DocSoc is the society for Postgraduate Research students (PGRs), run by PGRs! Why don't you join us and connect?
WELCOME TO OUR NEW, AND RETURNING, MEMBERS FOR THE 2025-2026 ACADEMIC YEAR!
WHO ARE WE?
DocSoc is a society run by PGRs (postgraduate researchers) for PGRs! It is the place for Postgraduate Researchers to meet, support one another, collaborate and have fun! If you are a PGR, looking to meet and connect with other postgraduate researchers, then DocSoc is the society for you!
Our Society aims to:
At the moment, we will be running an evening social every first Wednesday of the month and a lunchtime social every third Wednesday. Plus - a range of other workshops and informal meet-ups throughout the semester! Keep an eye on Instagram, for updates, but you'll also recieve email updates after you join :-)
Once you join, we'll also be able to add you into our DocSoc WhatsApp Community, where you can get the latest news first and chat to other members!
WHAT ARE WE UP TO?
DocSoc has been on hiatus over the summer whilst the committee have been working on plans for this semester! Check out our current schedule below (viewing better on mobile site!) - we'll keep this updated as we get more information, and see our insta for more photos from past events! Scroll down to the bottom of this page to see the individual Signups and Events which we have released, with more info <3
WANT TO JOIN?
Join us to connect with many more PGR students at UWE, to participate in all the fun events, and have all the support you need from our vibrant community! It's only £5 for the rest of the year.
Want to join the DocSoc Committee?
Joining the committee offers a fantastic opportunity to connect with peers who are also navigating their academic paths. It's not only a chance to have fun but also to enrich your CV and contribute to a thriving and supportive community
QUESTIONS?
If you have any questions or queries, feel free to drop us an email (docsoc@uwe.ac.uk), or message via Instagram!
We hope to see you soon!
OUR 2025-2026 COMMITTEE
President: Cristian Heredia Ligorria
Vice President: Kezia Kershaw
Treasurer/Media and Publicity Officer: Emily Glynn
Participation and Equality Officer: Matthew Holt
Sustainability Officer: Pujan Ghosh
Signups The Five safes: working with confidential data - Library Summer Session no.1 Date & time: Tue 30 Jun 2026, noon - 12:45pm Places available: 25 What is Open Research? How does it differ from Open Access? What could you be doing? What tools can help you get involved? You may have heard the term ‘Open Research’ used by funders, policymakers, and colleagues, as access and transparency become more important across the research landscape. In collaboration with DocSoc, the Open Research Services team at the Library have organised a series of lunchtime sessions, taking place between 30 June and 20 August, covering a diverse range of Open Research topics, including research data management, alternative research publishing platforms and building a research identity. The Five safes: working with confidential data - Library Summer Session no.1 is being led by Dr. Elizabeth Green: UWE Bristol: Staff profile for Elizabeth Green Elizabeth Green will talk us through The Five Safes - a framework for structuring decision-making when planning data sharing. To find out more email open.research@uwe.ac.uk. Please log in to sign up. Building research profiles - Library Summer Session no.2 Date & time: Wed 15 Jul 2026, 1pm - 1:45pm Places available: 25 In collaboration with DocSoc, the Open Research Services team at the Library have organised a series of lunchtime sessions, taking place between 30 June and 20 August, covering a diverse range of Open Research topics, including research data management, alternative research publishing platforms and building a research identity. Building research profiles - Library Summer Session no.2 is being led by Prof. Noelle Quenivet and Dr. Sarah-Louise Weller : UWE Bristol: Staff profile for Noelle Quenivet UWE Bristol: Staff profile for Sarah-Louise Weller This interactive session explores how researchers can understand, articulate, and strengthen their research identity. It examines the purpose and evolving nature of research identity, highlights its importance for visibility, impact, collaboration, and career progression, and offers practical guidance on developing an effective online presence, concluding with an opportunity for reflection. To find out more email open.research@uwe.ac.uk. Please log in to sign up. Octopus - Library Summer Session no.3 Date & time: Tue 04 Aug 2026, 1pm - 1:45pm Places available: 25 In collaboration with DocSoc, the Open Research Services team at the Library have organised a series of lunchtime sessions, taking place between 30 June and 20 August, covering a diverse range of Open Research topics, including research data management, alternative research publishing platforms and building a research identity. Octopus.ac - Rethinking scholarly communications for a better research culture - Library Summer Session no.3 is being led by Tim Fellows from JISC, a UK-based, not-for-profit organisation that provides digital resources in support of further and higher education and research: www.jisc.ac.uk Octopus has been built upon the idea that many of the problems in the current research