HDR Boot Camps

Published in the Research School of Physics Event Horizon
Vol46 Issue12 29 March–2 April 2021

Research candidates can also take part in one or more of the following bootcamps:

- Thesis proposal bootcamp
- Journal writing bootcamp (get that article done!)
- Expert Research Presenter bootcamp
- From chaos to calm: editing bootcamp
- Best Selling book bootcamp

No two boot camps will be the same: each one is an immersive experience, with a mix of activities and exercises and time to put ideas into action. You can read more about each bootcamp below. Each one will be advertised through the monthly HDR update. If you'd like to know more, please email us on researcherdevelopment@anu.edu.au.

What is a Boot Camp?
The boot camp method was developed at the University of Melbourne by Peta Freestone, Liam Connell and Katherine Firth. Borrowing from popular novel-writing boot camps in the United States, boot camp is a three-day immersive workshop where participants get specialised instruction and time to put the learning into practice.

At ANU we have reworked the basic boot camp formula to provide support for different types of writing projects and challenges. Each boot camp has a ‘stretch target’ to work towards and you are expected to write in the company of others who are attempting the same thing. Boot camp has specific attendance requirements, which are there to ensure that you get the most out of the experience. Boot camp combats the isolation of the PhD experience, providing a supportive environment to motivate you and make friends with others who are sharing the same experience.

Thesis Proposal Review Boot Camp
Go on a three-day ‘deep dive’ boot camp designed to help you finish writing your Thesis Proposal Review document.

The Thesis Proposal Review (TPR) is the first and most important part of the ANU milestone process for HDR candidates. While the length of the document you have to write varies according to where you are enrolled, the basic format remains the same. The TPR should set out a clear research problem, situate your research proposal in the literature and tell the audience how you plan to carry out the research. This boot camp will give you time and structured support to complete this document to a high standard.

Journal Writing Boot Camp: get that article done!
Do you keep promising yourself you will 'finish that paper' and somehow it never happens? Want to make sure it will? Join our three-day, online journal writing Boot camp with your writing coach, Professor Inger Mewburn (better known as @thesiswhisperer).

Inger has published multiple books, including two on academic writing, and authored over 27 peer-reviewed journal articles, conference papers and book chapters. She does all this 'proper' academic writing and still manages to write 30K words per annum on her blog, which she has maintained for the last 10 years. She doesn't always love writing, but she knows how to get writing projects done and will share her productivity secrets over three days of this intensive writing workshop.

Expert Communicator Boot Camp
Learning how to communicate your expertise to others is crucial for a successful career post PhD, inside and outside of academia. Over three days candidates will learn how to write and present to an audience what their research is and why it is important. If you are keen to improve your interpersonal communication and be more persuasive and confident when giving speeches – we have set the stage for you to achieve your personal and professional goals in a safe and supportive environment.

From chaos to calm: Document Editing Boot Camp
You’ve done a whole lot of writing during candidature – now it’s time to bang it into shape. If it feels like you’ve produced a loose, baggy thesis monster, we can help you tame it. This boot camp will help you understand a range of editing techniques that can be applied to various levels of document editing, from the overall structure of your thesis through to sentence-level details. By the end of this boot camp you will be able to produce a tidy, coherent document that promotes clear communication and meets examiner and reviewer expectations. Your inner perfectionist finally gets a chance to shine (for a little while, at least!). This boot camp is suitable for late-stage candidates. Participants will work on their own documents and will need to bring an extended piece of writing for the activities (2 chapters or articles at a minimum).

Thesis Boot Camp: the 20,000 word challenge
Research candidates can often encounter difficulties with writing towards the end of their degree. Thesis Boot Camp helps you do a large amount of work on your thesis and develop productive writing habits over three days. The concept of Thesis Boot Camp is disarmingly simple. Put a group of people experiencing similar issues in the same room for a weekend, feed them regularly and provide a reward for each 5,000 words written. An experienced writing teacher is available to help you work through challenges, and regular breaks for physical activity are encouraged. Many students write over 10,000 words on a Thesis Boot Camp, and some even write up to 25,000 words.

Best-selling Book Boot Camp
Reports of 'the death of the book' have been greatly exaggerated. Books continue to be bought online and in stores and downloaded as e-books in very healthy numbers. The readers buying these books are fascinated by ideas-based writing.

Often called creative non-fiction, this category encompasses science, history, politics, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, language, psychology – the list is diverse and endless with the unifying factor being that this is where research is brought to life and transformed into writing that engages, educates and entertains.

We will look at how to take your research and rework it for an intelligent, non-specialist audience. It will set out the steps needed to become ‘talent’ – the sort of person with a profile that makes a publisher sit up and take notice. You will learn how to prepare your writing for publication and pitch it to a trade or commercial publisher.

Keen to know more? Email Researcher Development.