The Graduate School

1. Graduate Study at Kent25th September 2014Suzie MorrisGraduate School Administration ManagerKent Graduate School The Graduate School

2. Who are you? A Kent graduate A student who is new to Kent but who previously studied in the UK A student who is new to the UK A ‘home’ student A ‘European’ student An ‘international’ student Doing a Master’s degree with the hope of going on to a PhD Doing a Master’s degree to improve your employment prospects Doing a Master’s degree only out of interest in the subject Are you newly graduated or a number of years from your first degree?

3. Postgraduate Education 588,720 PG students in the UK 10% of PG students are Doctoral students (doing research for a PhD) Majority of students are on taught courses leading to Master’s Degree, or post graduate diploma or certificate Education (18%) and business (22%) account for a significant enrolment in taught courses Non UK students account for 46% of masters students and 41% of doctoral students

4. All Students – things you must do.. Visit Rochester Castle.. historic dockyard…Bluewater … Pop down to Canterbury and see the sights as well as the ‘other’ Campus Buy a railcard and go to London – some of the world’s best museums and galleries are on your doorstep and they are free! Book well in advance and travel to Brussels and Paris on the Eurostar

5. The Graduate School Mission: to lead and champion the strategic development of provision for graduate education and research at the University of Kent.

6. Structure Diagram for Postgraduate Programmes Senate Vice-Chancellor Graduate School Board Dean of the Graduate School Programme Approval Sub-Committee Faculty Boards Deans Faculty Graduate Studies Committee Faculty Directors of Graduate Studies School Graduate Studies Committee School Directors of Graduate Studies Staff/Student Liaison Committees Course Directors and supervisors

7. Student Involvement Get involved…make your voice heard.. • Postgraduate Student Representatives – School, Faculty, University • Staff Student Liaison Committees (SSLCs) • Postgraduate Student Surveys e.g. PRES • Kent Graduate Student Association • The Graduate School www.kent.ac.uk/graduateschool

8. The GradPost A newsletter created by Postgraduates for the Postgraduate community. The GradPost Editorial Team Information on Gradpost opportunities that will look great on your CV and enhance your postgraduate experience at Kent can be found on our website:www.kent.ac.uk/graduateschool/news/gradpost/html Contact: gradpost@kent.ac.uk

9. Postgraduate Experience Awards • Do you have a great idea for a Postgraduate event at Kent? • Apply for funding through the postgraduate experience awards and your idea could become a reality. • Applications for up to £1,500 are invited for the Graduate School postgraduate experience awards 2014-15. • Applications will be considered for funding to run events or projects with an interdisciplinary and/or external focus which will enhance the postgraduate experience at Kent. • Examples of projects funded in 2014 • “Take the Floor!” - an innovative workshop on improving presentation skills led by PhD students from the Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies. • “Home|Less” – an interdisciplinary conference organised by four PhD students on the meaning and implications of the concept of home • Ethnobotanical Garden – A project by PhD students from School of Anthropology and Conservation to further develop the flower beds up against the wall of the rear of the Marlowe Building • Deadline for applications is 28th November 2014 • Application forms and more details at www.kent.ac.uk/graduateschool/

10. Postgraduate Research Festival • Annual PG Research Festival takes place in June • Open to all postgraduate students • Students can present their work to a wider academic audience • Opportunity to network with academic staff and peers • Learn how to create and present an academic poster The Graduate School is running ‘Producing an Effective Research Poster’ workshops (9th December 2014, 24th February 2015 and 25th March 2015). For more information please contact skills@kent.ac.uk

11. Postgraduate Handbook for Taught Master’s students • New for 2014-15 • Everything you need to know about being a postgraduate taught Master’s student at Kent including information on: • Student Services • Local community information • Regulatory information

12. Students on Taught Courses – MA/MSc etc • Enrol....get IT account… register for modules… pay fees! • Find out who directs your programme of Study • Find out when and where your lectures and seminars are • Find out who the Director of Graduate Studies is for your School • Acquaint yourself with your School’s support processes – tutor/student advisor etc • Check deadlines and examination dates

13. Global Skills Award Master’s degree students from all disciplines are invited to apply for a place which can be taken alongside their Master’s degree programme. All postgraduates accepted onto the programme will complete an on-line career development and skills assessment. The programme will run from November until March. Students will attend a lecture series on national and global issues and be able to select from a programme of workshops. The Award programme is designed to enhance global awareness and employability in a competitive job market. All those who successfully complete the programme will receive a Global Skills Award Programme Certificate. The programme is free of charge.

14. Sample Lecture Topics

15. Workshop Topics • Networking • Leadership • Team building • Preparing presentations • Managing your career • Writing a brilliant CV • Writing a killer cover letter • Interview skills • Cross cultural communication • The changing shape of Religion

16. What do I need to do to complete the award? Apply using the online booking system at https://bloom.kent.ac.uk (closing date is 30th October 2014)  Attend the Introduction Evening on 3rd November 2014 in Woolf Lecture Theatre  Complete the initial skills assessment via the online system before 24th November 2014  Attend a minimum of 8 lectures from the lecture series (in addition to the introductory lecture) Participate in a minimum of 6 workshops from the workshop programme Provide feedback on all 8 lectures and 6 workshops attended (via the online booking system) Complete a final skills assessment via the online system before 22nd May 2015

17. Online booking system Choose Online Booking System from the left hand menu. You will then be asked to enter your Kent user id and password, which will take you to the online booking system. Students will need to register with the Graduate School’s online workshop booking system before they can book places on our workshops. This can be accessed via the Graduate School website: www.kent.ac.uk/graduateschool/skills

18. Applying for the Global Skills Award Programme Once logged in for the first time you will be asked whether you want to apply for the GSA > Click Yes Complete the Application You will be notified about the success of your application within a few days. If you are successful you will be require to complete an Initial Skills Assessment before 24th November

19. Once Logged In When you have logged in this is the first page that you will see. To view all forthcoming workshops click here

20. The Workshop Screen This screen details all forthcoming workshops in the next 30 days. You can use the Search button to search for workshops by skills area of title, including those taking place beyond 30 days. To book onto a workshop click on the title of the workshop. This will take you to the workshops full details screen.

21. The Lecture Screen To look at the lecture outline click on the title of the lecture.

22. Graduate School Contact Details Professor Diane Houston (Dean of the Graduate School) Cornwallis South East rm19 graddean@kent.ac.uk Graduate School Staff Suzie Morris, Graduate School Administration Manager s.m.morris@kent.ac.uk ext: 3182 Ros Beeching, Graduate School Coordinator C.R.Beeching@kent.ac.uk ext: 7838 Dr Jo Collins, Postgraduate Development Advisor J.P.Collins@kent.ac.uk ext: 16133 Carla Doolan, Postgraduate Development Coordinator skills@kent.ac.uk ext: 4896 Joanna Addison, PA to the Dean and Graduate School Assistant graddean@kent.ac.uk ext: 4785