Introduction

Aimed at Research Staff planning an academic career, we will focus on what you want from your first lectureship, how you can benchmark yourself against the competition, and what you can do to increase your chances of success.

The programme requires a substantial time commitment from you, however, in return you will gain personalised feedback, a strengthened CV and specific actions to take.

The programme is an opportunity for you to:

• reflect on what you want from an academic career
• understand and explain what you offer a potential academic employer, and understand and address what is missing
• prepare to market yourself effectively in terms of the varied aspects of academic roles (research, teaching, knowledge exchange, leadership)
• gain practical tips and experience to effectively plan and refine your applications
• become more focused on and prepared for the recruitment process
• gain valuable insights and personal feedback on how you present yourself and your work to potential employers.

To gain the maximum benefit from the programme, you will be required to commit to attend all workshops, as well as undertake some preparation and homework between sessions. Please note that the sessions rely on peer group working and are not suitable for opting in and out of sessions.

The programme will be managed by the Researcher Development Manager, run by an external trainer and professional services staff, with opportunities to meet junior and senior academic staff who will share their experiences with you.

Academic Career Academy 2025

Application guidelines

• The programme will run from January to June 2025. All of these sessions will be run in person. There will be 4.5 days of organised events (one day every 4 weeks, 3 full days and 3 half days), plus participants will be expected to undertake some preparatory work and homework between sessions.
• This programme is for staff interested in pursuing an academic career and who are planning to apply for their first lectureship position within the next 2 years.
• Awardees are expected to participate fully and demonstrate regular progress to remain on the programme
• Staff need to have a contract till at least the end of June 2025 to take part.

Application process

• The programme will open for applications on Friday 29 November 2024 and close on 7 January 2025
• Your PI/line manager is required to authorise your application
• The outcome will be announced to applicants by Thursday 9 January 2025
• Please submit your application to resdev@bath.ac.uk before 16:00 on Tuesday 7 January 2025

Have you missed the deadline? Please contact Annali at the email address below and ask to be put on a waiting list for future programmes.

Programme timetable

Venue to be confirmed.

Feedback from participants

'Attending the Academic Career Academy gave me a lot of insight into what an early career researcher needs and how to be competitive. It did not stop at telling me what to do, they showed me how to do it. A lot that money can never buy, thank you very much.'

'Participating in the Academic Career Academy was highly rewarding in teaching me to become proactive in seeking out opportunities to succeed as an independent academic. I would recommend this programme to researchers on the verge of applying for permanent posts looking for guidance in the application process, as well as to postdocs interested in making the most of their time in order to boost their career prospects.'

'The ACA has probably been the single biggest beneficial experience of this academic year for me. It has supported me being objective when evaluating myself, my skillset and my prospects, developing a balanced view of my career, and gaining more confidence in my capacity to affect change in order to progress.'