May 17, 2021, by Lisa Chin

COVID-19: Graduate School updates (17 May 2021)

Ref. UNM/GS/COVID-19/55/17/05/21

COVID-19: Graduate School updates (17 May 2021)

In light of the movement control order (MCO) till 7 June 2021, we are providing this update to our postgraduate community outlining latest news and information from us at the Graduate School.

The University is regularly updating advice and general FAQs on COVID-19 on its web page. See more

More detailed guidance for postgraduate research students and research staff is available on SharePoint. See more


Celebrating our research excellence

MyRA® 5-star research rating 

The University has once again received a MyRA® 5-star research rating from the Ministry of Education, which confirms UNM as one of the highest rated international universities in Malaysia.

As postgraduate researchers, all of you play a really important role in the research productivity of the University. And so we at the Graduate School would like to extend an appreciation and recognition to our postgraduate research students for your contributions to the University’s research achievement.

Postgraduate Awards 2021 Live!

Join us at the virtual tri-campus award presentation ceremony 

This live event is open, for the first time, to all our postgraduate students and UNM community. In addition to showing support to your peers, you will get to see all the award winners from across the Nottingham campuses and hear about their accomplishments in research, publications, conferences and contributions to the postgraduate community.

The event is scheduled for Tuesday 25 May 2021, 4pm – 6pm via MS Teams.

Joining link

Training and development

Upcoming courses

As MCO continues, we wish to update you on our continuing provision to keep your research training and development going.

Anatomy of a good journal paper

  • Thursday 20 May 2021, 10am – 12.30pm

  • This course will explore the structure of the various components of a journal paper and provide an insight into the necessary skills required to develop and write a good journal paper.

  • Sign up

Introduction to ORIS for new postgraduates

  • Monday 24 May 2021, 10am – 12nn

  • This course will introduce the use of information sources in our library and develop the skill sets and knowledge in information searching.

  • Sign up

Understanding how to use Mendeley

  • Tuesday 25 May 2021, 10am – 12nn

  • This course will inform students on how to create, populate and use Mendeley, a bibliographical manager in organising their literature review.

  • Sign up

Understanding how to use Endnote

  • Thursday 27 May 2021, 10am – 12nn

  • This course will inform students on how to create, populate and use Endnote, a bibliographical manager in organising their literature review.

  • Sign up

Nature of the PhD and the Supervision Process

  • Tuesday 1 June 2021, 10am – 12.30pm

  • This course will introduce the expectations of a doctoral study and provide an understanding of the roles of supervisors and research students.

  • Sign up

Introduction to Development Needs Analysis

  • Thursday 3 June 2021, 10am – 12nn

  • This course will introduce the tool to evaluate and plan personal, professional and career development.

  • Sign up

Supplementary workshop

Time to write

  • Tuesday 18 May 2021, 10am – 12nn

  • This session will assist in structuring periods of writing and limiting distractions while providing the necessary guidance and motivation to write efficiently and effectively.

  • Join now

A final reminder on the U21/PwC Innovation Challenge

Call for participation is still open

Have you got what it takes to enter the U21/PwC Innovation Challenge?

Showcase your critical thinking and share your ideas with PwC and their clients to win a 7-day trip to Dubai and some exclusive world-class training and professional development opportunities.

*Disclaimer: Travel will only take place when it is safe to do so and will be in accordance with global travel guidelines.

Closing date: Friday 28 May 2021

See more

Another reminder on our upcoming virtual induction

Postgraduate induction

This session features welcome talks and presentations by our staff member at the Graduate School introducing a range of support services, training programmes, public engagements and activities for postgraduate research students. It also features an introductory talk about Postgraduate Students’ Network (PGSN) by the Students’ Association (SA) Postgraduate Officer.

The upcoming induction is scheduled for Friday 28 May 2021 from 3pm – 4pm via MS Teams.

Join now

Take control of your career

A series of blog posts providing advice to PhD and postgraduate researchers alike

The Osprey

In this post, Dr Peter Noy who is the Associate Director for Research at the Future Food Beacon, UoN, shares a few quick tips to help you start thinking about how to plan your career.

“Like all the best things in life, let’s look to nature for inspiration. Get your binoculars out because we are going in search of the mighty Osprey (also known as a Sea Hawk)!

Now you might be thinking what the hell has an Osprey got to do with career planning? Well, the key hunting behaviours of an Osprey are essential to adopt when planning your career,”

See more

In this latest post of the series, Dr Noy writes about why he thinks the best thing you can do to be successful is to start writing grants early and keep writing them.

“One of the keys to academic success is convincing other people to give you money to research interesting things. You then need to tell them what those interesting things were at the end and why there are more interesting things to research (the circle of life for a researcher). An essential skill to achieve this is writing a compelling grant.”

See more

Next update from us

Look out for our next edition of e-newsletter 

We will continue to provide succinct news, information and updates on our training and development opportunities for our postgraduate community through our monthly e-newsletter. The next one will be delivered to your inbox before the end of this month where you can find out more about our training and development provision for the whole of next month.

Please do not hesitate to reach out if you need any other clarifications or support from us via email to graduateschool@nottingham.edu.my. You can also engage with us via Facebook and Graduate School Blog.

In the meantime, please continue to observe and follow the safety advice and precautionary measures by our local authorities and University. Stay safe!

Posted in News and EventsPostgraduate lifeResearcher Development