The EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Composites Science, Engineering and Manufacturing (CoSEM CDT) welcomed its second cohort of 12 PhD students on Monday 28 September.
Following introductions from the CDT Management Team, the cohort embarked on a fun afternoon getting to know some of the wider CDT student body and staff from the Bristol Composites Institute (ACCIS) by linking up over Zoom to play at being Mi5 recruits in a virtual escape room activity.
Over the course of their induction week the cohort will attend a mixture of skills training courses - including courses in responsible innovation, technical writing, and equality, diversity, and inclusion - and subject specific workshops. The induction programme draws on both external and in-house expertise with many of the activities being run by current CDT students themselves. For example, the ‘Top tips on getting the most out of your first CDT year’ workshop, run by the (now) second year cohort, always proves popular.
Like the CDT students before them, the cohort will undertake a 12-month taught component before embarking on their chosen PhD projects. They will therefore also be undertaking self-study modules over the course of the week, to help to equip them with the digital skills needed to get the most out of their online teaching.
CDT Director, Prof. Steve Eichhorn, said: “We are so pleased to welcome our second cohort of CDT students this year. Obviously, we would like to do this in person, but this is not possible at present because of Covid-19 restrictions. We recognise therefore the commitment of our new students to engage with us, even if it is virtual. I have great hopes for our students and I’m sure we will have a good time together in exploring composite materials!”.
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