Events and Training

HDR Orientation: Master of Philosophy and PhD Candidates

Join us at orientation to meet the Graduate Research School team, learn about opportunities and support for HDR candidates, and meet your colleagues.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Social Media for Researchers: Beginners' Workshop

This session is designed for researchers who have an online presence but lack confidence, are passive social media users looking to become more active, or have no social media experience and want to learn about these platforms.

Excel for Researchers (Intersect)

We will teach you how to use one of the most widespread data wrangling tools, Microsoft Excel, to import, sort, filter, copy, protect, transform, summarise, merge, and visualise research data.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

HDR Identifiers: The IDs you need and why you need it (Library)

High Degree Researchers need to create some identifiers to ensure they meet their candidature milestones. These identifiers, ORCID and Google Scholar, can be complex to set up in the first instance, but are easy to maintain.

Social Media for Researchers: Advanced Workshop

This workshop is for researchers who are already active on social media and want to enhance their skills, continue sharing their work effectively, and gain advanced insights from a social media expert.

Introduction to Research Data Management (Intersect)

All HDR candidates are required to develop a Research Data Management Plan and this session will help you understand what you need to do and how to think proactively about your data.

Getting started with NVivo for Windows (Intersect)

Does your research see you working through unstructured and non-numerical data? With the ability to collect, store and analyse different data types in one location, NVivo is the tool of choice for many researchers.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Systematic and Complex Reviews: An Overview (Library)

This session is one of a two-part series in Complex Review training. Are you writing a Scoping, Rapid, Umbrella, Systematic, Integrative or Meta-Analysis review? Join us as we uncover what makes a good complex review.

Surveying with Qualtrics (Intersect)

Qualtrics in a powerful cloud-based survey tool, ideal for social scientists from all disciplines. This course will introduce the technical components of the whole research workflow from building a survey to analysing the results using Qualtrics.

Advanced Database Searching Techniques (Library)

This session will demonstrate advanced database searching techniques aimed at people undertaking traditional literature reviews and/or people who want to develop a robust and comprehensive search strategy.

Data Capture and Surveys with REDCap (Intersect)

Would you like to enable secure and reliable data collection forms and manage online surveys? Would your study benefit from web-based data entry? Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) might be for you.

Systematic and Complex Reviews: The nuts & bolts of systematic searching (Library)

This session is the second of a two-part series in Complex Review training, looking at using a framework to develop or deconstruct a research question, organising a concept table, and applying Boolean and complex search strings in subject-specific databases.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Introduction to Research Data Management (Intersect)

All HDR candidates are required to develop a Research Data Management Plan and this session will help you understand what you need to do and how to think proactively about your data.

Researcher Productivity, Wellbeing and Values

Through presentations and discussions among participants, this workshop will explore what values are important to you, how are they reflected in your work and strategies for forming research support networks.

Research Essential Training: Systematic and complex reviews: An overview (Library)

This session will provide an overview of the different review types and their purpose, including what ingredients make a good complex review and protocols, inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Learn to Program: R (Intersect)

R is quickly gaining popularity as a programming language of choice for statisticians, data scientists and researchers. But getting started with R can be challenging, particularly if you’ve never programmed before. That’s where this introductory course comes in.

Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Competitor Preparation Webinar

If you are interested in competing in the 3MT Competition, join us at this session to find out more about how to prepare a winning presentation and slide.

Research Essential Training: Advanced database searching techniques (Library)

This session will cover how to break down a research topic into searchable concepts, including using a logic grid to structure your search, searching tips and how to set alerts for newly published content.

Research Essential Training: Systematic and complex reviews: The nuts and bolts of structured searching (Library)

This session will cover the steps to undertake a complex review, including using a framework to develop or deconstruct a research question, organising concepts, applying boolean and applying complex search strings in subject-specific databases.

Introduction to Research Data Management (Intersect)

All HDR candidates are required to develop a Research Data Management Plan and this session will help you understand what you need to do and how to think proactively about your data.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Data Manipulation and Visualisation in R (Intersect)

Join us for a live coding workshop where we write programs that produce results, using the researcher-focused training modules from Intersect and the Software Carpentry Foundation.

HDR Orientation: Master of Philosophy and PhD Candidates

Join us at orientation to meet the Graduate Research School team, learn about opportunities and support for HDR candidates, and meet your colleagues.

