Research culture: let's reimagine how we work together
We want to hear your solutions to improve research culture. As a funder we need to play our part, and your role is essential. Achieving a successful research culture needs collective responsibility and change at all levels. Your ideas will help us to craft a set of ambitious goals for creating a better culture.
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Thousands of researchers have taken part in the largest ever survey into experiences of research culture. Now we want to hear your solutions to some of the concerns that have been raised. Your ideas will help us craft a set of ambitious goals for creating a better culture.
Check out the ideas that have already been suggested below, comment and vote for the ones you think could make a difference. Or you can add your own idea following this format (you'll need to create an account to vote and add responses).
Add your idea:
Title of your idea/solution
Enter a short description (optional):
1) A brief description - who can make the change and how?
2) Examples of what you could do to support this change.
3) Stick to under 250 words.
4) If you want, you can tag your institution!
Help us make sure everyone feels safe and free to engage in discussions. Don't be rude, hateful or insulting--we will not tolerate this. You can respectfully challenge ideas but never attack the person. Check out our forum etiquette and moderation rules.
Find out more about Wellcome's campaign to reimagine research.
View All Ideasalmost 4 years ago
More flexible personal development - mixing your research with policy/industry engagement and reimagining how researchers are evaluated
More and more we rely on evidence-informed policies to determine impactful and positive change in society as well as responsible innovation in industry. Academics are particularly well suitable to contribute towards this goal and should be able to have the opportunity to more easily engage with policy/industry environments. I argue that as entrepreneurship is for industry we need to promote "advocacy/lobbying" for policy. My objective proposal is that we create a new type of fellowship/personal development scheme that allows researchers to develop their main research activities for 4days a week in parallel with 1 day where they can explore industry policy engagement. Obviously, we should also reimagine how researchers are evaluated and reward them based on the type of researcher they are: communicator, entrepreneur, activist (on top of the science they already do). #UCL
over 3 years ago
A new type of training position offering PhD studentship, Jnr Fellowship and Snr Fellowship combined (like UKRI Future Leaders Programme)
Feeling secure to pursue a career in research
almost 4 years ago
Minimise administration
I find that I am spending more of my time doing administrative duties than research. I think administrative duties can be cut down, by cutting out a lot of the unnecessary administrative duties, us PhD students need to do - there are a lot of them! e.g. reporting our activity ever 6 months, when löneenheten already have all our activity data; take away the quarterly-time review etc.
almost 4 years ago
Mutual code of conduct
For the lab, we create a code of conduct that is decided upon and agreed upon by all members of the lab. This could cover everything from how we conduct personal interactions, deal with conflict, timeliness. By all agreeing upon it, it holds everyone accountable.
almost 4 years ago
Turn Universities into evolutionary organisations, building healthy research cultures from the bottom up
Create spaces through training courses for academic impact champions, directors and deans with responsibility for impact and impact officers from professional services to empower colleagues to identify barriers preventing them from doing their best work. Give them permission to experiment, starting with easy, low-risk solutions they don't have to fund or ask permission for, building on what works and adapting what doesn't, to create their own research culture between them and their closest colleagues. At worst, it is possible to create a protective bubble in a toxic culture, but at best, when people are given permission and encouraged to experiment, unexpected new ways of working emerge and spread from person to person and group to group, with multiple cultures aligned with people's different values all emerging in parallel, to create a diverse and motivated body of researchers
