Building Better Research Series

Research is complex. Get expert guidance.

Geared to faculty members, graduate students and researchers across campus.

Check out our full listing of events on ExperienceBU.

Questions?
Denise Smith (Brock Library)
Jayne Morrish (Office of Research Services)

Upcoming Workshops

Ontario Brain Institute Open Call for Integrated Discovery Program
July 20, 2-3pm; Dr. Tom Mikkelsen (President & Scientific Director) & Dr. Kirk Nylen (Deputy Scientific Director / Vice President, Integrated Discovery & Informatics)

Are you planning to cultivate partnerships and enable innovation in brain health that is person-centered and internationally recognized?

Please join us to learn about the Ontario Brain Institute’s open call for Integrated Discovery Programs (IDPs) that will foster discovery and deliver innovative products and services to improve the lives of those living with brain disorders. IDPs are collaborative, translational brain research networks that harness patient and community involvement, industry collaboration, and data-driven innovation. They are established with the goal of deeply understanding clinical cohorts and generating evidence that will be translated into better care.  Find more information on the open call.

Insights into Insight Grants
August 31, 12-1:30pm; Vincent Annibal, Ronnie Morris, & Eric Bergeron

Please join us to review the SSHRC IG application components. Office of Research Services staff will be presenting about Brock-specific items, and SSHRC Acting Senior Program Officer Eric Bergeron will be presenting from SSHRC.

LinkedIn
September 22, 12-1pm; Cara Krezek

Come learn how to use LinkedIn to build and profile your professional brand. Whether it’s to showcase your latest research, attract employers, connect with like minded colleagues or simply to learn how the worlds largest connection platform works.

Please note: everyone on campus has the opportunity to get free profile pictures done in Careerzone – Learn more about this opportunity.

Media Relations 101
October 19, 12-1pm; Cathy Majtenyi & Maryanne St. Denis

Getting research out into the public domain is increasingly becoming an important part of grant applications, partnerships and other research activities. Media is a powerful vehicle you can use to communicate results and insights of your work to non-specialist, broad audiences. This session will examine how various types of media operate, ways to help your message reach general audiences and how Brock University can support you in your media relations activities. Presenters are Maryanne St. Denis, Brock’s Manager, Content and Communications, and Cathy Majtenyi, Research Communications/Media Relations Specialist based in the Office of Research Services.

So you want to do research with Indigenous peoples? An introduction to wise practices
October 26, 12-1pm; Dr. Robyn Bourgeois

Join us for an informative discussion session with Dr. Robyn Bourgeois, Acting Vice-Provost, Indigenous Engagement. This session will be the first in a series of four presentations on critical topics regarding research with Indigenous communities.

Mitacs
November 2, 2022 – 12-1pm; Greg MacNeil

Mitacs can support research collaborations with companies, not-for-profits, hospitals and municipalities. These paid internships are open to undergrad and grad students, recent graduates, and postdocs. This session will discuss what programs are available to support research and innovation projects, as well as travel for students and postdocs to many international academic institutions.

Digital Scholarship Services @ Brock Library
November 10, 2022 – 12-1pm; Tim Ribaric

Digital Scholarship is an emergent way to describe the use of novel technology and methods in the class and as part of the research process. Hear about the services that the Library provides to help you investigate these new paradigms. This includes: introducing computation to humanities research, low barrier of entry high performance computing, dataset creation and visualization, and creating online exhibits of digitized material, amongst other things.

Introduction to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Research
November 14, 2022 – 12-1pm; Syna Thakur

This session will provide an introduction to fostering accessible, anti-racist, and inclusive research practice and design. We will also explore reflexivity as we critically reflect on our own locations, connections to, and power over the research process.

IP and Commercialization
November 22, 2022 – 12-1pm; Bradley Mclean & Iva Bruhova

This presentation will provide an overview of intellectual property (patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, industrial designs) and present a model for commercialization that can be applied to your research, whether it has commercial applications or not. Attendees will learn about resources at Brock that are available to assist you with intellectual property, commercialization, and bridging with industry/community for collaborations.

