How to develop grit for the cold, hard world of higher education

By Laura.Duckett, 2 May, 2024
Three female swimmers getting ready to take the plunge
Advice on confronting higher-education-specific challenges
How to develop grit for the cold, hard world of higher education
Advice on confronting higher-education-specific challenges
Three female swimmers getting ready to take the plunge

In a field where competition and pressure to succeed are high, developing strategies to help you survive (and thrive) is key. Whether you’re a researcher facing rigorous peer review, an educator developing a curriculum amid a rapidly evolving digital landscape, an outreach worker seeking novel ways to connect with students or any other professional working in a higher education context, this collection aims to help you hone the skills you need, improve your well-being and cultivate resilience in the face of a range of industry-specific challenges.

Cultivating resilience
Resources
By Eliza.Compton, 12 September, 2023

An academic’s advice for navigating risk

Illustration of penguin ballooning over sharks, risk and uncertainty concept
From publication to grant applications, the rites of academia come with unfavourable odds. Yet researchers are rarely taught how to deal with uncertainty. Here, Yaniv Hanoch offers mitigation strategies
Reading time
4minutes
By kiera.obrien, 30 April, 2024

Flip the script on criticism

A man and woman discuss over a laptop
Criticism is a part of academic life, but you can reframe your perspective to embrace feedback constructively. Tan Xiang Ren offers advice
Reading time
4minutes
By Eliza.Compton, 7 February, 2024

Strategies for cultivating academic resilience

Young black woman rubs temples at laptop, frustration
In a career that will make you question everything, challenge and failure are tools for moving forward, writes Andrew Stapleton. Here, he offers techniques to build resilience after setbacks
Reading time
3minutes
A tree being blown by gale-force winds
By Eliza.Compton, 27 February, 2024

How to face adversity and change in higher education with resilience

Resilience concept
In times of stress and uncertainty, university leaders must model calmness, clarity and confidence in their ability to respond to and recover from challenges, writes Sonia Alvarez-Robinson. Here, she offers practical strategies based on her own experience
Reading time
3minutes
By dene.mullen, 27 August, 2021

Early career researchers can say no, too

Early career researchers must master the art of saying no and not be too eager to please
Coming up with a series of questions for ECRs about each ‘opportunity’ as it arises can help them decide what is worthy of their time, says Lucas Lixinski
Improving well-being in higher education
Resources
A woman with a hydrating face mask on relaxing in bed
Developing the right skills for a higher education environment
Resources
By Eliza.Compton, 1 May, 2024

Practical ways to ease presentation nerves

Woman giving a presentation
One way to offset public-speaking anxiety is to have confidence in your presentation. Brandi Quesenberry shares the keys to making your presentation shine and ensuring that it is memorable, impactful and successful
Building blocks ascending as a disembodied hand stacks them on top of one another
By Eliza.Compton, 5 March, 2024

Three principles for leadership in academia

Women in leadership concept
Reflecting on her personal journey, Catherine Moran shares the key guidelines that have shaped her leadership as a woman in higher education in times of change
By Eliza.Compton, 21 September, 2022

Classroom management techniques you don’t get taught

Man holding a mask
‘Fake it till you make it’ is a useful motto for new university teachers facing a classroom of antsy students for the first time. Here are seven basic skills to master
Reading time
3minutes