staff’.
  • Provide advice….ADD ‘and/or act as personal tutor’
  • 'Offer to meet with returning students…' ensure a suitable opportunity for students to raise any issues with their research , supervision, facilities, etc - might be personal tutor or annual report - FMDH has 2 x year personal tutor meetings - 1 hour WAM/WAP
  • Plan and ensure delivery of supervisor development - what happens at faculty level for some
  • Section B – suggest combine this with Section A
  • Monitoring and Reporting: suggest add something about the responsibility to keep up-to-date, including attending sessions, sharing best practices.
  • Suggest deleting ‘Any other duties commensurate with the grade’.

Group 3

General Questions

1. How do we get academics to respond to PhD requests for supervisors?

2. WAF hours? What standards for the role? Expectations?

3. What grade should be associated with this post?

4. Job, teaching, admin not properly recognised on University C.Us?

5. How can we ‘out’ bad supervisors?

What is missing on the job description

  1. Dealing with student resources requests – desks, computers, travel funds, conference funds, additional training.
  2. Sitting on Doctoral Research Studentinternal vivas for quality control
  3. Reviewing funding grants prepared by academics (White Rose, DTP, Grantham)
  4. DTP oversight:

a) Organising conference

b) Pathway training design

c) Mobilising PGRs/Doctoral Research Students to get involved.

  1. Strategy – responding to Faculty, R&IS, University, DTP, White Rose and Doctoral Academy requests.
  2. Monitoring GTA teaching loads, balance, quality, complaints.
  3. Picking up ‘informal’ supervising when supervisors are sick or lack expertise or deliver poor quality supervision.

Group 4

  1. Would be good to have an indicative workload allocation
  2. Should recommend representation on management committee
  3. Recommend level of administrative support
  4. What is the audience for this document
  5. Generally content is fine.

Update on Quality Assurance Arrangements for 2016/17

A brief update was provided of the letter sent to all Department PGR Leads in early October 2016, explaining the requirements of the Quality Assurance Framework for 2016/17. This briefly comprises:

-The Doctoral Academy Committee meeting in January 2017 will consider a cost benefit analysis paper on capturing the postgraduate research experiences from TUoS’ doctoral research students. This will decide whether to take part in 2017 PRES or an alternative option.

-The statement of compliance with Quality Assurance (QA) practices (reflections form for the Faculty of Science) will not be required in 2016/17. This will now be a biennial process, taking place every two years.

-In 2016/17 there will be a focus on best practice sharing. A workshop on the role of the Department PGR Lead (held on 14 November 2016), and a workshop on Personal and Pastoral Support for Doctoral Research Students which is being held on Monday 30 January 2017 in the Council Room at Firth Court, Western Bank, Sheffield, from 9:30am – 12:30pm with registration from 9:15am.

Summary and Next Steps

We will update the generic job description and person specification to incorporate key agreed changes arising from today’s discussion. We will consult Faculty PGR leads, Department PGR Leads including those unable to attend today, on this final draft version. The final version will be approved by Prof Ian Douglas, Director of the Doctoral Academy, having delegated authority from the Doctoral Academy Committee to make this decision.This will then be made available on the supervisor portal for use.

This is a generic job description, to be used by Faculties and departments as a template to be tailored, where applicable, to their specific requirements.

We will be emailing you an evaluation form which we’d be grateful if you could return by email. This also asks for your topics you would benefit from discussing at future best practice sharing workshops. This will also ask you whether you think the stated aims of the workshop have been met.

The next workshop set for 30 January 2017 on Personal and Pastoral Support for Doctoral Research Students - a hold the date email will be sent again. This workshop was referenced in the letter sent to you in early October 2016 on the Quality Assurance framework arrangements for 2016/17 letter.

A web page with a short report on today’s workshop, speaker presentations will be set up in due course, with the link emailed to you.

Deborah Dewsbury Roddis

Quality and Research Integrity Team

For information:

OUTLINEOFTHEPROGRAMME

Theworkshop is aimed atDepartmentPGRLeads and FacultyPGRleads

Indicative
Time / Item / Lead
From
09:15am / Registration
09:30 / OpeningPresentation
OntheimportanceoftheDepartmentPGRLead’s role and whatthisinvolves. / ProfessorIan
Douglas
PresentationsfromtwoDepartmentPGRLeads sharingtheirbestpracticesintheirprovisionfor doctoralresearchstudents.
Whatmakes a goodDepartmentPGRLead?
09:40 / DanLambert- Dentistry,FMDH / Dan Lambert
09:50 / StephenWalker- DepartmentofArchitecture,FSS / StephenWalker
10:00 / Q&A - opportunity to ask questions of the speakers.
10:10 / Groupwork
Whatare thekey requirementsofa Department PGR Lead- outlinegenericjob descriptionandpersonspecification / Deborah Roddis R&IS
10:10 / General group discussion about the outline generic job description and person specification. / All
10:35 / Whataspectsofthedraftgeneric job descriptiondo you agree with? Are there any changes you thinkshould be made?
11:15 / Feedbackfromeach ofthegroups.
11:30 / Update on Quality Assurance Arrangements for 2016/17
Opportunity to raise any queries on the QA arrangements for 2016/17. / Deborah Roddis R&IS
11:40 / Summary– summing up oftheissues covered, identificationofnextsteps,and opportunityfor delegatestoidentifyhow theywould like toreceive updates/supportin thefuture.
Have the aims of the workshop been achieved? / R&ISlead
11:50 – 12:00 / Closeandfeedback