Our Blog
GuildHE Research Doctoral Festival – Reflections on 2023
As we prepare for this year's GuildHE Research Doctoral Festival, to be held at on 16-17 April 2024 at the University of Winchester, we asked PhD Student Susan Birch to reflect on her experience of last year's event. All our member institutions are eligible to send...
Whose research culture? Including all perspectives will be crucial to success
As the research community grapples with a range of projects considering the culture of research from a variety of angles, Policy Manager Rachel Persad reflects on GuildHE's work in this area and looks forward to supporting the inclusion of multiple perspectives in...
Enhancing Research Culture Initiative: GuildHE Research Culture Cafés
What is research culture? How do you go about improving it? And are there significant differences to research culture at smaller and specialist institutions that we need to consider?In 2023 GuildHE Research sought to interrogate these questions. We developed a series...
GuildHE Regulation Briefing: Regulation and Research
The research regulatory infrastructure changed significantly following the Higher Education and Research Act (HERA). This GuildHE briefing highlights specific recommendations for the OfS and UKRI on how to bring greater coherence and constructive communication to the...
GuildHE Response to the consultation on the initial decisions for REF 2028
GuildHE has responded to the consultation on the initial decisions on the next Research Excellence Framework - REF 2028. The first consultation considered the fundamental elements of the proposal and structure of the assessment including: Calculating the...
Mental Health and Wellbeing of Part Time and Distance Learning Postgraduate Researchers – Summary of the UKCGE Conference
GuildHE Research institutions have a greater proportion of part time postgraduate research students (PGRS) than other unievrsities in the UK, as we discussed in our recent report into the lived experience of PGRS from ethnic minority backgrounds. The experiences,...
Research Integrity and Emerging Research Cultures
The recent Research Culture and Practice Forum was full of wonderful examples of practice and embedding the principles of the concordats. Policy Manager Rachel Persad was invited to give the perspective on research integrity from smaller and specialist institutions as...
It’s REF, but not as you know it
The initial decisions on the next Research Excellence Framework have been published. They are informed by the work of the Future Research Assessment Programme, a long term collaboration between the UK funding bodies begun in 2021 that has thought long and hard about...
Reflections on the GuildHE Doctoral Festival
PhD Student Abbie Cairns recently participated at the GuildHE Research Doctoral Festival. Here the artist-teacher reflects on her experience of the event. The GuildHE Research Doctoral Festival, held at Corsham Court, Bath Spa University on 24-25 April 2023, was an...
SAVE THE DATE – GuildHE Research Doctoral Festival
GuildHE Research consortium of smaller and specialist research active institutions will host our first Doctoral Festival for current postgraduate research students and early stage researchers at Corsham Court, Bath Spa University in April 2023. The Festival will be a...
Peer Learning and the GuildHE Research PhD Community
PhD Student Abbie Cairns attended the GuildHE Research PhD Summer School in 2021. Abbie and fellow student Philly Iglehart instigated a peer suport community for their fellow students. Here Abbie reflects on the approach they have taken and how it relates to her...
How do we promote wellbeing amongst Postgraduate Researchers? Reflections on the 3rd International UKCGE Conference
Policy Officer Tara Binder joined GuildHE in August 2022, supporting our work with postgraduate students, open access, and our shared service provision at smaller and specialist research active universities. Here Tara reflects on the relevant themes that emerged at a...
Exploring Research Integrity Indicators
'Indicators of research integrity: an initial exploration of the landscape, opportunities and challenges' is the result of a collaboration between UKRI, Cancer Research UK and GuildHE, to explore what indicators of research integrity exist, or...
(£6m) Reasons to be Cheerful
Today Research England announced its funding allocations for 2022-2025. Included within that is a £6 million fund in 2022-23 to support knowledge exchange at institutions not routinely in receipt of the Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF). Fantastic news and a...
GuildHE Responds to UKRI’s New Deal for Postgraduate Research
The call for input on UKRI’s New Deal for PGR presents a welcome opportunity to highlight the key challenges and opportunities associated with postgraduate research routes, funding and models. The GuildHE research consortium currently represents 30 smaller and...