External opportunities

If you are looking for Graduate School activities, see our Upcoming Events.

SUPER retains centrally-held funds to cover costs for PGRs to take advantage of external opportunities which would benefit their studies or future career. Read more in our Finance Information document.

Recurring

  • Sustainable Management of UK Marine Resources Network (SMMR-Net) Webinar Series
    • Various dates and times.
    • The SMMR programme is addressing critical marine research gaps spaning a variety of disciplines, from natural capital to ocean literacy and systems-based management. SMMR is working to break down barriers between science and policy and integrate disciplines, in order to form new marine research teams and build a strong research base to support decision-making within the UK Exclusive Economic Zone.

March 2025

  • Neurodiversity Celebration Week
    • Monday 17 to Friday 21 March.
    • Free!
    • A week of panel discussions with inspirational speakers from a range of backgrounds and professions. The discussions will all be focussing on key neurodiversity topics, and aim to educate while inspiring conversations about neurodiversity.
  • Scotland’s Nature Student Conference
    • Tuesday 18 to Wednesday 19 March.
    • Botanical Gardens, Edinburgh.
    • Free!
    • This is the 7th installment of the conference previously known as the Scottish Ecology, Environment and Conservation Conference, geared towards postgraduate students. It offers fantastic opportunities to present the very best of research work and to meet with government staff, agencies, NGOs and researchers keen to make the best use of excellent research.
    • Register by Friday 21 February.
  • Introduction to Machine Learning with R, a Transmitting Science Online Training Course
    • Friday 21 March to Friday 11 April.
    • 620€ (~£522) early bird pricing until Friday 31 January, 692€ (~£582) thereafter.
    • The aim of the course is to introduce participants to the main components for implementing Machine Learning in R using the {tidymodels} and {tidyverse} framework packages. By the end of the course, students will be able to perform the necessary tasks for ML such as defining the problem, prepare and pre-process data, and apply different ML such as Random Forests. 
  • SULSA Workshop x Science Entrepreneur Club Scotland Launch Mixer
    • Wednesday 26 March, 2.30 pm-7.00 pm.
    • Edinburgh.
    • Free!
    • ​SEC Scotland will be centred around creating a relaxed, safe and supportive environment for Scotland-based life science entrepreneurs, investors and academics to come together, socialise, discuss the industry, tackle common hardships, share advice and have a little fun.

April 2025

  • Introduction to Mixed Models, a BioSS Training Course
    • Tuesday 1 to Wednesday 2 April.
    • Edinburgh.
    • £300.
    • Mixed models are used when data have a complex structure with random variation occurring at different levels. REML provides a method to estimate how much variability is due to each level, and the extent to which factors and covariates of interest affect the outcome variables. 

  • 9th European Marine Board Forum
    • Wednesday 2 April.
    • Brussels, Belgium and online.
    • Free!
    • The forum will discuss ‘Addressing coastal and water resilience on the land-sea interface’, considering aspects such as policy and governance for the land-sea interface, pollution crossing the land-sea interface, and coastal adaptation and livability on the land-sea interface.
  • Introduction to Python for Biology, a Transmitting Science Online Training Course
    • Monday 7 to Wednesday 16 April.
    • 526€ (~£443) early bird pricing until Friday 31 January, 610€ (~£514) thereafter.
    • After completing this course, participants will be able to apply Python programming automation to their own research problems. While this course will focus on data analysis, participants will gain language-agnostic principles of programming, like automation with loops and encapsulation with functions, that will serve as best practices for their scientific computing.
  • Deep-sea knowledge for effective ocean management, an EMB Webinar
    • Friday 11 April, 1.00 pm UTC.
    • Free!
    • During this webinar, EMB will launch its Future Science Brief #12, titled “Deep Sea Research and Management Needs”. This brief addresses the critical need to increase our knowledge on the deep sea, an often-overlooked yet vital component of our global ecosystem and climate regulation.
  • Experimental Design and Analysis, a BioSS Training Course
    • Tuesday 15 to Wednesday 16 April.
    • Dundee.
    • £300.
    • This course covers the important topics in design and analysis, including randomisation, replication, blocking, factorial treatment structures, use of covariates and choice of design. Analysis of variance is used to interpret experimental results.

  • Introducing Mapping, Spatial Data and GIS, an Oxford University Online Training Course
    • Wednesday 23 April to Friday 4 July.
    • £385.
    • Investigate the power of maps and spatial data to document and illustrate local and global issues. Learn how to use Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to explore the world around you and share ideas. Apply GIS principles and tools to create your own maps from freely-available online spatial data.

