Graduate School Day
In the early summer of 2024 we will organise the 7th annual Graduate School Day for our PhD candidates and CNS Master students!
What is it about?
The Graduate School Day will be an afternoon full of workshops and fun activities followed by a dinner.
Who is this day for?
The day is free of charge and open to all CNS students and PhD candidates of the Donders Institute. Please note that attendance of this day is obligatory for PhD candidates who have started their PhD project in 2016 or later, more information (see transition rule).
Location
To be announced.
Registration
Registration will open later.
Please note, although this day is free of charge for you, only register if you are able to make it. Many thanks!
The programme of the next Graduate School Day will be posted at a later time, but please have a look at the programme and workshops/coaches of the last edition:
Programme 2023
13.00: Opening lecture
14.00: Break
14.30: Workshop round 1
16.00: Break
16.30: Workshop round 2
18.00: Dinner
Opening lecture
Split-Brain Saga by Edward de Haan - Scientific Director Donders Institute
Workshops
Workshop 1: How to keep on top of it all (by Radboud in'to languages)
In this 1,5 hour you will create a mindmap with an overview of your time and all your tasks & activities. You’ll hear from your peers how they get things done and receive tips on how to organize your time and create your own routines. You’ll walk away with a plan and feeling more in control.
Workshop 2: Poster Design (by Radboud in'to languages)
How can you design a poster that is clear, attractive and quickly highlights the relevance of your research? In this workshop, you’ll learn how effective poster design can make your work stand out from the rest in the conference hall and get you and your research noticed. You’ll learn how effective poster design conveys a clear central message so that viewers grasp the main results of a study within moments, and how visual design principles can support this message and clarify key details of the research. Using our poster checklist, you’ll be able to quickly evaluate a poster and advise the designer on how to improve it so their next poster session is a success.
Workshop 3: Science communication (by Dirk-Jan Melssen)
What communication tools are out there to help you, as a scientist, to find the right information and people? And what tools could you use to communicate about the process and results of your research? Our Donders Institute Public Outreach Officer will guide you through the tools and channels he uses to reach our audiences and how you could improve your communication or even contribute to DI communication. By the end of the workshop you will be ready to communicate about your research (recruit participants if you would like) in a more effective way, and you know of the most important DI channels to share your research on.
Keywords: communication, online, strategy and communication plan, SEO, social media, tools, website, blogs
Workshop 4: Social Safety in Academia (by a Radboud confidential advisor for PhDs)
We all want a workplace that is socially safe. But what does that mean? And what can you do when you experience or witness undesirable behaviour?
In many situations, it may not be so clear whether something is okay or not – maybe you feel uncomfortable, but is the behaviour really ‘wrong’?
In this workshop, we use a case-driven approach to explore the pillars of a socially safe working environment, and degrees of undesirable behaviour.
After this workshop, you will have an improved understanding of what is socially safe/unsafe behavour, and what you can do in case someone crosses the line.
You will also be able to better recognize risk factors for undesirable behaviours in the organization, and how to take those risk factors into account.
Workshop 5: Find your compass (by Minds for Science)
We often ask ourselves: what type of job can I do? In this workshop we will reverse the direction: what type of job would you like? You will reflect on your life values and use them as a compass to point you in the direction of a satisfying career path. At the end of the workshop, you will have a list of actions that you can do to take your career decision with confidence. The target group of this workshop are people that are unsure about which career path to take.
Workshop 6: Networking (t.b.d.)
Many people claim that networking is important, especially if you’re looking for a (new) job. But you are wondering: “where to start and what to do?” And maybe you have no clue on what is appropriate and what is not. If you like to know more about networking, but still have a few questions or doubts, then join this workshop.
Coaching sessions
Instead of the workshops above, you can also sign up for short 15 minute coaching sessions with on of the coaches below. Even though 15 minutes appears short, in previous years it proved to be valuable to be able to have such a coaching session. Note that you will only be assigned to a coach during one of the workshop rounds, so we recommend to also indicate what workshop(s) you would prefer and not only select the coaches.
Coach 1: Margien Sybesma
Margien is an experienced coach and works for the department Strategy Policy Development, the HR division. She can help you with dilemmas regarding career (choices), job satisfaction, work-life balance and influence skills. In summary: how do I keep a grip on my work?
Coach 2: Harriët Reker
Already for many years I enjoy my work as a coach, career coach and trainer for Radboud University HR Division - Strategy Policy Development. On 28th June we can discuss topics such as your next step in your career, how to present yourself, personal leadership, stress, communication with your supervisor, diversity equity and inclusion or whatever topic you would like to discuss.
Coach 3: Sophie Raaijmakers
Sophie Raaijmakers is Career Officer from the Career Service department and can help with improving your cv, motivation letter or LinkedIn-profile, practice a job interview question or you can brainstorm with her about your career questions (what do I want? What can I do? Where/how do I find vacancies? Etc). It’s useful to bring your laptop and a vacancy text if you want advice on your application.
Coach 4: Consultative Meeting with the Confidential Advisor
The Confidential Advisor for Undesirable Behaviours is here to support PhD candidates in situations where they experience or witness undesirable behaviour. Important to emphasize is that we are also here to provide information and support in a consultative way; in many situations, it may not be so clear to yourself whether a situation or behaviour is undesirable or not. In a consultative appointment, we listen to you confidentially, and can think along with you about your situation and what your further options are. Feel welcome to drop by!