Introduction to Government Funding
November 29, 2022 – 12-1pm; Meaghan Rusnell

Every year governments of all levels – federal, provincial and municipal – present opportunities for funding university-led projects outside of the traditional federal Tri-Agencies (SSHRC, NSERC and CIHR). This session will outline opportunities for funding, how to approach them, and the role of the Office of Government & Community Relations in supporting applications.

A Research Data Management Strategy at Brock University
November 30, 2022 – 11:30-1pm; Nicole Nolan, Dawn Zinga

A Research Data Management Strategy at Brock University
December 1, 2022, 3-4pm; Nicole Nolan, Dawn Zinga

Idiosyncrasies of Google Scholar Indexing
December 6, 2022 – 12-1pm; Tim Ribaric

Recently Google Scholar started trying to match article results to the data sets described in those articles. It tried to do this with an automatic process that, unsurprising, did not work. Hear about how this process was rolled out, how people are trying to work with Google to fix the inaccuracies, and finally discover how to get your own material properly indexed using the Brock University Digital Repository and the Borealis Data Repository.

Responsible Research Metrics
January 10, 2023 – 12-1pm;  Cal Murgu

In this short presentation, Cal Murgu will provide an overview of common and emerging research metrics, identify resources that allow you to collect and analyze research metrics, and discuss how to best apply research metrics in a responsible manner to illustrate the impact of your research programme.

Introduction to Partnerships
January 16, 2023 – 12-1pm;  Meaghan Rusnell

Brock has a long history of engagement and collaboration with community partners in areas related to teaching, learning, research, innovation, and service. This session will introduce Brock’s current partnerships, as well as future opportunities to collaborate with the community in Niagara and beyond to help solve problems, generate research solutions and co-create knowledge. It will also outline role of the Office of Community Relations in matching community needs with University resources and expertise to build capacity in the region.

Knowledge Mobilization: The Basics
January 25, 2023 – 12-1pm;  Jayne Morrish

Knowledge mobilization (KMb) refers to the proactive process whereby connections between research/expertise and policy/practice/community are supported in order to improve outcomes and obtain collaborative impact. Some examples of KMb efforts include products (e.g., toolkits/educational materials), events (e.g., public lectures) and networks (e.g., social media engagement) that add evidence to substantiate and/or strengthen research outcomes and engage end-user participation. KMb is becoming an increasingly important aspect of the research process including grant writing, reports and professional development. During this workshop you will learn more about what KMb is, why this field exists, some specific strategies for planning and engaging in KMb, and an overview of KMb supports at Brock.

Publish, Don’t Perish: Tips for Evaluating Journals and Avoiding Predatory Publication
January 26, 2023 – 12-1pm; Elizabeth Yates

So, you want make sure you publish your research in a “good” journal? In the rapidly shifting terrain of scholarly publishing, it can be tough to stay safely on the path to publishing in a way which maximizes your reach and impact while avoiding journals with deceptive – often called predatory – publishing practices. Join Research and Scholarly Communication Librarian Elizabeth Yates for a session focused on the phenomenon of predatory publishers and how to avoid them.

Indigenous research grants  
February 9, 2023 – 12-1pm;  Robyn Bourgeois

Using the Makerspace in your Research: Some Recent Examples
February 16, 2023 – 12-1pm; Tabitha Lewis

This workshop provides you with an overview of the research collaborations and projects that have happened with the Makerspace at Brock University. I will share some of the memorable experiences researchers have had in the space and highlight some of the tools and technology used.

