Make the most of Professional Development

Doctoral candidates at JCU undertake the subject RD7003 Professional Development as part of their degree. This subject requires completion of 40 hours of professional development, or 10 points in the Leadership and Initiative category. MPhil candidates may opt to undertake the subject RM7003 Professional Development, but are not obliged to do so.  If they do opt in they will complete 10 hours of Flexible professional development, or 3 Leadership and Initiative points.

RD7003 and RM7003 allow you the flexibility to put together a program of professional development that best suits your career aspirations. Make the most of it, and start planning early.  Whether you wish to become an academic, or go on to a career in the many sectors that welcome the skills you hone during HDR candidature, you and your advisory team can design a PD program that will give you the attributes that employers are looking for.

Professional development activities undertaken during your candidature will be formally recorded on your Australian Higher Education Graduation Statement (AHEGS), so future employers can see your achievements.

While the Graduate Research School offers a wide range of both face-to-face workshops and online modules that you can use to build your PD program, you are not restricted to the GRS offerings. You can choose to undertake a JCU undergraduate or postgraduate subject (usually at no cost to you), or you may look further afield to courses and workshops outside JCU. You are strongly encouraged to work with your advisory team to formulate a personalised Professional Development program that suits both your project and your career aspirations.  The Flexible Component of your program can be what you want it to be, within broad guidelines and with the agreement of your advisory team. Check the RD7003 or RM7003 Subject Outlines for details.

Login to SkillsJCU to see what workshops and online modules are available.

You are also welcome to make your selection from the wide range of external courses offered by other providers.  You may use your student funds to pay for external courses, so long as your advisory team agrees.  For a range of external courses, see External Training Opportunities. Of particular interest are the eGrad School, which offers highly regarded training that many JCU HDRs have undertaken.

Also, the Australian Consortium for Social and Political Research Incorporated (ACSPRI) runs excellent courses, as does Coursera.