Welcome to Day 3 of the Doctoral College Induction. Today’s programme is structured as a ‘pick ‘n’ mix of short talks and panel discussions. You’ll have the opportunity to find out more about some of the University’s central services and discover what they can offer you as a postgraduate research student. We are also delighted to be welcoming to the programme a number of our current PhD students and one recent PhD graduate. Our speakers will be sharing their perspective on research study at Brighton, offering tips and advice, and answering your questions. Student presentations are always one of the most popular sessions in our induction programme. This year we’ve increased the range of topics under discussion to give you plenty of opportunities to ask questions and chat – and to find out what doing a doctorate at Brighton is really like!
Day 3 Teams join code: hgg1cxa
Day 3: Thursday 15 October, 11.30-15.30 and 18.30-19.30
Coffee and Connect
11.30-12.00
So, how’s it going? Grab your mid-morning beverage of choice and join this informal, open session before our day of talks begins. A couple of Doctoral College staff will be on hand to answer any questions. You’ll also be able to splinter off into breakout groups if, for example, you want to ask for recommendations of places to visit in Brighton and Eastbourne, share thoughts about your preferred refencing software; fess up to Impostor Syndrome; or chat more with people you’ve met in recent days.
Library Services
12.00-12.20
Maggie Symes, Information Advisor
An introduction to library services and support for research students plus guidance on using our libraries safely in 2020-21. See also Library Services Update page.
Information Services
12.20-12.40
Jill Shacklock, Information Officer
You won’t want to miss this! Save yourself time and frustration by finding out now about Information Services and the platforms and facilities you’ll be using at Brighton including your Office 365 account, OneDrive file storage, Sharepoint, LinkedInLearning and more.
Lunch break: 12.45-14.00
Time to pause for a screen break and lunch.
Teacher training opportunities
14.00-14.20
CLT and The Scholars Programme
Find out about Higher Education teacher training delivered by the University’s Centre for Learning and Teaching (CLT)) plus paid opportunities to train and work as a PhD tutor in state schools through the Doctoral College’s partnership with the Brilliant Club and its Scholars Programme. The Brilliant Club is an award-winning charity that aims to increase the number of pupils from under-represented backgrounds progressing to highly-selective universities. For anyone interested in applying to become a PhD tutor, Scholars Programme information sessions for Brighton doctoral students will be held online on 22 October and 19 November, 14.00-15.00 (click the links to book your webinar place on PhD Manager).
Student speaker
Esther Omotola Ayoola
School of Applied Social Science
PhD: Refugee Migration to London: Adolescent Mental Health Experiences, Provision for Refugee Minors, and Political Debates in the Domain of Public Health
Esther applied to become a PhD tutor on the Brilliant Club’s Scholars Programme after hearing about the initiative when she attended our Doctoral College Induction in October 2018. Since then she’s worked in around a dozen schools in London and Essex, and was even doing placements in lockdown. Join Esther to find out about her experiences and what working with the Brilliant Club means to her as a Black academic who grew up without any scholarly role models.
Brighton Students’ Union
14.20-14.30
Ramy Badrie, BSU Vice President Education
Georgie Cairns, BSU Engagement Coordinator
At Brighton, the Doctoral College has a strong relationship with Brighton Students’ Union and we have active PGR Reps in every school. Come along to find out about the work of BSU and what they and your school reps can do for you.
Wellbeing and mental health support services
14.30-14.45
Steve Usher, Student Support and Guidance Manager
If you’re struggling and your wellbeing is affected, the university can support you. Find out about our network of Student Support and Guidance Tutors (SSGTs) and the services they can put you in touch with.
Tea break: 14.45 -15.00
Student Panel: Doing a doctorate when you’re a parent or carer
15.00-15.30
Doing a PhD when you’re a parent or carer can be challenging at the best of times but Covid-19 and school closures brought an extra set of pressures for a number of our doctoral students. Join our panelists for a discussion of what it means to be an academic parent and for advice on how to handle the numerous, often unpredictable challenges, both generally and during a global pandemic.
Chair: Abby Barras, PhD student in the School of Applied Social Science
PhD parent panelists
School of Humanities
PhD: Iconicity as a pervasive force in language: Evidence from Ghanaian Sign Language and Adamorobe Sign Language
Parent of an almost three year old girl
School of Architecture and Design
PhD title: Design, Culture, Gender: Design as a socio-material tool for UK public breastfeeding research.
Parent of a 9 year old boy and an 11 year old non-binary child.
Hannah Selby
School of Applied Social Science
PhD title: Mental Health Interventions on television: a force for good? Exploring the experience of taking part in ‘made for television’ therapy
Parent of two boys, age 7 and 9
Afternoon session closes around 15.30
Evening talks: 18.30-19.30
Graduate student speaker: Dr Tochukwu Ozulumba
18.30-18.55
Introduced by Dr Susan Sandeman (Tochi’s former supervisor)
We are thrilled to be welcoming to our induction programme recent PhD graduate Dr Tochukwu Ozulumba. Tochi was a full-time research student in the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, 2015-2020, and has recently landed a postdoc at the University of Virginia. Tochi was the People’s Choice winner of our annual Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition in 2018; was the recipient of a funded conference place with the education charity, Cumberland Lodge in 2018; was placed third in the Association of British Turkish Academics (ABTA) Doctoral Researcher Awards (DRA) in 2019; and has been involved in Soapbox Science, an initiative promoting women in STEM, in both Brighton and Nigeria. In short, during her time at Brighton she was one of our star PhD researchers!
Tochi will be joining us from across the pond to share her experience of PhD study, offering tips and advice, and discussing the importance of her public engagement and science outreach work for her career. Find out more about Tochi on her website and please join us for one of our programme highlights.
Student panel: Doing a part-time doctorate when you have a full-time day job
19.00-19.30
Around 35% of our students are undertaking a PhD part time with a number of those supporting their studies with paid employment. For some students, their day job relates to their research whereas for others, the two couldn’t be further apart. In this panel, we’ll be joined by three PhD students who are balancing doing a part-time doctorate with full-time work. How do they manage their time? What are the key challenges? How does their PhD experience differ from that of their full-time peers? And when on earth do they find time to relax?
Part-time PhD panelists
Jason Porter
School of Humanities
PhD title: Hidden from History: The Politics of Forgetting and Remembering the Homosexual Victims of Nazi Persecution
Job title: Senior Academic Programme Administrator (University of Brighton)
Total weekly job hours: 37.5
When do you usually work on your PhD? Evenings, Weekends and Lunch Hours!
School of Education
PhD title: Identifying children’s, young peoples’ and teachers’ perspectives and experiences of school-based human rights education
Job title: Head of Media Studies/Second in department; English: Secondary teacher
Total weekly job hours: 37-40 hours
When do you usually work on your PhD? Evenings and weekends.
Ali Williams
School of Humanities
PhD: Reading and Writing Paranormal Romance as part of Écriture Féminine
Job title: Timetable Officer (University of Brighton) / Freelance Book Editor / Author
Total weekly job hours: 37 officially; recently it’s been a lot more.
When do you usually work on your PhD? Early mornings, evenings and weekends – basically, whenever I have a spare moment.
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