The First Nations Principles of OCAP® Presentation
February 17, 2023 – 12-1pm; First Nations Information and Governance Centre

The presentation introduces participants to the First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC), the First Nations principles of OCAP® and First Nations data sovereignty.   Over the course of approximately one hour, participants  will learn about OCAP® and have the opportunity to ask questions in a Q & A period at the end of the presentation

Knowledge Mobilization – Plain language communication
February 28, 2023 – 12-1pm; Cathy Majtenyi

Research Communications and Media Relations Specialist Cathy Majtenyi will lead a presentation on using plain language communication in knowledge mobilization. The workshop will explore the importance of ‘translating’ complicated academic concepts and specialist terms into words and images that non-specialist audiences can readily understand. She will be accompanied by History Professor Andrew McDonald and Kinesiology Professor Stephen Cheung, who will discuss how they share their academic work with broad, non-specialist audiences.

Introduction to Qualtrics
March 2, 2023 – 12-1pm; Stephen Agnew

In this 40-minute workshop aimed at beginners, we will cover the basics of what Qualtrics is and why you should use it instead of other survey platforms. We will provide you with the information you need to get started with Qualtrics such as how to request access to it, an overview of the interface, how to build a basic survey, how to disseminate your survey, where to find your survey results, and links to helpful Qualtrics support and training.

Knowledge Mobilization: Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
March 14, 2023 – 12-1pm; Syna Thakur & Jane Morrish

Introduction to Podcasting
March 20, 2023 – 12-1pm; Alison Innes

Podcasting has become a popular way of translating complex, cutting-edge research into communication that can be easily understand by non-experts and disseminating that information to non-expert communities. Drawing on my own experience and research as both an independent podcaster with MythTake from 2016-2020 and as a university-based podcaster with the Faculty of Humanities’ Foreword (2020-present), this workshop will explore some of the unique opportunities offered by this medium.  More details are available on the Experience BU page for this session.

How to Plan for Open Access Without Breaking the Bank
April 4, 12-1pm: Vincent Annibale & Elizabeth Yates

Open access is the best way to increase the impact of your research and brings many benefits to society. While article processing charges (APCs) are sometimes associated with open access publishing, there are many strategies which can help you achieve open access for little or no cost: the key is planning ahead. Join Elizabeth Yates, Research and Scholarly Communication Librarian and Vincent Annibale, Research Officer, to discuss options including no-fee publishing, publisher discounts, sharing via the Brock Digital Repository, and building APCs into grant funding applications.Workshop 1: Introduction to Evidence Synthesis
May 3, 2023 – 12-2pm; Kymberly Ash, Ian Gordon

Participants will learn key characteristics of the evidence synthesis process and be introduced to systematic, scoping, and rapid reviews as well as the spectrum of evidence review options, strategies and the resources needed to conduct this type of research. Developing an appropriate research question or topic will be a special focus, as will the importance of reporting guidelines, frameworks, and protocols for your review. 

Community Engagement Within Research and Knowledge Mobilization – An Introduction
May 9, 2023 – 12-1pm; Jayne Morrish & Julie Gregory

How is your knowledge mobilization work based on community need and community-held knowledge, and what are the best and most equitable ways to engage with the community around knowledge mobilization?

This session will be an introduction to the importance of authentic community collaborations and knowledge exchange practices within knowledge mobilization (KMb). A central question of this session will be – how can we ensure that content and context experts work together to bridge the gap between what is known and what is being done? Topics will include a high level introduction to community engagement within the KMb process and a review of several key associated considerations, including a high-level introduction to evaluation within the community engagement process of KMb.Workshop 2: Searching the Literature for Evidence Synthesis Reviews
May 10, 2023 – 12-2pm; Colleen MacKinnon, Jessi Robinson

This session will focus on developing a comprehensive strategy for systematically searching the literature. Participants will be introduced to keyword and subject heading searching, Boolean operators and other advanced searching techniques. Search-building in the OVID MEDLINE database will be demonstrated along with techniques for translating a search into other subject databases. Methods for selecting databases, citation management, and strategies for finding grey literature will also be introduced.  

