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Postdoc Career Progression

Teaching Programmes 

This 12-month course is open to Cambridge teaching staff with a minimum of three years' experience of teaching in higher education. Current and recent participants teach / support the learning of Cambridge students across the full range of disciplines; they include readers, senior lecturers, college teaching officers, librarians, educational technologists and research fellows.

You will develop enquiry-based approaches to engaging with educational challenges and contributing to improvements in the education of students at Cambridge and at tertiary level more broadly. In particular, you will:

  • develop your understanding of how students learn;
  • extend your repertoire of teaching, learning and assessment methods;
  • develop a cogent personal philosophy of education drawing on understanding, use and critical awareness of educational research methods and reflective practice.

Applications for 2021-22 are now open

Find out more and apply on the Institute for Continuing Education's course page.

The deadline is Wednesday 19 May 2021.

The Teaching Associates’ Programme (TAP) is designed for Cambridge early-career academics and researchers (including postdoctoral researchers, early-career college lecturers, and PhD students after the first year of doctoral study) who teach Cambridge students. The programme supports you in extending your understanding of teaching and learning in your subject and at the level at which you teach. TAP is a flexibly structured programme which runs over the course of an academic year and is accredited by the Higher Education Academy (Descriptor 1).

The programme’s series of short workshops, Moodle site, reading assignments and developmental projects support participants in exploring different aspects of teaching practice and in developing a cogent personal philosophy of teaching and learning.

To participate fully in TAP, you will need to devote approximately 10 days during the academic year to taking part in core sessions, independent study and practical teaching development exercises.

For more details, see the Course Description.

Applications for TAP 2021-22 will open in April 2021

The course is designed specifically for Postdoctoral Early Career Researchers. ECR-Teach will train participants in the key skills sought after by Higher Education Institutes in course design, teaching, assessment and evaluation. It will provide the opportunity to develop, and potentially deliver, a short course suitable for adult learners. ECR Teach will be taught at postgraduate FHEQ level 7 by the University’s Institute of Continuing Education (ICE). The course will combine intensive day-schools, short workshops, online learning resources, Tutor-facilitated discussions and peer-supported learning. Participants will be taught the core principles of course design – Audience, Content, Delivery, Technology, and Evaluation & Assessment. Working in cross-discipline teams these skills will be used to design short courses on a topic of your choice targeted at adult learners. Teams will pitch their course proposals to ICE who, for courses of an appropriate standard and rigour, will offer the opportunity for teams to deliver their courses to an adult audience. The ECR-Teach programme will run for approximately 15 weeks with the delivery of successful courses occurring 6-12 weeks later. Participants will be required to: attend two day schools and five workshops; engage with the online learning resources; participate in reflective practice; and contribute to the course design process in their allocated team.

  • Entrepreneurial Postdocs of Cambridge

EPOC exists to maximise the entrepreneurial and business potential of Cambridge’s world-leading research community. EPOC develops and delivers initiatives to support Cambridge researchers in their pursuit of business and entrepreneurial ventures.

  • PPD Personal and Professional Development

This site provides a central point for staff and students of the University and its Colleges to search for and book onto a variety of training courses run by participating University training providers. 

University Training Booking System

  • Researcher Development Programme

The Cambridge Researcher Development Framework (CamRDF) helps you to prepare yourself in fifteen competencies that will be valued by both academic and non-academic employers in an increasingly interdisciplinary and international context.

Training Booking System 

  • Funding Opportunities

Funding schemes for Postdoctoral Fellowships

EPSRC

BBSRC

Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions - Research Fellowship Programme

Newton International Fellowships

The Royal Society

EMBO

Human Frontier Science Program

The Branco Weiss Fellowship 

L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science programme

  • Careers Support

You can find a wide range of specific information and support for postdocs in science

Vacancies & opportunities 

CVs & Applications

Careers Events 

Mentoring Schemes