It was a pleasure to see so many of you at the YGRS induction on 30 September. Thank you for your enthusiasm - I hope this has been sustained in looking after your herb plant if you managed to pick one up! Your next opportunity to meet with us in YGRS will be our PGR Drop-in sessions, hosted jointly with York SU. The next in-person drop-in will be on Monday 26 October 2.00pm - 3.00pm in Wentworth Graduate Common Room (B/R/016). There will not be any plants on offer, but there will be pizza. On the same day, there will also be an online drop-in at 6.30pm - 7.30pm. In the absence of the invention of teleportation devices, we are unfortunately unable to provide pizza for that. Please email ygrs@york.ac.uk if you would like to join the online drop-in.

I’m really grateful to all of you who responded to our request to complete the YGRS housing and commuting survey. Last time we checked we had over 400 responses, which is getting on for one third of the YGRS community. I think there will be plenty of ‘survey karma’ as a result (IYKYK). As part of the same project, the PGR Experience Committee considered a report from Centre for Women’s Studies PGR Lindiwe Seotsanyana. Lindiwe has recently completed a placement with YGRS as part of the same project and interviewed 16 York PGRs about their housing and commuting experiences. We have identified some areas to work on and will be combining insights with the survey research to create an action plan based on the findings in due course. In the meantime however, Lindiwe’s research highlighted that some PGRs are not aware of existing housing information and support. So, I would especially like to draw your attention to support the University offers around private sector housing, including some dedicated events, and a Student Housing Advisor. There is also a rent guarantor scheme. On a different topic, but perhaps the same theme, new PGRs in particular may not be aware that it is possible to get a firstname.lastname@york.ac.uk email alias. To do this, you must submit a request for this change via itsupport@york.ac.uk.

Finally this month, here at YGRS we were so inspired by the PGR-led conferences which featured in last month’s Newsletter that we have decided to encourage more. We spoke nicely to the University’s Research Culture Working Group, and they are also keen - so keen in fact that they have approved some funding to support this. We will be sharing details of a PGR-led conference funding competition later in the academic year. But for now, please get thinking: we will be putting out a call for proposals for PGR-led, interdisciplinary conferences around a research theme. We are hoping to support at least four such proposals, and we plan to reserve at least one of these for proposals led by distance-learning PGRs.

Best wishes, 
Paul
Dean of the York Graduate Research School

Many thanks to everyone who came to our PGR induction event at the end of September; it was fantastic to see so many of you there. If you missed the event, or just want a refresher on the information covered, our induction web page now has a recording and slides from the presentations. If you haven’t already, please fill out our short induction feedback form and let us know if you found the event useful!

Want to make sense of what PhD study looks like? Our Postgraduate Researcher Development Journey plots out the key stages of your research degree. From laying the foundations at the start, progressing in the middle stage and then finalising and completing in your final year, our Journey lets you know what you need to do, what to expect and the support and training available to help you along the way.

As we begin the new academic year, it’s timely to remind our community that academic freedom and freedom of speech are embedded in our University Charter and governed by UK law. The University and York SU have worked together to agree our joint Code of Practice on Academic Freedom and Freedom of Speech which ensures that all members of our community can engage in vigorous enquiry, discussion and debate. We are a Community of Respect and it’s important that we share our views and challenge each other fairly and thoughtfully. Read our Statement on Academic Freedom and Freedom of Speech.

If you haven't already done so, you should complete the Respect at York on ‘Understanding consent and being an active bystander’ training on the VLE.

Student Connect is a great way to meet fellow graduate research students at York and expand your academic network. From Monday 19 October, you can apply to join Student Connect to be connected with up to five other PGRs in a group. You’ll also have the chance to meet your connections at events on campus and take part in some fun activities.

The Postgraduate and International Communities team has just launched our full schedule of trips and events for this semester. Check out the forthcoming trips to Whitby and Manchester, plus York’s Rawcliffe Country Park Bonfire and Fireworks Display! See also:

Remember, we offer lots of support and advice for international students, including English language support. Starting soon, our General English Conversation short course is ideal for students with at least a B1 level or equivalent in English who wish to improve their speaking and listening skills and their overall ability and confidence to communicate in English.