Qualtrics, A Deeper Dive
May 11, 2023 – 12-1pm; Stephen AgnewWorkshop 3: Screening and Synthesizing Studies and Reporting Results
May 25, 2023 – 12-2pm; Elizabeth Yates, Ian Gordon

Participants will be introduced to key techniques and tools (e.g. Covidence) for screening studies to determine whether they should be included or excluded in a final set of research evidence. Strategies for data extraction – standardized methods for retrieving key information from studies – will be covered along with methods for critically appraising, synthesizing and reporting your final results.

IP and Commercialization
October 20, 12-1pm; Brad McLean and Iva Bruhova

This presentation will provide an overview of intellectual property (patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, industrial designs) and present a model for commercialization that can be applied to your research, whether it has commercial applications or not. Attendees will learn about resources at Brock that are available to assist you with intellectual property, commercialization, and bridging with industry/community for collaborations.

Opening up graduate scholarship via the Brock Digital Repository
October 26, 12-1pm; Tim Ribaric, Elizabeth Yates
Learn how the requirement of making theses and dissertations openly accessible increases the impact of scholarship produced by Brock’s graduate students and find out more about copyright provisions and embargoes.

PIVOT
October 27, 12-1pm; Suramya Mihindukulasuriya

This workshop will cover basics of PIVOT database as well as finding funding opportunities by using PIVOT.  This provides knowledge of different activities of PIVOT such as creating a profile and curated list, sending email notifications, sharing funding opportunities with others, adding selected opportunities to a calendar, and turning on the alert emails for selected funding opportunities.

Maximizing Access and Impact: Support for Open Access Publishing at Brock
October 28, 12-1pm; Elizabeth Yates, Cal Murgu

Learn why you’d want to publish open access, and how you can make your research openly accessible with support from the Library via the Brock Digital Repository, the Library Open Access Publishing Fund, and funding memberships with major publishers.

Using the McMaster Research Data Centre (RDC)
November 4, 12-1pm; Peter Kitchen, PhD., Analyst, Statistics Canada Research Data Centre, McMaster University

The Statistics Canada Research Data Centre (RDC): Supporting access to micro-data at McMaster and Brock Universities.

The RDC at McMaster University provides access to Statistics Canada’s microdata ‘master files’. These include a large number of population, social, and health surveys, as well as the Census and administrative (including linked) data files. The purpose of this presentation is to introduce the RDC and to discuss research possibilities according to a number of themes. It also describes how the RDC and Data Services (DLI) has worked together to promote the use of data on campus to meet the needs of researchers.

Academic-industry partnership funding through OCI and NSERC
November 10, 12-1pm; Iva Bruhova, Suramya Mihindukulasuriya, John Jackson (NSERC Alliance), Louisa Ho (NSERC Alliance), Amir Pahlevanpour (OCI VIP)

Are you planning to collaborate with an Ontario-based for-profit business? Ontario Centre of Innovation (OCI) and NSERC supports partnerships between industry and post-secondary institutions. Together they have streamlined a joint application and decision process to accelerate Ontario-based partnerships and have their cash contribution leveraged by both NSERC and OCI. Students, postdocs, faculty, and the greater Brock Community are welcome to join.

Policies and Practices for Responsible Conduct of Research
November 17, 12-1pm; Dr. Michelle McGinn, Associate Vice-President, Research 

This interactive webinar provides an overview of the Tri-Agency Framework: Responsible Conduct of Research and related Brock policies. Emphasis will be placed upon the key expectations for researchers and safeguards to cultivate ethical and responsible research practices. Opportunities will be provided to discuss challenges experienced and strategies implemented in diverse research contexts. Clarity will be provided about research misconduct allegations, investigations, and outcomes.  

New Faculty Orientation: Research Services at Brock University
November 23, 12-1pm; Bradley McLean, Sharlee Cranston-Reimer, Cathy Baillie, Giulia Forsythe, Nicole Nolan

Learn what services the Office of Research Services, Learning & Development, the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation, and Brock Library offer to help you with your research program.

