The DTA Training Programme enhances your doctoral training by:

• drawing on the expert support network and world-class facilities available across the consortium of University Alliance and DTA partner universities across the UK in order to offer you a broad range of specialist and universal skills development elective workshops
• integrating you within a nationwide network of peers; as a DTA researcher, you are part of a cohort of peers that accompanies you across the different stages of doctoral study and puts you in contact with others sharing your research interests

As a DTA researcher you will receive regular updates from the DTA Team on training opportunities and activities available throughout the year; and you will be able to view and book your place via the Events pages. We offer a range of online and in-person activities, which cover a range of topics (see DTA Training Themes below) and these pages will provide you with tips, resources, links and guidance documents aimed at supporting your PhD studies.

All DTA researchers are also able to benefit from the training opportunities available at their host instutitions. Each DTA partner university has its own researcher development programme, which is normally run by your doctoral or graduate school. If you are looking for an area of skills development that is not covered by the DTA programme, it may be available within your university. Your supervisor or your institution’s DTA programme lead will be able to provide more information about this. Find out who your university’s DTA programme lead is in the DTA University Services Directory. If there is an area of training that you feel you are missing, please get in contact with the DTA Team dta@unialliance.ac.uk

DTA Training Themes

The DTA programme includes training that supports the skills development of researchers from across all DTA programmes. To help you make sure that you are making the most of the broad range of skills development opportunities available for DTA researchers, DTA training opportunities are organised around a series of 4 themes - outlined below. Where possible, over the year DTA researchers should try to attend at least 1 training event belonging to each theme. To help you manage your own training plan, the themes are mapped to the Vitae Researcher Development Framework (RDF).