Digital Storytelling for Researchers

This training will introduce the concept of digital storytelling and explore its use as a tool to guide researchers to self-evaluate and recognize subject-specific practical and professional skills.  Immersive and practical, this training will take place in person at Loughborough University on 10th, 11th and 12th July 2023.  There will be a limited number of 12 places available, due to the nature of the training.  This training is aimed primarily at postdoctoral researchers and late-stage PhDs.

Over the three days, you will create your Digital Story – a short personal narrative multimedia film, telling the story of your research experience, using a few images and your voice.  Publishing your digital story on your webpage or including in your online CV will expand your audience and make your research more accessible.

Digital stories work best when there are rewards for both the storyteller and the viewer. Stories are always told from the perspective of the storyteller and for maximum benefit, it is vital to carefully choose the right story to tell.  In these workshops you will be asked to talk about your research experience since you have started your academic journey and your learning experience in relation to your current research.

All necessary information will be given during the workshops but to maximise opportunities, please read this page thoroughly and spend a little time preparing to make your digital story, by observing the list of ‘things to do’ and ‘things to bring’ below:

Things to do before the training:

1: Between now and the 10th of July, keep a few notes about your research and your learning experience in a format of your choice.

Here are some prompts to help you:

• What extracurricular (non-academic) experience has characterised your research experience?
• What aspects of your research are you most proud of/have excited you most?
• Is there any coherence between your learning experience and your other passions?
• Is there a person, a book, or an event/moment with a particular meaning for your learning experience?
• Why are you telling this story?
• What is unique to your story?

2: Find a personal object (or a picture of it), behind which lies a story that only you can tell. This object must connect you to your research and reflect your own values.

3: Write a first draft of a script for a Digital Story that you may wish to make in the training workshop. You might want to cover the above listed prompts in point 1 to write a draft. This draft should be no more than 150 words and should be considered as a starting point only.

4: You must be able to access your photos during the workshop, at a good quality. Therefore, either transfer your photos to a USB drive/ stick to bring with you, or upload your photos using a social network site, a server or cloud.

Things to bring to the training:

• Personal object or picture of it
• First draft of a script
• Photos on a USB drive or available online
• A USB stick (2 GB or larger) for use in the workshop
• Headphones or ear buds to listen to your soundtrack whilst editing
• Laptop

The sessions will allow you to create, revise and edit your story with expert mentoring and feedback. Once ready, a publication strategy will be planned to extend public engagement with your research.

How to apply:

You can book this training by following the ‘book online’ link below.  Please book only if you can commit to attending all three days of the training course.

Caring Support Fund

If you are accepted to join the training but your caring responsibilities could present a barrier to participation, you can apply for the Caring Support Fund to meet additional costs. The purpose of the C-DICE Caring Support Fund is to help postdoctoral researchers with caring responsibilities to offset the additional costs of caring incurred by taking part in a C-DICE activity. More details can be found here.

Travel Fund

C-DICE has established a fund to help postdoctoral researchers attend face-to-face C-DICE events where they may otherwise not have the funds to do so. C-DICE will contribute up to £150 towards the cost of travel and/or an overnight stay. Attendance at this training is eligible for a C-DICE travel grant. More details can be found here.