The skills you need to develop will be distinct to you and your research project. The Training Needs Analysis will help you identify skills you need to work on or develop, and your supervisor can also provide support and guidance for your development needs. You should complete your Training Need Analysis within SAM, if you want to complete it on paper first there is a full version in the Research Training Programme module in MyBeckett.
The Graduate School's Research Training Programme (RTP) will equip you with the skills and competencies required to complete your research degree. Sessions include workshops and seminars such as finding research information, using NVivo or SPSS to analyse your data, Writing at Research Level and managing your literature using Reference Management software. The RTP is mapped to the Vitae Researcher Development Framework, which describes the knowledge, behaviour and attributes of successful researchers.
Getting Started with resources
- Use the Discover search from the Library homepage for fast and easy access to all our resources, including 24/7 access to eBooks and ejournals.
- Start your research in subject-specific academic databases available in your online subject guide.
- We have substantial print collections from which you can borrow up to 30 items at once. We also offer a postal loans service for PGR students outside the LS postcode area.
- Whilst researching for a PhD, you may need access to more resources than one university library holds. You can:
- Request It! If you can't find the item you need you can use our Request It service and we will try and obtain it for you.
- Use the SCONUL access scheme to visit other university libraries.
- Find out what a PhD (or other research degree) thesis looks like by consulting EThOS the British Library collection of theses.
- You can use a variety of study spaces including the Postgraduate Research room at Sheila Silver Library, City campus or silent study spaces at Headingley campus.
- Don't forget to consult our Referencing and Plagiarism guide to learn how to use the correct referencing style, and the Reference Management guides for help with software like Zotero or Endnote to manage your references and reading.
Research Skills and Support
- Join the RTP sessions run by the Library on Advanced Literature Searching, Keeping up to Date or Reference Management on SAM. You can access recordings of past sessions from the Research Training Programme module in MyBeckett.
- Contact your Academic Librarian Team or use the Get Help form to arrange a 1:1 appointment with an Academic Librarian or Academic Skills Tutor to get help with finding information and other academic skills.
Getting Started with IT
- Download Microsoft Office 365 for free on up to five devices and save your work via OneDrive with 1TB of storage.
- Connect your own device to eduroam Wi-Fi and connect to WiFi networks on the Leeds Beckett, and many other University campuses.
