The Assessment Support Hub is the result of a 12month + project, under the Education and Skills Strategy, delivered by staff across the Directorate of Education and Student Services, and which has been informed by valuable input from students and colleagues across the University.

The aim of the Hub is to empower students as healthy learners, enabling them to gain the knowledge and skills they need to navigate assessments throughout their academic journey, and promoting active engagement with the various supports and resources available to successfully complete their assessments to the best of their ability.

Other vacancies are often advertised externally and are on the Job Vacancies page.

For career updates, staff can also follow the Recruitment team on Twitter: @QUBWorkHere

This policy has been introduced as part of Queen's commitment to Open Research and our response to Open Access requirements from our research funders, including cOAlition S funders such as UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), and funders that align with Plan S principles such as the Wellcome Trust.

Policy details

Queen's Research Publications and Copyright Policy is subject to the University's IP Policy and supersedes the University's Open Access Policy.

The policy will apply to all:

• academic and research staff currently employed by Queen's University Belfast where the University owns the IP as per the IP Policy;
• scholarly articles and conference papers submitted for publication from 1 November 2023 onwards.

If you have any queries regarding the proposed changes, please contact pensionshelpdesk@qub.ac.uk. 

1. Survey: Please take part in the online survey on business-related travel (including locally, on the Island of Ireland, in GB and internationally) and your expectations of the University in terms of sustainability and travel on University business.
   
   Take part in the survey here.
   
   
2. Workshops: We will hold three workshops to consider the feedback from the Survey, discuss best practice in the sector and help develop ideas which are relevant to Queen's and Strategy 2030 and which help us meet our net zero commitments.
   
   The workshops will be held on:
   
   • Tuesday 10 October: 9.00am to 11.00am, The Cube, One Elmwood. Register here.
   • Wednesday 11 October: 1.00pm to 3.30pm, Lanyon Building, Room 0G/074. Register here.
   • Thursday 12 October: 12.00pm to 2.00pm, Online, Microsoft Teams. Register here.

All staff are encouraged to join.

This work is underway in a direct response to the University's Net Zero Plan. 

The University’s Net Zero Plan 2040 was developed through extensive consultation in 2022-2023 and approved by Senate in June 2023. We will formally launch the Plan in mid-Autumn 2023.

Background

In our last Staff Survey, four out of five colleagues told us they believe Queen's respects individual difference. We want to continue to work together with staff and students to build on this solid foundation.

The University has launched a consultation seeking the views of staff, students, Trade Union representatives and external consultees on our new Equality Scheme and draft Action Plan 2024-2029. The consultation ends at 5.00pm on Monday 23 October 2023.

Underpinning Strategy 2030 and our People and Culture Plan, the Equality Scheme and draft Action Plan reflect the University's commitment to sustaining and developing a work, study and research environment that recognises, values and celebrates the diversity of our staff and students.

The documents set out our arrangements for fulfilling our statutory equality duties and our plan for their implementation.

We aim to share the final Equality Scheme and Action Plan with all staff and students early in the new year.

This event welcomes new staff members, students, and their families to celebrate cultural diversity with a taste of mooncakes and an appreciation of magic and guzheng music performances contributed by Queen’s Chinese alumni.

* Please note: for catering purposes, in-person attendance is limited to a maximum of 60 people. This is on a first come, first served basis.

* This presentation is limited to 80 attendees who will be contacted by Information Services to confirm their attendance.

For queries, please contact Staff Wellbeing: wellbeing@qub.ac.uk.

This is a fantastic opportunity to come and have fun singing with musician and choir leader Una McCann, who will take you through uplifting songs from genres including blues, pop, Americana, gospel and world music.

Rehearsals take place every Friday, commencing 15 September, from 1.10pm to 1.50pm in the Harty Room, Music building.

Hosted by Pete Snodden and Rebecca McKinney, the Opening Ceremony will feature the One Young World Flag Ceremony, welcoming leading figures in politics, sport, entertainment, and activism and comprise addresses from the One Young World founders.

Oscar-winning actor James Martin will open proceedings. Local arts organisation ArtsEkta and DJ Kwame Daniels will offer an evening of entertainment along with up-and-coming musicians and instrumentalists such as Stephen Loughran and Unity Irish Dance.

Applications for tickets will be open from Monday 18 September at 9.00am GMT and close on Monday 25 September at 5.00pm GMT.

Please note:

• If you are successful in the ballot for tickets, you will need to collect your ticket from One Elmwood reception during the week commencing 25 September. You will be notified via email if you have been allocated a ticket.
• Those in receipt of tickets will make their own way to and from the event.
• The ticket is for the opening ceremony only and not to the One Young World Summit.
• As an inclusive venue SSE Arena is committed to ensuring that services are accessible to all visitors. If you require information or assistance regarding accessibility, please visit the venue's website: SSE Arena Belfast - Accessibility

*Accompanying adults do not need to be under 30.

