This blog post is part of a series of monthly posts detailing the activities of the DR President’s Team (President: Leah Henrickson; Vice-President: Hugh Tawell).

Note: This post refers to PhD/EngD Students as Doctoral Researchers (DR) and Postgraduate Researchers (PGRs). This is because the University uses the former language, and the Union uses the latter.

We had our fair share of April showers – can those May flowers please come quickly?

Although the undergraduates got a break during April, doctoral researchers kept plugging away at their work. Campus was quiet, but those PhD offices stayed bustling. It was nice to see some managing to get away for short holidays during this time.

Because we’re students too, we took a bit of a step back in April to plan for future months and give ourselves much-needed breathers. However, our friends at the PhD Social & Support Network organised lots of successful social activities throughout the month. They’re hoping to keep the momentum up, so keep your eyes peeled for invites to future Social & Support Network events!

Here’s what we got up to in April.

Research Committee Meeting

On 9^th April, Hugh represented doctoral researchers at the Research Committee meeting. These meetings offer the Associate Deans (Research) (ADRs) and other members of research support services from across the University opportunities to discuss research-related issues. A lot was addressed in the three hours, and there are some exciting things headed your way. Expect updates in the near future.

PGR Lead Rep Meeting

We met with PGR Reps from across the University on 24^th April. During this meeting, we discussed School-related issues and exchanged ideas for strengthening the research and social communities within Schools. We also got a sneak peak of the Doctoral College’s new course booking system, and had the opportunity to offer feedback to help ensure that it’s the best it can be.

Organising the PhD Awards

The time has come, folks – we’ve begun organising our PhD Awards! Nominations are now open until 17^th May at https://lboro.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/phd-awards. Help us celebrate the achievements of doctoral researchers and support staff by nominating your colleagues today.

The awards ceremony will be held on Friday, 5^th July from 6PM. Official invitations will be sent out closer to the date, but all doctoral researchers will be welcome to attend. We’re happy to report that we’ve received some funding for the event, so there will be nibbles in attention to great company and general joy.

Bonus: COMPLETE THE PRES!

If you are eligible to complete the Postgraduate Research Experience Survey (PRES), you will have received an email with a personalised link to the survey in March. Please complete the survey by 17^th May. Your feedback – positive and negative – is hugely important, and will help shape the future of doctoral programmes across the University.

Upcoming Events

We’re currently working on organising another low-key board games and karaoke night. Once we’ve sorted out the details, we’ll send an invite out via the biweekly Doctoral College bulletin.

Meanwhile, the PhD Social & Support Network is organising a cinema trip to see Avengers: Endgame on 3^rd May. After the film, they’ll pop by The Orange Tree for a tipple. Details are available at https://www.facebook.com/events/360807798111510.

If you want to keep up-to-date with our activity, join the ‘Doctoral Researchers of Loughborough University’ Facebook group and follow us on Twitter. If you’re a London student, join the ‘Loughborough Students’ Union London 2018-2019’ Facebook group.

Leah and Hugh.