The Graduate School is pleased to welcome new students to Imperial College London and to welcome you back if you are returning. This is our new blog and we hope that you find it interesting. We would like to encourage you to contribute articles for the blog site so if you have something you would like to share with the postgraduate community, please do get in touch!
My name is Laura Lane and I am the Manager of the Graduate School and it is a great honour for me to be invited to write the first blog entry! I have been in my current role for coming up to four years now and I am really excited about the new programmes and events that the Graduate School is organising for the year ahead.
We are introducing a suite of four new residential retreats: Writing (for students who need to submit within 6 months), Global Impact, Building Global Teams and Communication and Global Entrepreneurs. Each retreat will take place at Cumberland Lodge, which is in Great Windsor Park, and will be a chance for you to meet other students from across College, develop professional skills with global emphasis and take a step back from your usual working environment to learn something new! Last year we piloted the Writing Retreat and feedback from students who attended was excellent, one remarked, “this is the best course that the Graduate School has ever run” – what a compliment! I do hope you will get the chance to participate in at least one of the retreats.
The Graduate School introduced webinars for the first time last year in order to make our courses more accessible. We are aware that many of you are studying part time or have lots of commitments outside university and work which can sometimes make it difficult to attend the usual face-to-face workshops. The wonderful thing about webinars is that all you need is a PC with internet access so if you are at a placement, undertaking fieldwork, at work, or even abroad you can still engage with Graduate School courses. This year we are extending the suite of webinars to cover topics such as building your research profile, wellbeing, making an impact, plus a new webinar called, “Ask the Doctor”, which will provide opportunity for you to talk to alumni.
I would also like to take the opportunity to promote our cohort building programme which was shortlisted for a Times Higher Education Leadership and Management Award in 2015. 
We offer two types of provision under this programme; firstly we can tailor our courses so that they are more specialised for subject areas and secondly, we have funds available to support students who wish to undertake cohort building activities. To give you some examples, we have previously funded student-led symposia, journal clubs, sporting networking activities, and even funded a trip to the Eden Project for a group of students. I would encourage you to have a look at our cohort building website for ideas and submit an application!
As well as continuing to host the IgNobels, 3 Minute Thesis and Live Chemistry Show we will also be launching a brand new summer research showcase in July which celebrates the amazing research that postgraduates students carry out and to celebrate your achievements – look out for more information about this in our regular e-newsletters!
Once again, I hope you find the blog interesting and please do get in touch if you would like to write an entry for us. Hopefully I will meet some of you at our courses and events next year!
Laura