The document summarizes workshops held at Swansea University to teach researchers about tools for promoting their work. It describes covering topics like social media, open access publishing, and citations over one or two day sessions. Attendees included professors, assistants, lecturers, and researchers, with the majority being early career researchers. Feedback showed there is demand for this type of training and it should be mandatory for new research staff. While STEM topics predominated, humanities researchers wanted more relevant content. The workshops were most effective when allowing time for hands-on learning, discussion, and networking over food.

1. What we learnt from our
researchers
Research workshops at Swansea
University
Susan Glen & Sam Oakley

2. The concept
“A one day workshop to learn about
the information tools that can help you
to market yourself and achieve the
best visibility for your research”
Targeted at the university’s
research community

3. What did we cover?

4. What we did: Dec 2013
1 Day workshop
9.30-3.30pm
• PC training lab
• Presentation + hands-on
• 30-60mins per topic
• Lunch in the room

5. …and again in Apr 2014
AM: “Seminar room”
• 30 mins per topic
• Presentation &
discussion
• Lunch
PM: PC lab
• Hands-on activities
& more discussion
• 3 x 30 mins)

6. Who came?
Professors PA's Lecturers Researchers
9%
4%
22%
65%

7. What did
we learn?

8. There is demand

9. There is need

10. I think this course should be
mandatory for all new research
staff. There were so many things
I've never heard about and I
found out my manager was on
all the networks etc. but she's
never told me about any of it.
I'm telling everyone I know
now!

11. Food is a good draw

12. Harder to reach arts & humanities
It might be worthwhile
to have a training day
focusing on impacts in
arts and humanities. it seems that the
training day focuses
more on STEM subjects,
I am from arts and
humanities and would
appreciate the day
more if it is more
relevant to A &H.

13. Commercial aspects need to be
considered

14. The audience will be mixed
• Difference between senior and junior
academics
• Administrative staff

15. Finding a good time is never easy!
• No perfect time!
• Early career researchers
most likely to come to a
whole day.
• Perhaps need short bites
for more senior people

16. Some topics the library can’t do alone
"How to write high impact papers:-
What should you think about in regards
to experimental design?- How do you
get into the high impact papers? Maybe
some of the most successful Swansea
Uni researchers could share their
experiences, tips and tricks with new
young inexperienced research staff

17. Topics of interest
"Knowledge of how open
access publishing works
was of particular interest
"The day was particularly
useful for me in a two
areas:1. Social
Networking & Impact2.
Licensing Issues
Maybe a little more
information about Open
Access, since I had no
idea. But suppose is my
fault.

18. Academics like to discuss

19. Learning styles / preferences

20. Caffeine & collaboration….

21. Susan Glen: s.glen@swansea.ac.uk, @lbglens
Sam Oakley: s.l.c.oakley@swansea.ac.uk, @rscsam