The Queen’s Annual Fund supports a range of workshops, initiatives, events and productions. In 2022-23, £132,704 was disbursed to 55 projects, benefiting hundreds of students, alongside significant projects to support student scholarships and student entrepreneurship.

Examples from staff projects last year include:

• Centre for Public Health – student-led podcast series for people with visual impairments
• SU Volunteer – community impact and neighbourhood engagement initiatives
• Widening Participation Unit – mindfulness and wellbeing workshops for mature students
• Queen's Accommodation – 'easels of Elms/Elms through history' interactive discovery trail

In line with this, we would ask all managers and staff to familiarise yourselves with the following commitments. It is important that you play your part in ensuring our campus offers a welcoming environment for breastfeeding.

• Breastfeeding is welcome in all areas of the campus which are open to the public.
• Do not ask a mother who is breastfeeding to move to another area or stop breastfeeding.
• Be supportive of the needs of any breastfeeding mothers on University premises.
• If your area has been provided with the ‘Breastfeeding Welcome Here’ window stickers or certificates, please display them as appropriate in your area.

The idea behind the initiative is to complement the University’s existing student welfare provision through ‘out of hours’ onsite support (provided by SOS volunteers) for those students in urgent need of assistance and help. Students who want to chat with an SOS volunteer will be able to have a coffee and a bun in the library.

SOS Bus is a non-judgemental safe space where trained volunteers provide welfare support, first aid, mental health intervention and community safety. All SOS volunteers are fully trained and are easily recognisable by their bright yellow shirts.

* This is also a great opportunity to find out more about the work of the SOS Bus at first hand. Please note: while you will not be involved in conversations with students, you will play an important role in supporting the SOS volunteers.

This initiative is fully supported by the University’s Student Wellbeing Service.

• Dr Ashleigh Hamilton: Cancer is rising in under-50s – but the causes are a mystery
• Dr Áine Aventin: Women's sexual desire often goes undiscussed – yet it's one of their most common health concerns

• Queen’s academic elected to the International Commission of Jurists
• Statement from Queen’s University Belfast on rejoining the Horizon Europe science-research programme
• Queen’s announces Pro-Chancellor and Honorary Treasurer appointments
• Queen's University Belfast announces rebranded Business School
• Michael Hofmann appointed Seamus Heaney International Visiting Poetry Fellow at Queen's

Protest has been a key method of political claim-making in Jordan from the late Ottoman period to the present day. More than moments of rupture within normal-time politics, protests have been central to challenging state power, as well as reproducing it—and the spatial dynamics of protests play a central role in the construction of both state and society.

In this talk based on her new book ‘Protesting Jordan: Geographies of Power and Dissent’ (Stanford University Press, 2022), Jillian Schwedler considers how space and geography influence protests and repression, and, in challenging conventional narratives of Hashemite state-making, offers the first in-depth study of rebellion in Jordan.

This event, chaired by Professor Louise Mallinder (Queen's University Belfast), is hosted by the Senator George J. Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice in collaboration with the Human Rights Centre, School of Law, Queen’s University Belfast.

• 28 September: Introduction to open scholarship. Register here.
• 19 October: Preregistration. Register here.
• 9 November: Non-traditional outputs. Register here.
• 30 November: Big Team Science. Register here.

Please bring your own hot drinks and snacks.

Session details

• 28 September: Introduction to open scholarship. Open scholarship encompasses open research and education practices. In this session, we will provide an introduction to open scholarship.
• 19 October: Preregistration. Preregistration involves publishing your methodology, data collection and analysis plan before the study starts. We will discuss what this involves and how to do it.
• 9 November: Non-traditional outputs. We will discuss alternative research outputs to traditional journal publications and academic books, including how to get them recognised.
• 30 November: Big Team Science. Big Team Science involves bringing many researchers together to work on one research question. We will discuss this, including how you can get involved in Big Team Science projects.

About ReproducibiliTea

ReproducibiliTea is a multidisciplinary discussion group centred on conducting reproducible and open scholarship. In each session we discuss a different topic related to these themes.

Find out more about the group and how to join in. (https://osf.io/2rgth/). You can also keep updated by joining Reproducibilitea's Teams channel.

Join ReproducibiliTea's organising committee

ReproducibiliTea is looking for an enthusiastic first- or second-year PhD student to join its organising committee. If you know a PhD student who may be interested, please ask them to email Bethan Iley (biley01@qub.ac.uk).

Last year, ReproducibiliTea won funding from The Graduate School and were finalists in the SU Awards's 'Best Student-Led Initiative' category. The group has more ambition this year, so it is a great time to get involved.

Please note: the only dogs permitted to the event are working or assistance dogs.

For all communications enquiries, please contact d.rogers@qub.ac.uk.