The Research Culture and Researcher Development training web pages showcase our full range of development opportunities for PGRs. You can view our upcoming training sessions for October and beyond, or browse by training theme.

Open research practice enables a wide range of audiences to freely discover and engage with our excellent research, makes the research process transparent, and creates new opportunities for outputs and methods to be reused, reproduced and credited.

The Open Research team, based at the Library, provides guidance and training to help you plan, publish, preserve and share your research. Find out more about the team and how to contact us for online or in-person support.

Open Research in Practice case studies provide personal perspectives into how researchers at York have benefited from, and been challenged by, the adoption of open research in their work.

In the first new case study for 2026/27, Making Waves of… Words: Promoting Transnational Literature Through Public Engagement, Alice Flinta (PGR, Centre for Women’s Studies and Research Associate, Department of English and Related Literature) describes how a participatory map-making workshop for York Festival of Ideas led to wider conversations and reflections on feminism and migration.

Join the White Rose University Press (WRUP) on 17 November as they celebrate their 10th anniversary with an event celebrating their achievements, looking ahead, and discussing the future of the scholarly book. Colleagues, contributors and friends are warmly invited to what will hopefully be an enjoyable and thought-provoking event! Book your place.

Our online Writing Retreats give you time, peace, and space to fend off procrastination and beat writer's block. Each session will provide a friendly and constructive environment in which to meet like-minded peers, discuss challenges and work in a focused way using the established Pomodoro technique. Retreats are run by a network of Universities including York, but you can attend any session. See the full calendar of planned sessions (UoY login required).

If you are using citizen science methods for a research project, or thinking about the possibility, you can book a free advice session with the CS Co-labs team to discuss any questions you have. Learn more and sign up.

Interested in teaching at our Mumbai campus? The Emeritus & University of York: Academic careers in India online event on Tuesday 3 November will outline opportunities for late stage/recently completed PGRs to teach at the Mumbai campus, followed by a Q&A.

Venture Scientist 100 helps the best scientists start companies from their research while they're still in academia. Apply by 6 December 2026 or join our next discovery session.

Apply for up to £5000 to showcase innovative and responsible uses of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) within the doctoral research ecosystem. Learn more and apply here before 31 October.

Recruitment fairs take place on 21 October (Law Fair) and 22 October (Graduate Jobs) at the National STEM Learning Centre. Employers will be promoting their graduate programmes, but some of these will be open to postgrads. It’s also an opportunity to find out more about specific organisations if you plan to apply for other roles - use the links above to find lists of attending employers. The Careers Work Wardrobe and free professional headshots for LinkedIn will also be available.

See all current Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) teaching opportunities on Handshake.

If you're planning to teach as a GTA at York, you need to complete Introduction to Teaching and Learning training first. There are three different workshops; you should complete the one recommended by your department. For any queries, please contact the Academic Practice Team: academic-practice@york.ac.uk.

The York Festival of Ideas is now open for event submissions celebrating York research. PGRs are invited to contribute to the programme, which will run from Saturday 5 to Friday 18 June 2027. Deadline: Monday 2 November.

The Research Culture and Researcher Development Team are running several workshops on/relating to Public Engagement over the next few weeks:

Discover our range of social sports sessions, including postgraduate exclusive sports! Whether you fancy an afternoon run around campus or a game of Badminton, we’ve got something for you. Best of all, it’s free! Discover Social Sport at York.

Academic Reps represent peers on their course or within their department or faculty on issues that matter to them. Find out more about becoming an Academic Rep.

Crate to Plate is back for the semester, meaning you can grab yourself free food products from The Lounge every Wednesday until the Christmas vacation period. Find out more about Crate to Plate.

Join us for the Language Cafe - a relaxed and inclusive space for students to practice languages, share cultures, and connect with others from around the world, hosted in The Kitchen.

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