Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is essential in every chosen career pathway and profession. The challenge for researchers in Higher Education is that you will need to drive much of your own CPD forward – the good news is there are plenty of opportunities, people and resources to help you do so.
If you are an early career researcher (ECR) you will need to build the higher level professional attributes including those of: Leadership, people and project management, business acumen, and an understanding of the professional standards and frameworks, and of the international trends in your area. These attributes are not always acquired by attending a course – rather, it may be an accumulative process built through the combination of knowledge and experience over the course of your contract, if you are on a fixed term contract.
Knowledge can be acquired by via literature, TEDtalks, websites, courses, and from mentors. Experience can be acquired from getting involved and ‘stretching yourself’. Universities are rich sources of opportunity for ECRs in this respect: you can leverage the informal learning and CPD from getting involved with: Public Engagement; enterprise activity (see the ICURe and Researcher to Innovator programmes from SETsquared) or external engagement with other sectors and/or policy makers with PublicPolicy|Southampton; teaching, mentoring and/or providing support to students. All these activities will provide useful additions to your CV.
The University has a wide range on online resources that we have curated for researchers in the ECR Development Hub.
The Leadership and Management team (HR) have Pocket management books, Scott Bradbury videos and online courses for all staff and of use to researchers at all career levels
A variety of Digital skills support is available.
Your University BlackBoard site contains training courses for Appraisals, Equality and Diversity in Practice, and Health and Safety.