Postgraduate researchers resources
The Graduate School for the Social Sciences
The Graduate School for the Social Sciences at the University of Reading has been established primarily to enhance the postgraduate research experience of its students. The overarching aim is to ensure that national guidelines and recommendations in relation to postgraduate training and support are at least met and more frequently surpassed.
The faculty handbook for research students
The Handbook for Research Students provides information on induction, training, supervision and monitoring progress etc and includes the research student log, extracts from the University Regulations, and rules for submission of thesis.
The University has an on-going process of considering the training it provides for its research students and has adapted a scheme run for a number of years by The Royal Society of Chemistry. This scheme, the Research Students' Skills Record, is a generic series of University documents which aim to provide research students with the opportunity to reflect on, record, assess, and develop their skills. The Record uses a system of self-assessment throughout, and research students are required to reflect on their skills ability as well as to plan for the development of skills in three stages, which broadly correspond to each of the three years of a full-time research student's programme. The Skills Record also complements the Research Students' Career Management Skills programme developed by the Careers Advisory Service and the Committee on Postgraduate Research Studies.
Research training programme
The Faculty offers a training programme which is recognised by the ESRC. For further information contact the Faculty Postgraduate Office on faspg@reading.ac.uk or Helen Apted on h.a.e.apted@reading.ac.uk
Clifford Norton Award
The Clifford Norton Award was established "for the promotion of graduate studies and research" and offers an annual award of £200 to assist research students with travel expenses, eg to conferences. Please contact the Postgraduate Office for further details.
Student Representation
Research students are represented on the Board for Research in Social Sciences and their names can be found on Student Representatives or via the faculty office.
Who to Contact
The Faculty Director of Research is Professor Jim Pemberton who is also Dean of the Faculty and is responsible for directing and promoting the overall research policy for the Faculty. The Faculty Director of Postgraduate Research Studies is Professor Pam Denicolo who chairs the Faculty Postgraduate (Research) Committee and is responsible for the Faculty Research Training Programme and other issues of concern to postgraduate research students.
For day-to-day queries, research students should contact their Supervisor or School/Department Director of Research as listed in the Faculty Handbook for Research Students. For enquiries regarding registration status, fees, extensions, visa letters, change of address, etc, contact the Postgraduate Office or email faspg@reading.ac.uk.
Students wishing to make a formal Complaint of any sort should refer to the relevant section of the Faculty Handbook for Research Students or contact the Sub-Dean, Nigel Trethewy.