The Routledge Companion to Research in the Arts

Contexts

Generic training workshops

as was noted in relation to definitions of the trained researcher, there are a number of
skills areas not necessarily related to the specific doctoral research project, but which
nevertheless should be available to doctoral students. i think one should bear in mind
here the different types of studentship. some students are more exclusively project
focused than others, and not all are necessarily preparing for an academic research
career. Teaching and mentoring skills fall in to this category. many research students
are keen to develop these skills as part of a rounded profile, especially those who are
seeking to work full- time in higher education. my own institution, for example, offers
a short programme for research students who teach. This provides a valuable training
opportunity even if it is not directly related to the phd project. This level also includes
specialist training, in areas such as intellectual property for example, where the benefit
depends on bringing the knowledge back and applying it at subject level. many
institutions offer a menu of short courses and workshops that students can attend, and
some specify a minimum requirement in terms of the number of courses students should
attend in their first year (and in some cases subsequent years). These are usually offered
on an institution- wide basis and take place away from the students’ home department
or school. The extent of this type of research training provision varies from institution
to institution, with the more research intensive universities, which typically have a
large numbers of doctoral students, able to sustain a wider offering.
There is a question, both here and at subject level, of whether research training
should be assessed. Whilst a good doctoral education will include the development of
skills across the range, the traditional examination focuses almost exclusively on the
thesis as the outcome of the research. institutions vary in this respect; some (including
my own) assess students on their initial programme of research training. The purpose
here is both to instil a sense of discipline and to diagnose any problematic areas at an
early stage. some institutions monitor attendance only. others do neither. a minimum
requirement, in my view, is the use of an annual monitoring process requiring students
and supervisors to reflect on progression and identifying specific areas where further
research training may be necessary or desirable.
Whilst there is no inherent priority in the four levels i have outlined, it is my belief
that research training should take its lead from the needs of the subject and the student,
building from there outwards and not the other way around.

Developing the research training curriculum

in this final section, i want to turn my attention to some of the challenges that i
believe currently face those devising the curriculum for research in the creative arts
and design. notwithstanding the issues of definition and organization set out above, i
think there is an emerging consensus around the need to provide generic training for
doctoral students. This marks a stage in the maturity to doctoral study in the creative
arts and design. Creative arts research is therefore at a critical juncture. The debate
over its place in the academy is over; it has been won. There is some unevenness of
course. There is still an open question concerning what proportion of creative arts and
design academics one might expect to hold a phd. The evolving relationship between