29 September 2016

FAQs

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What topics do you cover in the scientific writing workshop?
An important focus is the structure of good writing. We examine this at the level of sentences, paragraphs, abstracts and entire papers. We’ll tell you what structures work well and show you why. And we’ll explore the reasons why the writing process can go wrong.  We also discuss the editorial practices at top scientific journals, the writing process itself, the importance of editing and much more. Our philosophy is that people learn best by doing, so we have plenty of exercises to help you put the ideas you learn into practice.

How much preparation is required?
We ask participants to complete a short writing exercise before each workshop. This helps to focus them on the course before they arrive. We prepare detailed feedback about this written work for participants at the 2-day workshop.  In our experience, early-career scientists find this particularly useful. At the 1-day workshops, participants provide feedback on each other’s writing, under our guidance.

How many people can attend the scientific writing workshop?
We cater for up to 20 participants at our 2-day workshop. The numbers are limited by the time it takes to give one-to-one feedback to each participant. At institutions with more participants, we run back-to-back workshops.

Do you run shorter courses?
We run a 1-day condensed version of the workshop. While the opportunity for one-to-one feedback is limited here, the 1-day course allows us to cater for larger numbers of participants.

Can you put us in touch with other institutions who have hosted your workshops?
Yes, we’re proud of our record. If you’d like an independent assessment of our work, we can put you in contact with coordinators at other institutions who have used us.

Do you teach other skills?
We offer a combined scientific writing and presentation skills workshop, which we run over three days. We also teach media skills: how to deal with journalists and write for a more popular audience. We can combine elements of these courses in workshops designed to suit your own requirements. Just let us know what you need.

 How much do the workshops cost?
Costs depend on a range of factors including the number of participants, the length of the workshop, the amount of feedback we prepare in advance and where we host the event. Let us know your requirements and we’ll prepare a quote with no obligations.

And if you have any other questions, please contact us. We’re happy to help.