Early Career Researcher Network for Arts, Humanities and Business

Research career development, support and training
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Our Early Career Researcher Network is dedicated to providing support and guidance to the diverse range people within the Faculty who self-identify as early-stage researchers, including doctoral students and academic staff in the early, ‘transitional’ stage of their career and research staff on fixed term contracts.
We organise open forums to share information and provide opportunities for networking and discussion, and offer guidance on career development and training, to enable the ECRs within our Faculty to grow their research, and become confident independent researchers.
The network is co-ordinated by Dr Kayla Parker , who works in partnership with ECR representatives from the four Schools within the Faculty and the Doctoral College, with support from research staff and senior researchers.

British Academy Early Career Researcher Network
The British Academy ECR Network enables researchers to join a community of UK-based postdoctoral researchers in the humanities and social sciences. The network provides opportunities for skills development and networking across the UK. Further information is available from the British Academy Early Career Researcher Network flyer .
"The Network has been a valuable platform for me to connect with other like-minded researchers, not just in my regional area, but across the UK. As a result of the online platform, I have just submitted a conference paper with another member of the network who is researching in a similar area to myself. We plan to develop this conference paper into a journal paper and are actively looking for funding opportunities to develop this exciting research area together. If it wasn’t for the ECR network, I might never have had this opportunity."

Network member
Humanities and Social Science researchers are invited to join the network and ECRs can register their interest.

General interest and resources
  • ECR forum 20 January 2023: My Research Journey: From ECR to Principal Investigator. Presentation by Dr Clare Pettinger about how a Creative Associates Award from the Sustainable Earth Institute kickstarted her research funding journey from an early career researcher to Principal Investigator. Supported by the SEI award, Clare worked in collaboration with Fotonow CIC to co-produce the 16-minute documentary film, Food: On the Margins in Plymouth, which has received almost 2,000 views on Vimeo and led to her being invited to be involved in a £6 million UKRI funded food systems consortium where she is leading a £600,000 work package for the University of Plymouth. Recording available on Moodle (UoP log-in required).
  • ECR forum 24 May 2022: presentation on ethics by Dr Verity Campbell-Barr, Associate Head of Research at Plymouth Institute of Education and Chair of the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business Research and Integrity Committee; with Dr Kayla Parker and Dr Karen Wickett. The session provides an overview of the University’s research ethics procedures and outlines the ethics and integrity policies of the university and developments that are taking place. It covers different aspects of the ethical approval process, including the Plymouth Online Ethics System and Data Management Plans, and discusses the distinction between ethics procedures and ethics in practice. Recording available on Moodle (UoP log-in required).
  • ECR forum 10 November 2021: hosted by Dr Kayla Parker: Dr Roberta Mock, Professor of Performance Studies and research co-ordinator for the performing arts at the University of Plymouth, responds to questions about research put to her by Early Career Researchers in the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business. Recording available on Moodle (UoP log-in required).