Creative Cuppa

　　
　　

　　
　　
RTIF funded awarded
　　
Creative Cuppa has been awarded a £2000 grant by RTIF (Roberts Funding) through the University of Leicester Graduate Office. This will serve as an operating budget, under the supervision of the Department of Media and Communication and overseen by Dr. Gillian Youngs and Mr. Jin Shang. Dr. Gillian Youngs has been nominated as Chairing Director and Mr. Jin Shang as Project Manager & Operating Director.
　　
　　
Research Training Innovation Fund (Roberts’ Fund)
　　
The Research Training Innovation Fund (RTIF) is designed to support innovative skills and career development training for PhD students and research staff.
　　
Sir Gareth Roberts’ report on postgraduate research and training “Set for Success” (2002) highlighted that many PhD students were lacking the skills that employers were seeking. In response, the government has supplied money to each university, through the research councils, specifically for the skills development of research students and postdoctoral researchers. This money is commonly referred to as “Roberts’ Money”.
　　
Within the University of Leicester, some of the Roberts’ money has been used to set up a Research Training Innovation Fund, which is managed by the Research Training Committee. The purpose of the fund is to provide access to Roberts’ Money to all members of the university who are interested in organising training and development initiatives.
Guidance notes
　　
To qualify for funding, the initiatives must satisfy the requirements of the Roberts’ agenda. The best description of the types of training that the Roberts’ money can be used for is in the Joint Skills Statement of the Research Councils. This encourages the development of research skills, communication skills, project management skills, writing skills, organisational skills, teaching/training skills, management skills, and networking skills.