An up-GRADE please!

GRADE Training Programme

Research today, for doctoral candidates, postdocs and professors the same, requires much more than performing the research itself. From presentation of results and organisational tasks to planning of strategic career moves and international communication and cooperation many different skills are required.
	Therefore all GRADE members as well as associates are given the opportunity of choosing – from a great variety of courses we offer – one-day or several-day sessions in order to remedy personal deficiencies or in order to contribute towards building a personal profile. GRADE does not have a set curriculum since we would like to give you and your supervisor a free hand in the choice of topic. Nevertheless, we give advices for useful workshops for doctoral candidates and postdocs.
Our Training Programme offers workshops continuously adjusted to the different training needs of our members. Our workshops are held by professional trainers, who are experts on the respective topics, either from the Goethe University or from other national and international institutions. We select our lecturer with great care and pursue an intensive quality management via our participants feedback. All current and past courses of the GRADE Training Programme are available as a thematic overview, while all current courses are available in both thematic and chronological order.

Our Training Programme offers workshops continuously adjusted to the different training needs of our members. Our workshops are held by professional trainers, who are experts on the respective topics, either from the Goethe University or from other national and international institutions. We select our lecturer with great care and pursue an intensive quality management via our participants feedback.

All current and past courses of the GRADE Training Programme are available as a thematic overview, while all current courses are available in both thematic and chronological order.

The progamme involves three major areas:

• Inter- and Transdisciplinary Skills and Intercultural Awareness
• Transferable Skills
• Language Skills

Inter- and Transdisciplinary Tools and Intercultural Awareness

Without neglecting basic research, the junior researchers should train themselves to view everything from the finest detail to its entirety. Through special tools, interdisciplinary work is encouraged so that they can assess the value of their own work in relationship to the whole. Finally, the transition to the transdisciplinary phase is very important as this sensitizes the scientist to societal problems.

Transferable skills

Our Transferable Skills workshops are organised in the following categories:

Science Tools Working successfully as a researcher in the Life and Natural Sciences requires a broad set of skills, from information retrieval to the communication of results. The workshops in this section aim at supporting the research-related performance. Moreover, they contribute towards developing a critical understanding of scientist's responsibilities, esp. regarding principles of good scientific practice and the perils of scientific misconduct.		Career Tools The doctorate is a qualification stage for future professional occupation, thus workshops offered in this section are targeted on the time after the doctorate. The aim is to support reflection regarding possible vocational fields and to introduce to strategic career planning and advancement in academia but also beyond.
Management Tools All academics irrespective of their future occupation require a certain set of management skills, such as communicative competence, capacity for teamwork but also for leadership, and organisational proficiency. In this respect, this section forms a kind of parenthesis between Science and Career Tools.

Language Skills

English
To get admitted at GRADE, doctoral candidates need a confirmation from their principal supervisor that their English language knowledge is sufficient for their thesis project (minimum level B2 of the European Framework). Candidates without sufficient English knowledge have the opportunity to attend the English language courses at GRADE, which are offered on demand. These trainings will enable the candidates to independently work on their English thesis as well as prepare them for participation in the English-speaking GRADE workshop programme.

For candidates that would like to brush up their current English knowledge, GRADE offers one-day workshops on specific English language issues. The workshops on English writing skills as well as on English communication skills intend to prepare participants for certain situations in which they need to depend on their scientific English skills. Before these workshops take place, the trainer puts together a summary of questions and needs the workshop participants have.

German
As an international doctoral candidate, integration into the social and day-to-day life is easier with some German language knowledge. Therefore, GRADE offers German beginners courses for its international members.

University Language Courses
The university's language centre also offers a range of language courses for students - from Arabic and Chinese to Russian and Spanish. Courses run during the semester ("semesterbegleitend") and there are also intensive courses in the term-breaks.

geändert am 28. März 2012  E-Mail: Eva Niederlechnerworkshops@grade.uni-frankfurt.de