Once your idea is put forward, the Medialab can draw up a brief and make it available to the students. Medialab has a class of 40 students, who will be split into groups to explore the viability of each idea.

* More information, including project examples, are included on the above form for reference.

Medialab staff are also happy to meet with you at a time that suits you to discuss further.

This session will be delivered by an external facilitator from Elsevier, and is designed to provide attendees with essential insights into how SciVal can enhance their research journey.

During this session, attendees will gain a foundational understanding of SciVal and learn how it can be used to:

• monitor the impact of your published research;
• stay informed about current trends in your academic discipline;
• discover potential collaborators to expand your research network;
• identify new and exciting research topics.

* A recorded version of the training session will be made available on the Research and Enterprise Intranet site for those unable to attend in person.

Additional training sessions will be added based on demand.

Find out more about upcoming impact and engagement training.

One of the key challenges in commercialising University research is access to the early stage funding necessary to take a novel idea to an early stage of proof, thereby validating the commercial potential in order to attract additional investment. To overcome this funding challenge, the University has developed a ‘Proof-of-Principle’ (PoP) programme to support projects with significant potential to deliver economic impact via either licensing or creation of a spin-out.

The award of up to £10,000 is intended to move the projects to the next stage of proof.

AHRC and BBSRC IAAs

Funding is available to support researchers to further the impact from their research through project activity, placements/fellowships with external organisations, partnership development and the commercialisation of research.

Please email iaa@qub.ac.uk to discuss potential applications.

ESRC IAA

The ESRC IAA supports impact from social science research at Queen's. Funding (up to £15k) is available for impact initiatives, commercialisation, fellowships and partnership building. Applications are welcomed from staff across the University working on social science research.

MRC IAA

Funding is available to support researchers accelerate the transition from discovery research to translational development projects via the Confidence in Concept (up to £75k) and Enterprise Fellowships (up to £20k) funds.

Please email iaa@qub.ac.uk to discuss potential applications.

The projects require engagement with a non-academic collaborating partner. The collaborating partner should be jointly involved in devising the research programme. Additionally, each project requires:

• The student to receive workplace supervision by a named person from the collaborating partner (NB: this workplace supervisor will not be a formal academic supervisor);
• The student to spend at least three months with the collaborating partner who should pay any associated travel, accommodation or subsistence costs; and
• The collaborating partner to demonstrate their commitment to the project through a matched cash or in-kind contribution. NB: For-profit partners must contribute direct funding (cash contribution) to the project of at least £27k over the course of the project.

Partnerships with private sector industry, government departments/agencies, NGOs, charities and voluntary sector organisations that meet the above criteria will all be considered. This opportunity is open to both UK and non-UK collaborating partners organisations. For non-UK collaborating partners, supervisors should discuss and agree how the student placement aspect of the Collaborative studentship will be met.

More information: Collaborative Studentship Applications 2024.

• Cinema Rediscovered: Midnight Cowboy
• Dazed and Confused
• A Little Life

Still Showing

• Past Lives

Staff tickets are priced at £6.00 (standard ticket price £8.40). If you’re 26 and under join LUMI to get tickets for £4.50 everyday, all year round.

Delivered by pan-disability organisation Disability Action and public transport provider Translink, this 'Link & Learn' session will give employers practical advice on how they can support and meet the needs of disabled people in the workplace.

Sessions will include the opportunity for Q&As. Diary invites for both sessions will be emailed the day before each session.

Line managers who know of any staff who would benefit from this information session, due to their caring responsibilities, should encourage them to attend.

The course is designed to empower all staff working across the University, providing a baseline knowledge and understanding of mental health, and enabling staff to learn how to effectively signpost students who are experiencing a range of mental health difficulties to appropriate support services and apply knowledge to real life situations through relatable scenario-based examples.

Throughout the course there are links embedded in the course to direct staff to important (support) services, informational websites and the staff contact form for student wellbeing service. Upon completion of the course there are downloadable PDF documents for staff to takeaway key learning outcomes and resources from the course.

Staff can complete the course independently online, and it can become part of staff inductions. Tom Magee (Student Support Liaison Officer) is available to deliver face-to-face sessions, or there will be live sessions in The Cube and advertised on iTrent throughout the year.

Register for a face-to-face/live session here

(ISSN 2752-6895) 

'AI Lunchtime Bytes' training series

• Wednesday 11 October, 1.00pm to 1.45pm – AI Appetizer: Crafting Powerful Prompts
• Wednesday 18 October, 1.00pm to 1.45pm – AI Toolkit Showcase: Beyond Chatbots
• Wednesday 25 October, 1.00pm to 1.45pm – Bytes of Inclusion: AI's Impact on Accessibility

Further information

The AI Hub's goal is to elevate teaching, enrich learning, and prepare for the future. Throughout AY2023-24, the 2030 Digital Education Team is focusing on collaboration, partnerships, and ethical AI practices. If you are passionate about AI and would like to join our AI discovery working groups or have questions, please get in contact: AI-Hub@qub.ac.uk.

