For researchers planning to move to the UK, interested in finding career development opportunities, it is important to see what your host institution offers. In the UK, universities and research institutes should be the first point of contact for advice as they often offer a number of key services, which may include the following:
Careers Service or Department where researchers can get tailored support and advice.
Staff Development – bespoke training opportunities offered within individual institutions or departments.
Mentoring schemes – some institutions offer opportunities for researchers to learn from more experienced colleagues or across different sectors.
Networks – there are often other formal/informal local networks where researchers can find additional support.
Knowledge transfer schemes – these exist in most institutions and provide important advice around commercialisation of research and other industry related considerations.
It is important to find out what your institution offers early on in order to take full advantage of their services.
EURAXESS Centres offer personalised career advice to researchers applying to their institution. You can find further information on UK EURAXESS Centres here
Development Resources for Researchers
The EURAXESS portal hosts a large range of freely available, quality assured resources to support researcher career development. These resources are available to researchers tat sign up to a account on the EURAXESS platform
Through a range of online tools, EURAXESS supports researchers directly through the process of thinking about their careers, planning their development trajectory, and then in developing the appropriate enabling skills. Whether it is about engaging with academia or industry, receiving support from career development centres or finding useful information and training resources, the collected resources are a valuable resource to any aspirational researcher. Explore the resources here
Development Resources for Organisations
EURAXESS also offers resources for research supporting institutions. EURAXESS member organisations offer free and easy-to-use resources and tools for high-standard career development services. More information on what is available and how to access it can be found here.
Vitae - Career Development Centre
Vitae is the EURAXESS Career Development Centre for the UK. They provide a great deal of support and information in the field of Career Development. These include publications, regular events and community of support.
Vitae have also developed the Researcher Development Framework, a tool to help researchers identify and develop key skills, behaviours and attributes for successful researchers.
In order to access all Vitae’s resources you will be required to become a member for a fee, however, it may be that your institution has membership.
More information can be found at Vitae.
Europass CV and European Skills Passport
Europass is a European Union initiative designed to help people make their skills and qualifications clearly and easily understood when moving around the Europe Union. The UK no longer participates in the Europass initiative. The Europass tools are still available to UK citizens to use.
It helps provide information, where it is needed, from articulating skills gained during time spent within Europe, to giving a more detailed breakdown of an academic award. If you are looking to work or study in Europe then Europass can provide you with the means to effectively promote your skills and competences. It is free to use and recognised all over Europe. It's objectives are to help citizens communicate their skills and qualifications effectively when looking for a job or training opportunities; to help employers understand the skills and qualifications of their workforce; and to help education and training authorities define and communicate the content of curricula.
More information can be found at Europass.