The Writing Process: Structuring Your Research Paper

This session will cover strategies for structuring your research paper, including modes of writing, argument logic, paragraph structure, and how to write topic, supporting and conclusion sentences.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Ethics Information Session (Research)

This session will run quarterly and is targeted to all HDR candidates commencing their second quarter (prior to their Confirmation of Candidature). The session will explore human ethics, animal ethics, biosafety and radiation safety and provide practical advice about preparing your ethics application.

Collaborative Research: Experiences, Tools and Strategies

By sharing experiences through real stories, discussions, and practical insights, we will explore strategies for building strong collaborations, navigating challenges, and leveraging tools for effective collaboration with fellow researchers and industry partners.

Learn to Program: Python (Intersect)

Learn about the fundamental concepts in programming using Python and apply them to analyse a sample research dataset.

Research Essential Training: Systematic and complex reviews: An overview (Library)

This session will provide an overview of the different review types and their purpose, including what ingredients make a good complex review and protocols, inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Pre-flight Startup Pre-accelerator (Launch Pad)

This program will focus on 1) Developing base entrepreneurial capabilities; and 2) Focusing on ideation by helping new founders to explore and select the idea they want to commercialise.

HDR Identifiers and Why you Need Them (Library)

This session will help you creating verifiable research identifiers and understand their purpose, including ORCID and Google Scholar.

Data Manipulation and Visualisation in Python (Intersect)

Explore DataFrames in depth, and learn about Data Manipulation and Data Visualisation in Python using the pandas, matplotlib and seaborn libraries.

Creative Commons Licensing: Unlocking Open Knowledge

Do you want to expand the reach of your research, teaching materials, or publications? Join us for an engaging session on Creative Commons (CC)—the global standard for sharing work legally and openly.

Thesis Writing for English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EALD) Candidates

This session will explore what constitutes good academic writing in English, including tips for writing good academic sentences, writing cohesive academic paragraphs and writing about the ideas of others using evidence and referencing.

Research Essential Training: Systematic and complex reviews: The nuts and bolts of structured searching (Library)

This session will cover the steps to undertake a complex review, including using a framework to develop or deconstruct a research question, organising concepts, applying boolean and applying complex search strings in subject-specific databases.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Develop a publishing plan: Strategic publishing for HDR Candidates (Library)

Developing a clear publishing plan can help you stay on track and boost your academic profile.

Discover Western Open Books: Open Access Publishing at Western (Library)

This session will showcase how Western Open Books supports academic authors in publishing free, peer-reviewed, globally visible scholarly texts and open textbooks, aligned with Western’s values of equity, excellence, and impact.

Introduction to Research Data Management (Intersect)

All HDR candidates are required to develop a Research Data Management Plan and this session will help you understand what you need to do and how to think proactively about your data.

Thesis Writing Circle (Library)

Are you keen to improve your thesis or publication writing skills? Or perhaps you want to improve the way you give feedback? Come along to our thesis writing circle where we will read and give feedback on new candidate writing samples each session.

Thesis Editing for Beginners (Library)

We will take a look at editing and proofreading, the different levels of editing, the role of feedback in editing, how to proofread, and the technicalities of editing.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Research Essential Training: Advanced database searching techniques (Library)

This session will cover how to break down a research topic into searchable concepts, including using a logic grid to structure your search, searching tips and how to set alerts for newly published content.

Surveying with Qualtrics (Intersect)

Qualtrics in a powerful cloud-based survey tool, ideal for social scientists from all disciplines. This course will introduce the technical components of the whole research workflow from building a survey to analysing the results using Qualtrics.

Fast Track to Funding Success

This session will focus on what funders look for in researchers and research projects, leading into tips on how to position yourself right from the start to increase your chances of getting grants.

Research Essentials: Scoping Reviews and structured searching (Library)

If you are new to scoping reviews, this presentation will help you understand how to define the characteristics of scoping reviews, structure your review, build a search strategy, and search subject specific databases.

The Power of Industry Engagement in Doctoral Research: Why It Matters and How to Start

Explore how doctoral researchers can build meaningful collaborations with industry partners, equip themselves with strategies to connect, communicate, and co-create knowledge with professionals.

Excel for Researchers (Intersect)

We will teach you how to use one of the most widespread data wrangling tools, Microsoft Excel, to import, sort, filter, copy, protect, transform, summarise, merge, and visualise research data.