May 2025

  • Evaluating species distribution models with R, a Transmitting Science Online Training Course
    • Tuesday 6 to Thursday 8 May.
    • 215€ (~£181) early bird pricing until Monday 31 March, 290€ (~£245) thereafter.
    • This short course will use R to compute a wide range of model evaluation metrics, encompassing discrimination, classification, explanatory power and calibration. It will also see different ways to validate models outside their training area, including spatial block cross-validation.
  • Association Mapping using R, a BioSS Training Course
    • Wednesday 7 May.
    • Dundee.
    • £150.
    • The course will introduce the basic concepts of Association Mapping. It will equip participants with the necessary information and software to conduct an Association Mapping Analysis on their own data, highlighting areas that need to be considered such as accounting for population structure and relationships between individuals. 
  • Practical use of Earth Observation Data in Research, a NERC Field Spectroscopy Facility and Earth Observation Data Analysis and AI Service Training Course
    • Tuesday 13 to Friday 16 May.
    • Leicester and online.
    • Free!
    • This course aims to provide researchers with the skills and confidence they need to choose, access and use Earth Observation (EO) data in their work. The course will cover how to select and download satellite data, how to collect in situ data with field spectrometers, and how to process EO data from UAV, aircraft and satellites so it is ready for analysis. Image classification and machine learning approaches for EO data will also be introduced. There will be an emphasis on practical sessions including using field spectrometers to collect reflectance spectra from targets and aerosol optical depth from photometers, and tutorials on how to process and visualise data from satellites.
    • Apply by Monday 14 April.
  • The Future of Marine Natural Capital Markets in Scotland, a MASTS Workshop
    • Wednesday 28 to Thursday 29 May.
    • Loch Lomond.
    • Free!
    • This interactive workshop will bring together researchers and practitioners to explore how Scotland’s coastal and marine science community can provide evidence to assess the feasibility, risks, and opportunities of natural capital markets. Building on an ongoing scoping review, we will co-develop a draft framework for translating Scotland’s Natural Capital Market Principles (2024) into the coastal and marine context. 
    • Submit EoI by Friday 28 March.

June 2025

  • The Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life Conference
    • Sunday 29 June to Friday 4 July.
    • Prague, Czech Republic.
    • CZK 8,300 (~£277).
    • This international conference promises to be a dynamic forum where scientists, regulators, and representatives from industry and environmental groups from around the world will converge to see formal presentations on the effects of anthropogenic sounds on aquatic life. 
    • The abstract deadline is Friday 28 February. 
  • Statistical analyses with R, a Transmitting Science Online Training Course
    • Monday 30 June to Friday 4 July.
    • 470€ (~£389) early bird pricing until Monday 31 March, 540€ (~£477) thereafter.
    • The course is given in four modules covering exploratory data analysis, univariate and multivariate statistical techniques and a final discussion session where students will work and discuss their projects.

July 2025

  • 12th PRIMaRE Conference
    • Monday 2 to Tuesday 3 July.
    • University of Bristol.
    • Free!
    • The annual PRIMaRE conference provides a forum for exchanging the latest research and development and fostering collaborations in Marine Renewable Energy.
    • Abstract deadline is Sunday 30 March.
  • European Marine Biology Symposium
    • Sunday 6 to Wednesday 9 July.
    • Bodø, Norway.
    • 300€ (~£251) early bird pricing until Monday 31 March, 350€ (~£293) thereafter.
    • This is the 58th annual EMBS, continuing an tradition since the 1960s to bring early career and experienced researchers together in a relaxed environment to share knowledge, know-how and thinking about marine biology and related sciences.
    • Abstract deadline is Friday 28 February.
  • International Conference on Marine Protected Areas in Marine Spatial Planning
    • Wednesday 9 to Saturday 12 July.
    • Bodø, Norway.
    • 120€ (~£100) early bird pricing until Thursday 3 April, 180€ (~£151) thereafter.
    • Explore the latest updates and scientific advances in marine biodiversity conservation at the MPA in MSP Conference. The conference will cover topics such as MPA planning, climate change effects on marine biodiversity, blue carbon science, and spatial planning benefits. Immediately before the conference the organisers are hosting the 58th European Marine Biology Symposium.
    • Abstract deadline is Monday 3 February.
  • 2025 Ocean Observatories Initiative Facility Board Summer School on Acoustics
    • Monday 14 to Friday 18 July.
    • University of Washington, Seattle.
    • Free!
    • This summer school is focused on the access, analysis, and interpretation of acoustics data and introducing complementary oceanographic data available through the National Science Foundation Ocean Observatories Initiative (NSF OOI). This week-long, intensive program will feature a mix of targeted lectures, hands-on tutorials, and practical exercises working with real-world examples and NSF OOI data products.
    • Apply by 4.59 am UTC Wednesday 19 March. 
  • Graphs with R’s ggplot, a Transmitting Science Online Training Course
    • Monday 28 to Wednesday 30 July.
    • 277€ (~£234) early bird pricing until Wednesday 30 April, 350€ (~£295) thereafter.
    • This course will teach the core elements (data, aesthetics, and geometries) as well as more advanced topics of information communication and styling (annotation, themes, and facets). Class exercises will cover common visualisation tasks such as rescaling axes, managing legends, reordering categories, and highlighting data elements of special interest.

August 2025

  • The Arctic Ocean Climate System, a Swedish Polar Research Secretariat Expedition
    • Saturday 9 August to Friday 19 September.
    • Sweden to Canada.
    • Berth and travel expenses covered!
    • The course combines practical work with observations and measurements in defined work packages with a curriculum of lectures covering the coupled Arctic climate system, and it will also allow for the enhancement of the participant’s own research projects. As an Early Career Scientist, you will participate in the data acquisition and ideally use the collected material and data in your research.
    • Apply by Monday 20 January.

September 2025

  • WildFish Research Conference
    • Tuesday 23 to Thursday 25 September.
    • Cambridge.
    • Free!
    • The WildFish Research Conference provides a unique platform for early-career researchers to share innovative ideas, foster collaboration, and inspire action to safeguard our freshwater ecosystems for future generations.

October 2025

  • SULSA Conference: IndAc
    • Tuesday 28 to Wednesday 29 October
    • Technology and Innovation Centre, Glasgow.
    • Save the dates!

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