Skills into Practice

The Researcher-Led Initiative (RLI) Fund helps to develop innovative activities which will support your career development and that of your peers.

The RLI  Fund provides funding opportunities in one of the following categories:

• Establish, develop or support networks which cross discipline boundaries.
• Run a professional development activity or event which supports the development of leadership, communication, networking, writing and/or other transferable skills within or across disciplines.
• Organise an activity or event which allows participants to explore the potential impact of their research.
• Organise an event which allows researchers to engage with industry*.

Industry is defined broadly, as organisations which are not in the public sector.

Applications should be in the region of £250. All activities should have a clear benefit to postgraduate researchers within the University. Proposals should have realistic and achievable goals, and a clear budget which demonstrates value for money and reflects the cost of the activity proposed.

Who can apply?
University of Aberdeen postgraduate research students are eligible to apply to this scheme.
The application should be made by a team of at least two people. The lead applicant must be registered at the University of Aberdeen for the duration of the project.
Each application needs one lead applicant. This person will be the main point of contact and will be responsible for overseeing the budget and submitting the evaluation form and financial summary at the end of the project.

You can apply for funding for:

• Event catering.
• Venue hire (if University rooms are not appropriate or available).
• Expenses for a speaker or tutor.
• Workshop materials.
• Promotional materials.
• Small prizes for competitions or thank you gifts.

What we don’t fund:

• Individual conference travel, accommodation and registration fees.
• Direct financial assistance to individuals.
• Events for which funding is available elsewhere.
• Hardware, software or other design, art, lab and technical materials that your School would normally be expected to purchase as part of their ongoing budgets.
• Reimbursement of University of Aberdeen student/staff time.

Decisions:

Applications to the RLI Fund will be reviewed by a panel of academic staff and PGR School representatives. Decisions will be communicated by 2 February 2023.

The PGR School runs various events, competitions and opportunities to help you put your skills into practice throughout the year.

Granite journal is the first postgraduate interdisciplinary journal of Aberdeen University. The journal has been established by students for students. This open access journal is designed to give postgraduate students of the University of Aberdeen a place to publish their work and to provide them with experience of the publishing process, e.g., editing and peer-reviewing.

Public Engagement with Research is a great way to help you enhance your personal skills including creativity, teaching, writing and leadership through design and delivery of public engagement projects. Explore opportunities with our PERU team.

The Qualitative Research Network is an initiative established by postgraduate researchers who are passionate about qualitative research. The network is run by volunteers who organise and facilitate training seminars, group meetings, and social activities around qualitative research.

We encourage discussion on all aspects of qualitative research, provide peer support and networking opportunities, offer informative sessions, and learn more about qualitative research in an informal environment. We also provide a drop-in space for troubleshooting and informal support with research-related questions.

For clarity: we do not provide formal teaching or qualifications, we are not trained to provide specialist support relating to all disciplines or methods (please ask your supervisor); we also don’t have the authority to help you choose your method or approach. Check out the coursebooking system for suitable training courses.

Please contact QRN on qrn@abdn.ac.uk to let us know what you would like us to cover in our sessions, how you would you like the sessions to be run and if there are any other activities or events you would like to do as part of the network. We’re also on Facebook.

Getting involved with the QRN is an excellent opportunity to put into practice your skills as a communicator, events manager, team leader, and many more. Here is a testimonial from a former QRN co-facilitator:

“In my role as a QRN co-facilitator I have been exposed to multiple QRN methodologies, organised workshops that lasted several hours to a full day, connected with others within the qualitative research community (both at Aberdeen and globally) and made life-long friends.

Not only is this an opportunity to lead an already established network of like-minded individuals across the University of Aberdeen it will enable you to share and grow your knowledge of the intricacies of qualitative research. Not to mention it will look fantastic on your CV.”