So, you want to do a systematic review?
November 30, 12-1:30pm; Elizabeth Yates, Chelsea Humphries

Systematic Reviews use comprehensive methods to methodically search databases and gather studies into powerful syntheses of research data. These reviews and other types of evidence synthesis are increasingly popular in a variety of disciplines. However, they involve rigorous methods that can be challenging to learn, and they are not appropriate for all research questions. This session will cover the key steps and tools in conducting a systematic review, present several alternative review types, and discuss how to identify the review type most suited to your research questions.

Insights into Insight Development Grants
December 9, 12-1pm; Sharlee Cranston-Reimer, Kyle Rich, and Asma Zafar

Please join us to review the IDG application components as well as to hear about the experiences of two recent recipients of IDGs: Dr. Kyle Rich and Dr. Asma Zafar.

EDI in Research Proposals
Postponed to January 13, 12-1pm; Sharlee Cranston-Reimer

This workshop will provide a general overview of what some competitions are requesting in terms of discussions of EDI as well as an overview of some resources and best practices.

An Introduction to Research Metrics and the Dimensions Database
January 18, 12-1pm; Elizabeth Yates, Chelsea Humphries

This session will provide an overview of some of the most common citation metrics and altmetrics used to measure research impact, highlighting how the freely available Dimensions database makes it easy for researchers to track their own metrics.

Hands on Introduction to Text Analysis
January 26, 12-1pm; Tim Ribaric

Computational approaches to analyzing text are becoming more common and easier to use. This hands-on session will introduce some basic techniques and investigate possible trends that might be discoverable in a corpus of text. This will be done by using the Google Colab environment to analyze a text that is over 100 years old. No knowledge of programming is required.

Harvesting Social Media Data 
February 23, 12-1pm; Tim Ribaric

Published research that analyzes text derived from social media is increasingly becoming popular. This hands-on session will introduce some basic tools and techniques on how to construct a dataset from social media. Using the Google Colab environment participants will have a look at how a typical dataset would look and how you can begin to interact with it. No knowledge of programming is required.

Introduction to Proposal Writing
February 25, 12-1pm; Vincent Annibale, Sharlee Cranston-Reimer, Karen Espiritu, Julie Gregory, Danusha Kalinga, Suramya Mihindukulasuriya, Monika Ovsonka,  Laura Smithson

The Research Officers in ORS will give an overview of the basics of proposal writing.

Establishing and Maintaining Your Research Team 
March 1, 12-1pm; Dr. Michelle McGinn, Associate Vice-President, Research

This interactive webinar provides evidence-based guidance for leading, managing, and contributing to effective research teams. Attention is devoted to the importance of common goals, shared understandings of researchers’ roles and responsibilities, and communication strategies. Templates for formal and informal research agreements will be provided.

Community Engagement in Research
March 30, 12-1pm; Julie Gregory, Jayne Morrish

How is your knowledge mobilization work based on community need and community-held knowledge, and what are the best and most equitable ways to engage with the community around knowledge mobilization?
This session will be an introduction to the importance of authentic community collaborations and knowledge exchange practices within knowledge mobilization (KMb). A central question of this session will be – how can we ensure that content and context experts work together to bridge the gap between what is known and what is being done? Topics will include a high level introduction to community engagement within the KMb process and a review of several key associated considerations, including a high-level introduction to evaluation within the community engagement process of KMb.

Introduction to Evidence Synthesis (workshop #1)
April 12, 12-2pm; Elizabeth Yates, Ian Gordon, Chelsea Humphries

Participants will learn key characteristics of the evidence synthesis process and be introduced to systematic and scoping reviews as well as the spectrum of evidence review options and the resources needed to conduct this type of research. Developing an appropriate research question will be a special focus, as will the importance of planning and registering a protocol for your systematic/scoping review. 

