Postgraduate News and Views: Research Degree Supervision, European Construction, Research Success for woman scientists

Staff from other higher education institutions can now join Edge Hill College of Higher Education's Postgraduate Certificate in Research Degree Supervision to explore and improve their practice.

Originally launched three years ago for Edge Hill staff, the UK's first full academic programme at masters level for studying the research degree process and improving supervisor practice is going from strength to strength, according to course leader Professor Alistair McCulloch, head of research at Edge Hill.

"The rationale behind it was quite simply increased concern about quality of supervisors. Whereas an undergraduate student is exposed to a significant number of teachers or lecturers, research students have only one or two. If they are bad, they're pretty stuck. You need someone who is aware of the nature of the research process, who can help students develop independent learning and support them through what is actually quite a difficult process."

Dr Olatunji Ogunyemi, senior lecturer in journalism at the University of Lincoln, sees the course as integral to his professional enhancement. "It enables me to share and observe good practice in research degrees supervision across a range of disciplines, and is making me more confident as a supervisor. It gives a deep understanding of the problems research degree students face and how they grapple with them, and also gives the skills to manage the process and motivate students to fulfil their potential."

¿ The European Union has given the thumbs up to Coventry University's MSc in European Construction, by selecting it to become part of a Europe-wide network to develop and disseminate best practice in European joint masters degrees. Coventry's School of Science and Environment uses seven other European partners to teach and develop the programme, which has students spending their first term in Coventry, their second in Valencia, and their dissertation period in any one of the partner institutions in Germany, Denmark, Italy, Portugal or Spain.

"There's considerable interest in joint degrees like ours, with education ministers seeing them as a means towards European integration," says Keith Chapman, course director, "And with 60 applications from courses to join this project, it's something of an accolade to be chosen to participate."

His students get the best of European departments and their specialisms, he says. "The construction industry is becoming more European, with more cross-border work and integration of construction companies, and this course enables them to work within that European arena."

¿ Women scientists strapped for cash should visit the Research Success website, designed to help female scientists win the race for research funding.

Launched by the East Midlands Local Academic Women's Network (LAWN), the website was conceived at a one-day conference at Loughborough University, at which women scientists discussed how to tackle funding proposals productively, find the best avenues for funding opportunities, and put together creative research teams. It outlines the various skills needed to pursue funding, while at the same time tackling concerns about the disproportionately small number of women working in science, engineering and technology (SET).

"It can be lonely for women working in some SET subject areas, and this is a good way of sharing the good ideas, discussions and insights generated at the conference," says Loughborough University's personnel adviser and website constructor Sandra Jasper, "Successfully applying for grant funding is a vital factor in career progression in higher education."

Research Success can be found at www.lboro.ac.uk/admin/personnel/athena_web/index.htm

emma@haughton.net