A cure for boredom

Today’s cure for boredom is the fourth episode of 10 Gnomes. You have ten minutes to find the 10 gnomes hidden in the picture. To play, either visit the online common room of the VLE, or click here.

What’s on at the Institute of English Studies

The Institute of English Studies at the University of London has a number of events coming up. You can see the full list by clicking here.

Job Vacancy at Rugby School

We have received the following:

‘We are looking for an enthusiastic Chemistry teacher to join our dynamic and popular Chemistry Department from September 2008 or January 2009. The suitable candidate may be an experienced teacher, a student teacher or a research Chemist from university or industry.  There is no need for applicants to have a PGCE.  Rugby School provides a thorough induction for new staff and provides funding for internal and external INSET courses as part of continuing professional development.  We also provide Qualified Teacher Status for newly qualified teachers.

‘The Science Faculty has just completed a major £5.5 million refurbishment of all its facilities, providing Chemistry with a new administrative base for teachers (with individual work spaces), new laboratories, a pupil resources room for private study and the use of a state of the art audio-visual Science lecture theatre.  In addition, Chemistry will have a well equipped research project laboratory.

 

‘All full-time staff at Rugby are issued with a laptop computer for lesson preparation, teaching and administration.  Technical support is available and INSET training is conducted on a frequent basis in school time.  Teachers are also provided with accommodation in school and meals are taken in boarding houses as and when staff wish.

‘Closing date for applications is 1 May 2008, with interviews being held shortly after. 

‘Mr Nick Fisher, BSc MSc MA, FInstP, Head of Science, Rugby School, The Science Schools, Barby Road, Rugby, CV22 5DS.’

 

Part time work at the University of London

The Destinations of Leavers of Higher Education (DLHE) survey is an annual national project, collecting information on graduate destinations after university.  We are now looking to recruit a team of enthusiastic callers for our DLHE Call Centre.

The call centre will run from offices in Russell Square, on Mondays-Thursdays from 12 May-30 June 2008.  Shifts will run from 1.00pm-5.00pm and 5.00pm-9.00pm (breaks will be included within shifts). You must be able to work a minimum of four shifts per week.

A meticulous team worker with the ability to keep accurate and legible records, you will possess both a good telephone manner and the ability to communicate effectively in English. Full training will be provided at the start of the call centre.

Please click here for an application form.

Deadline: 12pm, 28 April
Telephone Interviews: 1 and 2 May

£15,922 p.a. pro-rata (including London Weighting) Equivalent hourly rate: £8.72

Scientist in Media Communication

The University of East Anglia is looking for a speaker to come to a Careers Event for Postdocs in Science at the University of East Anglia (Norwich) on the 2nd of July 2008.

Ideally the person should have completed a PhD, and also have experience of science communication, working with the media to communicate new ideas and issues in science to the public.

The aim of the day is to have a number of speakers showcasing the wide range of career opportunities out there for post doc scientists seeking careers beyond academia. For further details contact phd-careers@kcl.ac.uk

Career Opportunities for PhDs in Investment Banking

Wednesday 18 June, 2.00-6.00pm
Christopher Ingold Chemistry Auditorium

20 Gordon Street
University College London WC1H 0AJ

The Investment Banks are increasingly interested in hiring PhDs from science and engineering for analytical roles, for econometrics, for quantitative analysis and for technology sectors. This is mirrored by PhD students seeking challenging and well-paid careers in the financial services industry.

Following the very successful PhD workshop in 2007, which attracted 300 attendees, UCL is organising another workshop to bring together experts from the financial services industry to present their work and to discuss opportunities for PhDs. 

The workshop is open to any interested PhD student or Postdoc from leading Universities, or students applying for PhD admission.

Speakers from major investment banks will include: Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, HSBC, BarclaysCapital and Royal Bank of Scotland, as well as leading investment funds.

Among the Topics covered are: The structure of the Financial Services Industry, Algorithmic Trading, Analytics & Risk, Empirics: Econometrics, Stats, Signals & AI, Derivative Product Modelling, Quant Trading, Algorithms and Financial IT.