culture stem from one principal issue: that journals are being pulled in two different directions at once – on the one hand they are responsible for the dissemination of findings to practitioners and general audiences, whilst simultaneously being the primary research record of what has been done, when and by whom, in detail, for the benefit of specialists. Octopus is designed to act as a place to fulfil the latter of these two roles, providing a place where researchers are able to share their work in full detail via a series of “micro-publications” that each represent a specific step of the project (such as dedicated publications for “methods”, “results” and “analysis”). In this session, we will describe how Octopus aims to sit alongside journals to create a new culture of collaboration and recognition, improve access to research outputs, and provide a new academic incentive structure to reward best practice and recognise specialisation. To find out more email open.research@uwe.ac.uk. Please log in to sign up. Exploration of Open Research - Library Summer Session no.4 Date & time: Thu 20 Aug 2026, 1pm - 1:45pm Places available: 25 What is Open Research? How does it differ from Open Access? What could you be doing? What tools can help you get involved? You may have heard the term ‘Open Research’ used by funders, policymakers, and colleagues, as access and transparency become more important across the research landscape. In collaboration with DocSoc, the Open Research Services team at the Library have organised a series of lunchtime sessions, taking place between 30 June and 20 August, covering a diverse range of Open Research topics, including research data management, alternative research publishing platforms and building a research identity. Exploration of Open Research - Library Summer Session no.4 is being led by members of the Library Open Research team. This concluding session will round up and add to the topics explored in the previous sessions, and ask participants to think about how they could get involved in Open Research. To find out more email open.research@uwe.ac.uk. Please log in to sign up.
What is Open Research?
How does it differ from Open Access? What could you be doing? What tools can help you get involved?
You may have heard the term ‘Open Research’ used by funders, policymakers, and colleagues, as access and transparency become more important across the research landscape.
In collaboration with DocSoc, the Open Research Services team at the Library have organised a series of lunchtime sessions, taking place between 30 June and 20 August, covering a diverse range of Open Research topics, including research data management, alternative research publishing platforms and building a research identity.
The Five safes: working with confidential data - Library Summer Session no.1 is being led by Dr. Elizabeth Green: UWE Bristol: Staff profile for Elizabeth Green
Elizabeth Green will talk us through The Five Safes - a framework for structuring decision-making when planning data sharing.
To find out more email open.research@uwe.ac.uk.
Building research profiles - Library Summer Session no.2 is being led by Prof. Noelle Quenivet and Dr. Sarah-Louise Weller : UWE Bristol: Staff profile for Noelle Quenivet UWE Bristol: Staff profile for Sarah-Louise Weller
This interactive session explores how researchers can understand, articulate, and strengthen their research identity. It examines the purpose and evolving nature of research identity, highlights its importance for visibility, impact, collaboration, and career progression, and offers practical guidance on developing an effective online presence, concluding with an opportunity for reflection.
Octopus.ac - Rethinking scholarly communications for a better research culture - Library Summer Session no.3 is being led by Tim Fellows from JISC, a UK-based, not-for-profit organisation that provides digital resources in support of further and higher education and research: www.jisc.ac.uk
Octopus has been built upon the idea that many of the problems in the current research culture stem from one principal issue: that journals are being pulled in two different directions at once – on the one hand they are responsible for the dissemination of findings to practitioners and general audiences, whilst simultaneously being the primary research record of what has been done, when and by whom, in detail, for the benefit of specialists. Octopus is designed to act as a place to fulfil the latter of these two roles, providing a place where researchers are able to share their work in full detail via a series of “micro-publications” that each represent a specific step of the project (such as dedicated publications for “methods”, “results” and “analysis”). In this session, we will describe how Octopus aims to sit alongside journals to create a new culture of collaboration and recognition, improve access to research outputs, and provide a new academic incentive structure to reward best practice and recognise specialisation.
Exploration of Open Research - Library Summer Session no.4 is being led by members of the Library Open Research team.
This concluding session will round up and add to the topics explored in the previous sessions, and ask participants to think about how they could get involved in Open Research.