Workshops
Workshops and training for researchers
Attendance at MRE sessions counts towards Postgraduate Researcher training hours. Add details to your eProg record following our MRE_eProg_guide.pdf.
Shut up and write (online)
Shut Up and Write is an event for researchers to come together for a fixed amount of time and write. The aim is not to put pressure on you to be productive, rather, to help you carve out some dedicated time to write and to present a chance to connect with other researchers. It is a great way make progress on those thesis chapters, journal articles, or grant applications.
Whilst two hours doesn't sound like much, it is amazing what you can get done if you really focus. There will be short, scheduled breaks in between writing sessions of 30 minutes, to help keep you motivated and on-task. During the breaks there will also be time to reflect on some of the challenges we are facing as a research community and how we might support one another.
How to book on
This event will take place on the online video conferencing app Zoom.us. Booking onto the event is essential to receive the link and passcode to join.
Find out more about the workshops and online resources offered by My Research Essentials on the library webpage. Online resources related to this workshop include:
Introduction to Research Data Stewardship: A Key Role in Modern Research (online)
Do you have an interest in managing, organising, and analysing research data? Are you interested in Open Research and making data findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR)? If so, then the world of research data stewardship could be for you.
In this session you will have the opportunity to discover and learn about research data stewardship and the work of research data stewards; an emerging profession in higher education and an increasingly key role in managing data for research projects at research-intensive universities. You will learn about the concept of research data stewardship and how it is applied to embed research data management (RDM), FAIR, and open data practices into the research project lifecycle. You will learn about the different roles and responsibilities of research data stewards working today, both in the UK and internationally, exploring the wide variety of tasks and challenges they experience in making open, reusable, and responsible research a reality. Finally, you will be shown how you can join in and participate in the research data stewardship community here at the University of Manchester and find opportunities and resources to develop your data steward skills and knowledge further.
MRE Writing Retreat
The aim of this one-day writing retreat is to provide a quiet space where staff and researchers can make progress with their writing. It is a great way to carve out dedicated time to get on with those journal articles, thesis chapters, HEA Fellowships or grant applications.
The majority of the day will be spent in concentrated writing sessions where there should be no talking, no internet, no research - just writing! There will be short, scheduled breaks (with free tea, coffee and snacks) in between these blocks of concentrated writing time, to help keep you motivated and on-task.
Don't forget your laptop!
Programme for the day:
9.00-9.20 Tea, coffee and registration
9.20-9.50 Set your writing goals for the day, and learn some useful writing strategies
9.50-12.00 Concentrated writing time
12.00-13.00 Lunch and optional wellbeing activity
13.00-13.10 Reflect on your progress so far, re-evaluate your goals
13.10-15.20 Concentrated writing time
15.20-15.35 Coffee break
15.35-16.50 Concentrated writing time
16.50-17.00 Reflection
Introduction to FAIR data principles (online)
Researchers collect, receive, and manage data in many ways. Making sure this data is well-managed and reusable can be complex, but the FAIR Principles are here to help. The concepts underlying the FAIR principles are grounded in good scientific practice and aim to guide people to maximise the Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, and Reuse of digital assets. Making your data FAIR can help you work more effectively, raise your research profile, and engage with open research initiatives.
This workshop is for people in academia with little or no experience of FAIR. This course aims to be succinct in introducing FAIR, its concepts and terminology, and supplements all material with introducing and signposting to useful FAIR resources.
Participant information
This session will take place on Teams. We will send you the Teams link for the workshop a day before the workshop is to take place, booking onto this workshop is essential.
Please note: This event is bookable by all staff and PGRs, simply follow the 'Book on this event' button below to register.
Sharing research with confidence: developing your public speaking skills (on campus)
In this interactive workshop you will reflect upon and discuss ways to improve your public speaking skills, helping you to present your work more effectively. Using some improvisation techniques we will look at ways we can become more relaxed about public speaking, and practice responding to unexpected questions with confidence, which will support you when at academic conferences or presenting your research to peers. We will provide you with practical exercises to help you build confidence in communicating with a variety of audiences.
Introduction to executable papers in Quarto and Docker (on campus)
This workshop will introduce attendees to the emerging research output of Executable Papers. Executable Papers are those that can be opened and run to produce a paper.
In this workshop you will learn how Executable Papers are an increasingly important and popular way to communicate research in a transparent and reproducible way. An explanation of the platforms and systems available will be given, before working through guided exercises using Quarto and Docker. The workshop activities will be performed in a controlled online environment with access to all of the applications required: you do not need to install anything on your own device ahead of the session. Full instructions for setting up your own device and where to access support will be sent following the workshop.
There will be time to reflect, discuss and ask questions on how you can build writing Executable Papers into your own research workflows.
This event will take place on campus, led by and developed in collaboration with Dr. Gabriel Strain, Research Associate in Computer Science.
Research Data Conversations - Community sessions
Research Data Conversations is part of a new series of My Research Essentials and Data Stewardship Community events exploring themes within research data and data stewardship.
The sessions will have a collaborative and conversational format and explore themes that promote open and FAIR data practices, and the promotion and development of new and emerging ideas in research data management.
Research data management and data stewardship is an area of growing professionalism and potential for academic-related career paths. These events would be suitable for anyone interested in exploring ideas in the field, connecting with data professionals at different stages of their careers and across different disciplines, and joining a community that feeds into the development of research systems and data stewardship at the University of Manchester.
The session will be led by Dr Hannah Long, Research Associate in Health Inequalities and Open Research Fellow 2024-25. Hannah will lead a discussion on open data practices for qualitative health researchers and her Open Research Fellows project on developing a Data Note guide specifically for qualitative research datasets.
Date: Wednesday 28 May 2025
Time: 12pm-1.30pm. These events are catered from 1pm, giving attendees the opportunity to continue the conversation and make connections over lunch.
12-1pm: Presentation and discussion.
1-2pm: Optional lunch and further conversations.
Venue: Main Library, Ground Floor Seminar Room
Led by: Dr Hannah Long.
Shut up and write (on campus)
Shut Up and Write is an event for researchers to come together for a fixed amount of time and write. The aim is not to put pressure on you to be productive, rather, to help you carve out some dedicated time to write and to present a chance to connect with other researchers. It is a great way make progress on those thesis chapters, journal articles, or grant applications.
Whilst two hours doesn't sound like much, it is amazing what you can get done if you really focus. There will be short, scheduled breaks in between writing sessions of 30 minutes, to help keep you motivated and on-task. During the breaks there will also be time to reflect on some of the challenges we are facing as a research community and how we might support one another.
Booking on
Due to popularity, booking onto the event is essential to ensure a place.
Further support
Talk to us online via the 24-hour Library Chat service. Alternatively, you can email us for advice or to book one-to-one appointments at tls@manchester-uk.libanswers.com.
Find out more about the workshops and online resources offered by My Research Essentials on the library webpage. Online resources related to this workshop include:
Resilience for PGRs: Managing the challenges of research (on campus)
In this workshop you will explore three of the most common challenges identified by PhD candidates: managing your relationship with your supervisor; time management and procrastination; and dealing with setbacks during research.
You will explore the context around these issues and how they affect the research process, before working with other postgraduate researchers to help develop the necessary skills and approaches for dealing with them.
Finally, you will be introduced to established models and strategies for working effectively with your supervisory team, beating the procrastination cycle and maintaining resilience in the face of setbacks.
Further support
Can't make this session? Talk to us online via Library Chat now, or send us an email: tls@manchester-uk.libanswers.com.