If you are interested in attending, register with Ben Colvill at UCL: ben.colvill@ucl.ac.uk
Phone: 020 7679 0051
If you are interested in pursuing a career in investment banking, please upload your CV to www.bankingscience.com , used by leading banks and funds seeking to employ PhDs.

If you have any questions about the workshop please contact: Yonita Carter: yonita@bankingscience.com
Phone: 020 7679 0359

Careers in Policy

Policy work is now available in many areas of public affairs. The Careers in Policy forum on April 23rd 5.30pm to 7.30pm is a chance to hear from people working in policy in a number of different sectors, including 

. International Development – with the Head of Policy from WaterAid
. Health – with the Head of Policy from Cancer Research UK
. Think Tanks – with the founder and Director of Centre for Cities, Dermot Finch
. Government – with speakers working on climate change for the Mayor of London and transport (cycling and walking) for Transport For London and a Policy advisor from The Department of Justice who joined through the FastStream
. Andy Robinson, previously Senior Policy Advisor to the Youth Policy Boar and now working on Policy for the Department of Transport

The forum will also include a section on ‘How to Choose a Policy Masters’ with Professor Ken Young, Director of the MA in Public Policy at King’s College and Harriet Robinson, Business Development Manager, King’s College Business.

King’s students can register here.

 

New Navigators – Full Day Seminar

Date: 18 June 2008
Location: Imperial College, London
  
Whether you are a PhD, MSc, a final year student, an academic or a postdoctoral researcher – if you are interested in positing technology or looking at the possibility of a career within the positioning and navigation industry this one day seminar is not to be missed.

Fur further details, click here. Alternatively, e-mail: conference@rin.org.uk .

 

 

Japan Society for the Promotion of Science’s (JSPS) Short-Term Award Programme.

JSPS is the leading research funding agency in Japan, established by the Japanese government for the purpose of contributing to the advancement of science.  JSPS plays a key role in the administration of various scientific and academic programmes, while expanding bilateral exchange between Japan and the United Kingdom.

The Short-Term Award provides the opportunity for European and North American pre- and post-doctoral researchers to visit Japan for 1 to 12 months to undertake cooperative research with leading research groups at Japanese Universities and Institutions.  The programme is designed to provide researchers with first-hand experience of the research and living environment in Japan.  Researchers from all fields of sciences including humanities and social sciences are eligible to apply for the programme. The closing date for applications is Friday, 30th May 2008 and the successful applicants are asked to take up their fellowships between November 2008 and March, 2009.

To be eligible to apply for the Short-Term award, applicants must be at least within two years of obtaining their PhD at the time of starting their tenure in Japan, or have received their PhD within the last 6 years. Only nationals from the following countries are eligible to apply through the London office: 

·  United Kingdom

·  All European Union Countries

·  Norway

·  Switzerland

·  Iceland

·  Canada

·  USA

Detailed information and application forms can be downloaded from the JSPS London website.

You can telephone the JSPS on 020-7255-4660, or e-mail:short-termaward@jsps.org.

 

New Online Courses

We have four new online courses for you:

* Career Planning in the Sciences
* Career Planning in the Arts
* Selecting a Conference, Presenting and Networking
* Managing your Research Supervisor or Principal Investigator

We have developed the courses in conjunction with Cardiff University, Durham University, Imperial College London, University College London, the University of Cambridge, the University of Reading and the University of Birmingham.

The courses are each around 45 minutes long and contain video and audio features, as well as interactive elements and expert analysis.

To access the courses, link to the Graduate School VLE on the right-hand side of this page and log-on with your user name and password. The new courses are in the ‘Generic Skills Training Courses’ area. 

Future Developments

We want to make our online resources even better for the next academic year. Therefore, we are setting up a small number of focus groups, to explore how we can make our resources more relevant to your needs. If you would like to participate, please e-mail Michael.flavin@kcl.ac.uk . Refreshments will be provided on the day. More generally, we welcome your feedback at any stage.