1 – Leave your preconceptions at home Don’t let what you see and hear about China and its people in the news influence your judgment. China is rich in history and culture, but it is still a developing country. A lot of progress has been made in many respects,…>
Career Development
National Natural Science Fund Grants – Processes and Applications
About the grants. In mainland China, most personal research support for discrete projects is provided through the National Natural Science Fund in the form of NSFC Basic Research Grants. The NSFC grants are aimed at promoting and financing basic and applied research in China and cover all natural sciences,…>
Academic Work In The Netherlands: What You Need To Know
The Netherlands can be a fantastic place for academics to work: salaries are relatively good, holidays generous, and there is a rigorous research culture, especially in science and technology. What do you need to know to take advantage of these opportunities? The structure of Dutch higher education. There are three…>
Chinese Government Initiatives for Recruiting Academic Staff and Developing the HE System
In the last two decades the Chinese government has introduced a number of initiatives aimed at building world class universities. These include the 211 project and the 985 project which were targeted at developing the research capacity of the Chinese higher education system. In addition, the government introduced the Changjiang…>
Understanding your role as a Lecturer
There was a time, not so long ago, when academic contracts contained no formal job descriptions, other than a vague injunction to ‘perform the wishes of the Head of Department’. This may no longer be the case, but reading a job description, or ticking a few boxes at annual performance…>
Using Research Skills Outside Academia
So you enjoy research. But you are unsure if an academic career is right for you. How else can you use your research skills? You may find a research post outside academia that uses the full range of your skills – perhaps in a biotech start-up or social policy ‘think…>
Teacher of English as a Foreign Language
Teaching English as a Foreign Language involves teaching in non-English speaking countries or teaching English to foreign students in an English speaking country. TEFL employment can be found in language schools, universities and colleges, private institutions and state schools. The key areas for teaching jobs are Asia (Korea, China and…>
Developing Cross-Cultural Skills
As academic jobs become highly competitive in Western Europe and North America, many entering the job market may not have a choice but to move overseas if they want to work in academia. Experts say one of the most important skills for academics moving abroad because of work is cross-cultural…>
Student Support Roles
With the advent of much higher fees, there has been an increased interest in UK universities in the issue of student satisfaction, with many faculties and departments hiring specialists to perform student-facing support roles to supplement the pastoral work of academics and administrators. Why might this interest you? In many…>
Academic Writing: How To Write A Textbook
This article explores an often neglected aspect of academic publishing: the student textbook. Many scholars regularly publish their research in journal articles or academic monographs but never consider writing a textbook. Why write a textbook? Many lecturers become frustrated because a course that they want to teach has no obvious…>