We are excited about the possibilities that AI brings, and we believe that together, we can shape a future where AI enhances our educational experiences and equips us with the skills needed for success.

This event is an opportunity to connect and exchange ideas with colleagues from various faculties, and CED will facilitate discussions on how it can enhance its support throughout the academic year.

This workshop is specifically designed for individuals who possess little or no prior knowledge on how to integrate EDI principles into the module lifecycle. It serves as an entry point into this important realm of academic practice.

Staff unable to make this event can complete this MS Form to register their interest in future events.

This programme will run over 22 weeks with a mix of 10 Teams meetings and online activities that will contribute to the continuous assessment.

It is intended that you will transfer new-found knowledge to adapt or change the way you work to improve the student experience.

This award recognises the importance of Academic and Professional Services Leaders who have a pivotal role at Queen's. You may join this programme whether you are from a professional service or academic role. Those in leadership roles in the Students’ Union would also be eligible for this programme.

There will also be a series of lunchtime forum discussion sessions that will help build a learning community.

Participants will:

• Identify their own professional development goals, directions or priorities;
• Plan for their initial and/or continuing professional development;
• Undertake appropriate development activities;
• Review their development and their practice, and the relations between them.

For any queries about the Digital Experience Insights Survey, please email ced@qub.ac.uk.

Thank you to all teaching staff who participated.

Introduction

The launch of Panopto is an exciting opportunity to enhance Learning and Teaching at Queen’s and is also a step forward towards providing more advanced technology tools that can cater to other business areas within the University.

Panopto is a cloud-based platform enabling account holders to record live content including:

• lectures within centrally bookable teaching spaces using in-room camera and microphones
• content from the office, home, or any teaching or event space
• on-screen presentations and desktop content; video and audio
• audio

Content can be stored and shared, with options to restrict or widely distribute access. The platform also offers the ability to create live Webcasts which can be stored and downloaded. Panopto offers desktop applications compatible with both MacOS and Windows devices, and a feature-rich web environment for editing and sharing content.

As well as a direct sign-in option for Panopto account holders, the Panopto platform is integrated with Canvas VLE, allowing all students automatic access to view recordings and submit assignments. Panopto account holders can also access Panopto from within Canvas Courses to create and view content.

Roll out, Onboarding and Support

Learning and training for the platform will be cascaded by Panopto experts and Administrators to Champions across Schools and Directorates who will provide a more local presence to their user groups including tailored training to suit any specific requirements within a School or Department.

Find your local Panopto Champion here.

Training is also provided by the Staff IT Training Unit.

What does this mean for MediaSite?

Mediasite will continue to be available on a read-only basis. This will allow existing service users access to recorded content with no change to the way they access the service. Content currently available via Canvas VLE will also remain accessible and available to staff and students with no change.

In due course, MediaSite-recorded content will be migrated to Panopto. Staff will be made aware of this activity at a later date.

With Panopto, you can upload, create, edit and share videos with your students in Canvas and it can also be used by students to create video assignments.

Queen's Panopto Training and Support

Panopto Support Articles

Getting Canvas Ready

Access the Canvas Course Set Up guide for step-by-step instructions and video tutorials on preparing your course in Canvas for the new academic year. Remember to publish your course and content before the term begins. The 'Go Live' Checklist will help ensure everything is in place. Also, new VLE Templates are available to support the application of VLE Minimum Standards, co-designed by students to ensure consistent presentation and layout across courses. Find guidance on accessing, importing, and customising templates here.

Semester 1 Training Events

Semester 1 training is now live on the Training Events calendar. Filter by category and browse what's on offer this semester. Book your place early to avoid disappointment.

Need a 1-2-1 Consultation?

Book a 30-minute virtual session with a Digital Learning Developer from your Faculty, School or VLE Pedagogy Support Team (subject to availability).

Check availability and book a consultant.

• Introduction to Power Automate: 3 October, 9.30am to 10.30am
• Excel 1: Essentials: 4 October, 10.00am to 11.00am
• Canvas and Accessibility: 4 October, 1.00pm to 2.00pm
• Vevox – Getting Started: 4 October, 2.00pm to 3.00pm
• #QUBeWell: Supporting Student Mental Health and Wellbeing: 4 October, 3.00pm to 4.30pm
• Build a SharePoint Online Site using Web Parts: 6 October 10.00am to 11.00am
• An Introduction to Site Settings (main focus ‘Site Contents’) in SharePoint Online: 6 October, 12.00pm to 1.00pm

If your School or Directorate requires IT training for staff, geared towards a specific area or set of tasks, email itcourses@qub.ac.uk and we will arrange a consultation.

View additional training materials here