We had our QMRI TechNet launch last Thursday with representatives from TSSG (Natalie Homer), central HR (Joanna Fairweather), IAD (Nicola Cuthbert), Go Abroad (Lesley Balharry), Athena Swan (Carmel Moran) and Sustainability (Andrew Arnott) delivering us much sought after information and resources.  The aim of the meeting was to bring together the technical community across the […]

As a member of the Technicians Support Steering Group, the Launch Event of Edinburgh University’s Technicians Commitment at McEwan Hall on the 5th of December was a fantastic day, and I was so proud to see our year’s work and effort rewarded with so many engaged and enthused technicians attending. It was such a fantastic […]

What is your role? Along with my colleague Kirsty Hughes, I am an Easter Bush Wellbeing Champion. Working with many colleagues across the campus, we have established a joint venture bringing together wellbeing activities which are inclusive for everyone, be they academic, technical and support staff, student, or any other role within our diverse community. I […]

The aim of the Core Technologies for Life Sciences (CTLS) is to ‘bring together scientists, technical and administrative staff working in or in close association with core facilities, research infrastructures and shared resource laboratories in life sciences and biomedicine’.  The third biennial CTLS conference was held from 1st– 4th July 2018 in Ghent at the […]

by Jenni Dyer (Institute of Physics), Kate Jones (University of Liverpool), Laura Marshall (Royal Society of Biology) & Kelly Vere (Science Council & University of Nottingham).  This post originally appeared on the Science Council website, who provide the quality assurance system for those working in science.   The Technician Commitment is bringing much needed visibility and recognition […]

Technicians are often a department’s most experienced fixture, says Kelly Vere – so why are we still invisible to the sector? This month has been a good one. I’ve had my first ever scientific book chapter published, taught an excellent cohort of students in a lab class, had a paper accepted in an international journal, become a […]

This year’s networking event was held at Napier University on 29th May at the Sighthill campus, organised by our coordinator, Val Gordon. I believe it fair to say that there was an impressive number of attendees, travelling from many of Scotland’s top universities including: Edinburgh, Dundee, Stirling, Abertay, [Glasgow], Strathclyde, Glasgow School of Art, Heriot Watt, the […]

An invitation from our Physics tutor, Nick Hood to visit the Royal Observatory Edinburgh with our Professional Graduate Diploma in Education Physics students provided a fantastic shared experience and a good visibility, recognition and development opportunity for me. As a technician, it was good to be included and feel valued as part of the student experience. […]

When applying for jobs the hardest part is getting past the first hurdle and getting selected for an interview. The following tips are focused particularly on technician roles and are taken from my experience of reading and selecting applications as well as talking to various student groups, especially at the Napier University career fair which is […]

A Technical Support Career at The University of Sheffield by Frank Fletcher RSci MIScT Team Leader, Technical Support Services, Dept. of Materials Science & Engineering “My career began at the University of Sheffield on the 9th of July 1973 as Junior Laboratory Technician in the Department of Glass Technology at Elmfield, Northumberland Road. The role of […]