Getting started with NVivo for Windows (Intersect)

Does your research see you working through unstructured and non-numerical data? With the ability to collect, store and analyse different data types in one location, NVivo is the tool of choice for many researchers.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Data Capture and Surveys with REDCap (Intersect)

Would you like to enable secure and reliable data collection forms and manage online surveys? Would your study benefit from web-based data entry? Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) might be for you.

Thesis Writing Circle (Library)

Are you keen to improve your thesis or publication writing skills? Or perhaps you want to improve the way you give feedback? Come along to our thesis writing circle where we will read and give feedback on new candidate writing samples each session.

Introduction to Research Data Management (Intersect)

All HDR candidates are required to develop a Research Data Management Plan and this session will help you understand what you need to do and how to think proactively about your data.

The ABCs of Impact (Research)

Understanding research impact is essential for HDR candidates looking to make meaningful contributions beyond academia. This workshop provides a foundational exploration of research impact—what it is, why it matters, and how to embed impact strategies throughout the research project.

Ethics Information Session (Research)

This session will run quarterly and is targeted to all HDR candidates commencing their second quarter (prior to their Confirmation of Candidature). The session will explore human ethics, animal ethics, biosafety and radiation safety and provide practical advice about preparing your ethics application.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Enhancing Research Skills with the New EBSCOhost Platform

EBSCOhost is an intuitive online research platform that provides quality databases and search features to help researchers find the information they need fast.

Research Essentials: Scoping Reviews and structured searching (Library)

If you are new to scoping reviews, this presentation will help you understand how to define the characteristics of scoping reviews, structure your review, build a search strategy, and search subject specific databases.

Selecting the Right Publishing Outlet and Crafting a Strong Research Paper

Practical advice about navigating the publication process, from identifying the right publishing outlet to writing a high-quality manuscript.

Research Essential Training: Systematic and complex reviews: An overview (Library)

This session will provide an overview of the different review types and their purpose, including what ingredients make a good complex review and protocols, inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Learn to Program: R (Intersect)

R is quickly gaining popularity as a programming language of choice for statisticians, data scientists and researchers. But getting started with R can be challenging, particularly if you’ve never programmed before. That’s where this introductory course comes in.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

HDR Orientation: Master of Philosophy and PhD Candidates

Join us at orientation to meet the Graduate Research School team, learn about opportunities and support for HDR candidates, and meet your colleagues.

Surveying with Qualtrics (Intersect)

Qualtrics in a powerful cloud-based survey tool, ideal for social scientists from all disciplines. This course will introduce the technical components of the whole research workflow from building a survey to analysing the results using Qualtrics.

Research Essential Training: Systematic and complex reviews: The nuts and bolts of structured searching (Library)

This session will cover the steps to undertake a complex review, including using a framework to develop or deconstruct a research question, organising concepts, applying boolean and applying complex search strings in subject-specific databases.

Introduction to Research Data Management (Intersect)

All HDR candidates are required to develop a Research Data Management Plan and this session will help you understand what you need to do and how to think proactively about your data.

The Writing Process: Structuring Your Research Paper

This session will cover strategies for structuring your research paper, including modes of writing, argument logic, paragraph structure, and how to write topic, supporting and conclusion sentences.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Longitudinal Trials with REDCap (Intersect)

REDCap is a powerful application for managing longitudinal data collection activities. With features such as organising data collection instruments into predefined events, you can shepherd participants through complex surveys at various time points with very little configuration.

HDR Identifiers: The IDs you need and why you need it (Library)

High Degree Researchers need to create some identifiers to ensure they meet their candidature milestones. These identifiers, ORCID and Google Scholar, can be complex to set up in the first instance, but are easy to maintain.

Research Impact in Action

Research Impact in Action takes a look at non-academic impact, the different categories of impact and how to achieve them in different fields of research. It also covers the pathway to create impact, the elements of successful impact; as well as impact activities and how they relate to the impact types.

Thesis Writing for English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EALD) Candidates

This session will explore what constitutes good academic writing in English, including tips for writing good academic sentences, writing cohesive academic paragraphs and writing about the ideas of others using evidence and referencing.

Systematic and Complex Reviews: An Overview (Library)

This session is one of a two-part series in Complex Review training. Are you writing a Scoping, Rapid, Umbrella, Systematic, Integrative or Meta-Analysis review? Join us as we uncover what makes a good complex review.

