Professional development

planning using the Vitae RDF

and RDF Planner
Jen Reynolds, Partnerships Manager
Objectives
A recap about PDP and the RDF and how they
can be used to:
prepare for one-on-one reviews with your supervisor or principal
investigator about your development as a researcher
identify your strengths and areas for further development
provide a language to evidence your skills to current and future
employers
Ways to make the most of the RDF and RDF
Planner
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Are you engaged in PDP?
PDP is
A structured and supported
process undertaken by an
individual to reflect upon their
own learning, performance
and/or achievement and to plan
for their personal, educational
and career development.
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
PDP cycle
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
REFLECT
Identify
strengths
PLAN
Plan actions
DO
Carry out
actions
REVIEW
Review
achievements
RECORD
Create portfolio
of evidence
REPORT
Report on
progress
What are the advantages of
PDP?
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Advantages to PDP
Understanding how you tick:
Strengths
Weaknesses
Directions for change
Learning style
Responsibility for your own development
Articulate your skills and knowledge
Focus, motivation, confidence
Make more informed choices
www.vitae.ac.uk/careers www.palgrave.com/skills4study/pdp
Vitae, The Careers Research and Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Benefits of reflective practice
Reflective practice can lead to deeper levels of
learning (Barrett, 2004) and is a central element of
effective professional development.
Reflective learners are likely to be more self-critical,
self-aware, independent in their learning, motivated,
self-managed and open to feedback and different
approaches.
Your level of achievement can be raised by
engaging with reflection (Becta, 2007).
References:
Barrett, H. (2004) Electronic Portfolios as Digital Stories of Deep Learning: Emerging Digital Tools to Support Reflection in
Learning-Centered Portfolios. [Online] Available at: http://electronicportfolios.org/digistory/epstory.html
Becta (2007) Impact of e-portfolios on learning. [Online] Available at:
http://partners.becta.org.uk/index.php?section=rh&catcode=_re_rp_02&rid=14007
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
What makes a successful
researcher?
What:
Knowledge
Skills
Qualities
Behaviours
Etc
would they exhibit?
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Researcher Development
Framework (RDF)
RDF is a framework for planning, promoting
and supporting the personal, professional and
career development of researchers
How was it created?
Core of the framework consists of data drawn
from over 100 interviews
Phenomenographic method identified over
1,000 characteristics and their variants
Input from experts, specialists and stakeholders
Clustered into the 4 main areas or Domains
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
www.vitae.ac.uk/rdf Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Strengths of the RDF
By researchers for researchers
Use of a common language
National consistency
International competitiveness
Independent resource
Highlights value of developmental opportunities
Supports you to take control
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
How the RDF can help you
Personal and professional development
Understand your strengths
Identify areas for development
Set goals
Self-assessment and review
Job applications
Thinking about promotions
Transferable skills
Broadens your view of available career options
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Ive always thought of myself as being quite ambitious, driven
and focussed on what I want, but the framework made me
realise I can have a much larger visions.
It was very good for me to reflect.
I realised that nothing is stopping
me but myself. The sky is the
limit.
Think about staging the
targets; what can I do
smarter, what training do
I need to request and
what do I need someone
else to facilitate so that I
can move forward
I now have a path that I
would like to follow
I would see this [RDF] as a
barometer...to give me a bit
more clarity about what areas I
could develop and what might
be most important. Its
something I could keep
returning to
It put career development back into the forefront
of my mind as it can often slip back when youre
engaged in what youre doing day to day.
The RDF identified areas for
me that I needed to hone and
really made me think about my
career development. Ive
highlighted things now that I
know I need to do.
What weve always tried
to do with the postdocs
[in Edinburgh] is say
'look this is your career
and its your
responsibility'.
Read it carefully and be
honest about where you
are. You dont always
have to aim for phase 5 -
identify shorter term goals
that are more achievable.
The RDF will encourage me to be
more proactive about my career
development as it provides me with a
framework (list of milestones).
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
What are your priorities?
Which areas do you consider to be most
important for your immediate
development?
Select ONE domain per group
Sort into important and not important
Select top 3 descriptors as a group
Consider which phase most applies to you
right now
Prioritisation through your
aspirations
In groups pick a role from the selection
that you might aspire to
Map the job specification to the RDF
Have you developed these areas
already?
Are there areas you need to work on?
Do these areas match those you
previously picked?
RDF lenses
Articulating your evidence
Why is this important?
Where would you need to
do it?
Which resources would
you draw on?
Image used:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bujiie/5440377935/
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Articulating your evidence
Pick a descriptor
Articulate skills (STAR)
Encourage better answers
Critical & constructive
feedback
Understandable?
Confident?
Waffle?
Jargon?
Improvements?
Image used:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bujiie/5440377935/
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
STAR
Situation
How, when, where, with whom?
Task
Describe the situation or the task you
were faced with
Action
What action did YOU take?
Result
What results did you
achieve/conclusions did you
reach/learn from the experience?
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Action planning
Where am I
now?
Where do I
want to be?
Whats
stopping me?
How do I get
there?
How will I
measure my
progress?
Taking action
SMART
Specific
exactly what you need to achieve
Measurable
includes a quality or quantity measure
Achievable
can be challenging but must be achievable
Realistic
do you have enough resources/time/help to make it happen
Timebound
clear end point or timescale given
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
What now?
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited
Top tips
Dont wait for anyone else (!), build in time for
you. PDP is YOUR priority!
Use the toolkit weve been through today:
Prioritise areas, discuss, explore and benchmark
with colleagues
Understand where you currently are, note and
create great examples to use in future
Plan, take action, and reflect! Again and again
Further information
RDF Planner: www.vitae.ac.uk/rdfplanner
RDF: www.vitae.ac.uk/rdf
RDS: www.vitae.ac.uk/rds
RDF profiles: www.vitae.ac.uk/rdfprofiles
Contact: rdf@vitae.ac.uk
Vitae, The Careers Research and
Advisory Centre (CRAC) Limited