CLaSS lecturers offer bespoke support for students conducting independent research:
You may also want to explore:
The Writing Group for Research Students is a small, informal group that meets on a monthly basis to discuss topics related to writing at doctoral level. Whether you've only just started your research or are in the writing up stages, all research students are welcome. We're always looking for new members, so please do come along to see what we do.
All of our 2020/21 meetings will be taking place online:
Thursday 8 October, 10-12, live online session via Blackboard Collaborate
This session looked at planning the writing year ahead, with a focus on how to keep motivated, the psychology and emotional aspects of the writing process.
Thursday 12 November 10-12, live online via Blackboard Collaborate
In this meeting, we discussed strategies to plan and research a review of literature.
Thursday 3 December, 10-12 live online via Blackboard Collaborate
In this workshop, we discussed strategies to build an argument in your literature review. We also considered good referencing practices.
Thursday 21 January, 10-12 live online via Microsoft Teams
This workshop discussed strategies to structure an introduction, which could be useful for shaping the Introduction chapter to your thesis, but also for developing introductory sections to shorter research papers, such as critical reviews or journal articles.
Thursday 25 February, 10-12 live online via Microsoft Teams
This workshop focused on techniques to detect and avoid confirmation bias.
Thursday 25 March, 10-12 live online via Microsoft Teams
This workshop shared some tips for planning and writing a research article, focusing in particular on the publication process and the IMRAD (Introduction, Methods, Results and Discussion) article structure.
Thursday 29 April, 10-12 live online via Microsoft Teams
This session will help you write up your discussion of results in your thesis. It will focus on:
In the second hour, participants will be invited to take part in a peer review activity. To receive feedback on a sample of your writing from the presenters as well as fellow participants, please email a short draft (no more than 2 pages) to the organiser in advance of the workshop. You can still take part even if you do not want feedback on your own writing.
For details and to book, please email Neil Skinner (nskinner@dmu.ac.uk)
Further dates:
More details about each session will become available 1 week in advance. For any queries, please email Neil Skinner (nskinner@dmu.ac.uk) .
There are a wealth of excellent online resources, books and blogs on academic writing, geared towards doctoral students. Some good examples include:
Past events
Please follow the links to access resources from Academic Writing Day: Develop your confidence as a writer and Academic Writing Day 2: Strategies to develop your manuscript for journal publication.
DMU Writing Circle
Delivered by Library and Learning Services (LLS) and Centre for Academic Innovation (CAI)
Date: Wednesday afternoons, fortnightly during term time
Time: 2pm - 4pm
Location: Online
The DMU Writing Circle is a community of DMU staff and research students interested in getting writing done and developing their capabilities as writers through participation in a regular social writing community.
Meetings take place on MS Teams, and are open to everyone who registers their interest and becomes part of the Circle. Once you have joined, you won't need to book to attend a session, you can simply come along when you can make it.
DMU research students and DMU staff (academic and professional services) are welcome to join the circle, and all kinds of writing are included. In 2021, we are also looking to invite DMU academic staff who run taught postgraduate programmes or modules to invite their PGT students to participate and 'write alongside'.
Dates for Spring Term 2021:
To join the Writing Circle or for more information contact Jason Eyre- jeyre@dmu.ac.uk - Centre for Learning and Study Support.
Research Students often enquire about proofreading support.
The research degree regulations at DMU (section 14.3) allow for "limited assistance with proof reading... with the prior approval of the supervisor". The role of a professional proofreader is limited to correcting "spelling, grammar and punctuation accuracy", but otherwise it is vital that the document is the student's own work.
The CLaSS Proofreading for Grammar Toolkit offers useful advice on developing your own proofreading strategies.