PDP at the University of Limerick

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PDP at the University of Limerick

• November 7 2007

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What is a PDP and Why is it good for you?

• What- a structured and supported process
  undertaken by an individual to reflect upon their
  own learning, performance and/or achievement and
  to plan their personal, educational and career
  development
• Why-
• To become more effective, independent and
  confident self directed learners
• To understand how they are learning and relate
  their learning to a wider context
• To improve their general skills for study and
  career management
• Articulate personal goals and evaluate progress
  to achieve them
• Encourage a positive attitude to learning
  throughout life
• (information from Centre for Recording
  Achievement)

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Postgraduate Skills

• The new graduate must not only have specialist
  knowledge in their field, but also have a range
  of generic competencies required to participate
  in a workplace subject to constant change, the
  skills to continue learning throughout a
  professional life time and sufficient breadth of
  knowledge and understanding to reach to entirely
  new challenges and to place their work in a
  broader social and cultural context..(Irish
  Universities Association 2005)

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• 600 Students Graduated in 2003 with PhDs
• One to one individual skills development will
  not be feasible. As it is also anticipated that
  PhD graduates will increasingly work in a wide
  variety of areas, the need to acquire a broad
  range of transferable skills to function
  effectively nationally and internationally is
  recognized. Dr. Alison Farrell Maynooth 2007

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University of Strathclyde

• Shift from a content and skill focus and toward
  the mechanisms for transforming students to
  become more intentional and reflective learners
• Changing focus from teaching to student learning
• Crucial SPDP is owned and customized at
  Programme/dept level
• Borrowed Core Principles from Indiana State
  University
• Core Communication and Quantitative Skills
• Critical Thinking
• Integration and Application of Knowledge
• Intellectual Depth, Breadth and Adaptiveness
• Understanding Society and Culture
• Values and Ethics

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University of Central Lancashire

• Efforts were made for Departments to take
  ownership of their own approaches.
• Employability is the tool used for managing
  students motivation (Adapted from Leeds
  University Pauline Kneale
• A way to a more overt way to drawing attention to
  what is being done. actively reflect
• Core to UCLAN PDP
• Self Awareness
• Reflection
• Team Group Work
• Career Planning

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University of Chester

• PDP introduced in 1998/99
• Notable advantages
• Increasing the students share of responsibility
  for his/her learning.
• Creating links between subjects/discipline
  leading to a more holistic approach to study.

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University of Leeds

• Database of materials from the workplace on
  performance development planning.
• Professor Pauline Kneale is actively involved in
  evolving PDP for students and focuses on
  Motivating SPDP

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PDP Why bother?

• Some concerns about PDP
• More demands on staff ( student) time
• More paperwork
• Just Paperwork- whats the point
• Students have already done this at school

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Why bother?

• Students take responsibility for their own
  learning
• Students become more effective, independent,
  confident and self directed
• Students understand how they are learning and
  relate their learning to a wider context
• Students improve their skills for study and
  career management
• Students can define personal goals and evaluate
  progress to achieving those goals

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What are the benefits of a PDP

• Structured, systematic and reflective learning
  process
• Identifies strengths and weaknesses
• Develops skills valued by employers
• Keeps you up to date
• New Knowledge
• Enhances your career prospects
• Improved academic performance
• Helps shape your future needs

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Some student responses to PDP

• I was surprised, it seemed to be a waste of time
  at first, but I now realise what a help doing
  some planning can be.
• Recording helped me realise what I have learnt
  this year.
• I know I should be using it more, I am not good
  at this sort of thing, so having to do it for my
  tutor would be useful.
• I assess what I am doing myself, I dont need a
  book to help me.
• My first year tutor did lots on this with us,
  but the one we have now said he thought it was a
  waste of time so I havent looked at it since
  last summer. 
• taken from comments made by students in
  Geography and Earth Science (courtesy of Prof
  Pauline Kneale, School of Geography, University
  of Leeds)

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Skills Audit

Gap Analysis
as required
Plan PDP Long term Short term
Evaluate PDP Experience
Do PDP
Record and Assess PDP
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Student response to survey (87 UG in Geography
surveyed)

• Your PDP is private to you. Do you want staff to
  write in it?
• 80 responded yes
• It needs to be a dialogue, otherwise I cannot be
  interested.
• When should it be done?
• I think time should be set aside for them so it
  does not feel a hassle
• Each term is about right (majority)

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Response to survey

• Question on format and style of PDP
• - PDP with open ended questions allows more
  effective reflection
• - I like tick boxes as well as general
  questions
• - It should not be in the form of tick boxes as
  this encourages laziness
• - Tick boxes are good
• - I think it should be open and not constrained
  or structured, this way people give their honest
  views how they see it rather than accommodate a
  structured method 
• - Suggest a mix of styles and prompts would be
  useful

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Guidelines for PDP

• Research Skills and Techniques
• Research Environment
• Research Management
• Personal Effectiveness
• Communication Skills
• Networking and Team Working
• Career Management

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What are employers looking for?

• Willingness to learn
• Team work
• Enthusiasm
• Motivation
• Initiative
• Leadership
• Commitment
• Interpersonal skills
• IT Skills
• Problem solving ability
• Organisational skills
• (Source Association of Graduate Recruiters AGR)

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Next Steps

• Anne ODwyer will be advertising the PDP pilot
  program over the coming weeks
• At the moment students will receive a certificate
  of participation on the PDP
• In the future the PDP will be accredited

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PDP Student Employability examples

• Skills development
• Subject-specific skills profiles (Subject Centre
  for PRS) including
• mapping of TRS graduates abilities against
  employer requirements
• reflective questions to aid TRS graduates in
  identifying and articulating their capabilities
• Modelling PDP on employers CPD processes
• NTF project (University of Leeds)
• Based in Geography, but largely generic in
  content
• Includes some public sector charity examples
• http//www.geog.leeds.ac.uk/courses/other/performa
  nce/pdpindex.html

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How to motivate participation in PDP for
students?

• Ensure that we communicate (explicitly) the
  potential benefits of PDP (as discussed earlier)!
• Not just more of the same (cf. school Records
  of Achievement)
• Lead by example! if staff value PDP, so will
  students
• Recognise their efforts (accreditation?)
• Emphasise link with employability
• Employers value graduates who are reflective, and
  capable of managing their own learning, personal
  professional development
• But they are generally interested in the PDP
  process, rather than the product (progress files)

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Next Steps

• Supervisors PDP introductory meeting
• Finalize PDP documentation
• Graduate Student PDP introductory meeting
• Deliver a 4 hour program on designing an
  Effective PDP