Knowledge Mobilization – The Basics 
April 13, 12-1pm; Jayne Morrish

In general, knowledge mobilization (KMb) refers to the proactive process whereby connections between research/expertise and policy/practice/community are supported in order to improve outcomes and obtain collaborative impact. Some examples of KMb efforts include products (e.g., toolkits/educational materials), events (e.g., public lectures) and networks (e.g., social media engagement) that add evidence to substantiate and/or strengthen research outcomes and engage end-user participation. KMb is becoming an increasingly important aspect of the research process including grant writing, reports and professional development. During this workshop you will learn more about what KMb is, why this field exists, some specific strategies for planning and engaging in KMb, and an overview of KMb supports at Brock.

Searching the Literature (workshop #2)
April 26, 12-2pm; Elizabeth Yates, Ian Gordon, Chelsea Humphries

This session will focus on developing a comprehensive strategy to search the literature for an evidence synthesis review. Participants will be introduced to keyword and subject heading searching, Boolean operators and other advanced searching techniques. Search-building in the OVID MEDLINE database will be demonstrated along with techniques for translating a search into other subject databases. Methods for selecting databases, citation management, and strategies for finding grey literature will also be introduced.

Screening and Synthesizing Studies and Reporting Results (workshop #3)
May 10, 12-2pm; Elizabeth Yates, Ian Gordon, Chelsea Humphries

Participants will be introduced to key techniques and tools (e.g. Covidence) for screening studies to determine whether they should be included or excluded in a final set of research evidence. Strategies for data extraction – standardized methods for retrieving key information from studies – will be covered along with methods for critically appraising, synthesizing and reporting your final results.

Research Data Management,
Nov. 3, 12-1pm; Heather Whipple

This workshop lays the foundation to understand the value of data management expertise in a wide range of contexts, including academia, business, government, and industry.

Introduction to the Canadian Common CV
Nov. 6, 12-1pm; Josie Reed

The Canadian Common CV Workshop will include an overview of CCV basics with lots of time for questions.

Intellectual Property, Randy Peterson
Nov. 18, 12-1pm; Randy Peterson

This overview will present an outline of IP, how to both protect novel ideas and speed their transition from academia to the broader community, and how ORS can assist.

Statistics Canada Landscape
Dec. 1, 12-1pm; Heather Whipple

The workshop will explain Statistics Canada’s Data Liberation Initiative (DLI) and Research Data Centres (RDCs), their differences, and how to access data.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Dec. 9, 11am – 1pm; Leela MadhavaRau, Liette Vasseur and Margot Francis

This workshop will cover the EDI activities in which Brock is engaged, how EDI is discussed in grant applications and how EDI can be integrated into research design.

Digital Scholarship at Brock: Services You Need to Know About
Jan. 7, 12-1 pm; Tim Ribaric

This session will provide participants an overview of what constitutes digital scholarship and what services Brock’s Digital Scholarship Lab has available.

Scholarly Publishing: Finding and Evaluating Journals, Open Access Dissemination, and Predatory Publishers
Jan. 11, 12-1pm; Evelyn Feldman

If you want to learn more about finding and evaluating journals, what open access publishing is, and how to avoid predatory publishers, then this session is for you.

Grant Budgeting 101
Feb. 10, 12-1pm; Iva Bruhova, Sharlee Cranston-Reimer, Agata D’Innocenzo, Danusha Kalinga, Jasmine Little, and Suramya Mihindukulasuriya

Topics include: budgeting tips and considerations; frequent budget mishaps; budgeting for contracts and overhead.

Developing Your Scholarly Profile with ORCID
Mar. 25, 12-1pm; Tim Ribaric

This session will outline the how and why of ORCID, demonstrating how your ORCID profile automatically updates and how it will simplify the process of identifying yourself.

Knowledge Mobilization/Translation (KMb)
Apr. 14, 12-1pm; Jayne Morrish

During this workshop you will learn more about what KMb is, why this field exists, some specific strategies for planning and engaging in KMb, and an overview of KMb supports at Brock.