Unlocking Career Success with JobIQ

An interactive workshop with tailored resources and real-world insights, this session will help you identify transferable skills, explore diverse career opportunities, and build professional networks.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Thesis Writing Circle (Library)

Are you keen to improve your thesis or publication writing skills? Or perhaps you want to improve the way you give feedback? Come along to our thesis writing circle where we will read and give feedback on new candidate writing samples each session.

Systematic and Complex Reviews: The nuts & bolts of systematic searching (Library)

This session is the second of a two-part series in Complex Review training, looking at using a framework to develop or deconstruct a research question, organising a concept table, and applying Boolean and complex search strings in subject-specific databases.

Getting Started with NVivo for Windows (Intersect)

Does your research see you working through unstructured and non-numerical data? With the ability to collect, store and analyse different data types in one location, NVivo is the tool of choice for many researchers.

Systematic Review Technology: Now and for the future with Covidence (Library)

Find out more about the existing, new and upcoming features in Covidence that can maximise the efficiency of your literature review, including data extraction and reporting.

AI Skills - Bridging Research and Industry: A Forum for Researchers, Supervisors, and HDR Candidates

This forum will bring together researchers, supervisors, industry professionals, and HDR candidates to discuss how AI competencies cultivated in research environments transfer to various career trajectories, emphasising the long-term value of these skills.

Presenting Your Research (Library)

This session will cover strategies for writing and delivering successful research presentations, including knowing your audience, creating good visuals and responding to questions.

Research Essentials: Scoping Reviews and Structured Searching (Library)

If you are new to scoping reviews, this presentation will help you understand how to define the characteristics of scoping reviews, structure your review, build a search strategy, and search subject specific databases.

Introduction to Research Data Management (Intersect)

All HDR candidates are required to develop a Research Data Management Plan and this session will help you understand what you need to do and how to think proactively about your data.

HDR Congregate and Write (Library)

Join us for fortnightly writing sessions using the Pomodoro technique to write in 25-minute concentrated blocks with breaks to chat with your colleagues.

Research Essentials: Gold standard searching for systematic reviews across multiple databases

This session will solely focus on translating one search strategy across multiple database platforms.

Language for Literature Reviews (Library)

This session will cover the process of conducting a literature review, how to analyse and synthesise sources, how to structure your literature review and what type of language to use.

HDR Conference Day 1

This candidate-led conference offers you the opportunity to present your research or learn about the research happening across our Schools and Institutes.

Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Final

From Research to Readership: The Art of Crafting Public-Audience Articles

HDR Conference Day 2

Sustainable Development Goals Hackathon (registrations open soon)

Research Pulse: Candidate Presentations (schedule available soon)

Interview with an Early-Career Researcher

Keynote and Panel Discussion: Generative AI and the Impact on HDR

Excel for Researchers (Intersect)

We will teach you how to use one of the most widespread data wrangling tools, Microsoft Excel, to import, sort, filter, copy, protect, transform, summarise, merge, and visualise research data.

Enhancing Depth and Breadth of Research Discussion

Explore strategies for deepening research discussions while broadening perspectives, ensuring a well-rounded and critically engaged approach to scholarly work. Learn how to critically engage with literature, synthesize diverse viewpoints, integrate interdisciplinary insights, and structure compelling discussions in your writing.

Introduction to Research Data Management (Intersect)

All HDR candidates are required to develop a Research Data Management Plan and this session will help you understand what you need to do and how to think proactively about your data.

HDR Orientation: Master of Philosophy and PhD Candidates

Join us at orientation to meet the Graduate Research School team, learn about opportunities and support for HDR candidates, and meet your colleagues.

Introduction to Research Data Management (Intersect)

All HDR candidates are required to develop a Research Data Management Plan and this session will help you understand what you need to do and how to think proactively about your data.

Critical and Creative Thinking for HDR Success

Explore how to integrate creative and critical thinking skills across the research lifecycle—from formulating compelling questions and navigating methodological challenges to analyzing data with depth and presenting findings in engaging ways.

Ethics Information Session (Research)

This session will run quarterly and is targeted to all HDR candidates commencing their second quarter (prior to their Confirmation of Candidature). The session will explore human ethics, animal ethics, biosafety and radiation safety and provide practical advice about preparing your ethics application.