The PhD and missing skills: capacity and capability building for social science engagement with industry

Abstract

Responding to a call for a national level change around the quality of research teaching to identify and meet industry needs, and to this being interdisciplinary, this paper reports on Business Booster Training. Produced with 3 UK universities, intersecting with knowledge exchange and impact teams and with a national Graduate School of Social Sciences, the training took place over 4 days, at 3 sites, and delivered, incrementally, the skills PhD researchers need to engage with industry: event 1 - to build confidence in use of industry-related terminology; event 2 – to practice translating research ideas for industry; event 3 – to pitch research ideas to actual industry partners. Thirty places were available nationwide, and over 100 applicants from across Scotland. Low attrition (from one event to the next) indicates the quality of the training. The paper will reflect on this incremental strategy as a pedagogic innovation, building relationships between the next generation of social scientists and our business communities. Feedback revealed that interacting with other students, engaging directly with colleagues from industry and finding relevance to their own research and research strategies, were highlights of the training. The training succeeded in improving confidence and skills around working with businesses.