Work Package 1 (Skills Intelligence) sought to understand the competencies that are valued by those who employ PhD graduates and PhD graduates themselves, based in both academic and non-academic knowledge networks. The perspectives of doctoral education developers on what they perceive to be valuable competencies were also included. Communication at all levels i.e. both within and between scientific disciplines, across sectors, communication of value and communication with lay audiences was considered to be a critical graduate skill. The practical application of research skills was also seen to be a valuable competence, requiring a person to apply appropriate research methods while also taking into account short timelines and the usefulness, usability and economic viability of research outputs. Open Science tools that support open innovation networks were also seen to be valuable.
Work Package 2 (Curriculum Co-design) employed an online “world-café” format where stakeholders came together for a structured workshop to seed a curriculum that would develop the skills profile identified in WP1. The course title and learning objectives, the high-level content and the technical requirements for the online learning environment were subsequently drafted by the consortium, before being reviewed by industry stakeholders to ensure that the topics covered were relevant to potential employment in non-academic sectors. The course was entitled, “Opening Your Research to Collaborative Futures” and the learning outcomes focused on building awareness and practice of open science and open innovation frameworks and tools; designing and implementing interdisciplinary, intersectoral challenge-based projects; communication and opening one’s research up to others; career planning.
Work Package 3 (Deliver and Evaluate) - ensured that a) the online learning environment was technically robust and easy to use, and that b) the content and pedagogy mapped well to the learning objectives and the teaching philosophy. Course participants who participated in the course evaluation submitted pre-post standardised questionnaires on problem solving and intercultural sensitivity, a self-assessment of open science knowledge and attitudes and written reflections on their personal learning journey, along with entry and exit interviews. The course was approved as a 10 ECTS, level 5 (doctoral) course at UCD. Thematic analysis of qualitative data identified that:
1. Diverse learner motivations and backgrounds were catered for through a multifaceted course
2. Collaborative opportunities are sought out by PhD researchers, who experience interdisciplinary, intersectoral team science as both challenging and valuable
3. Open Science and Open Innovation skills learned on the course were “transferred” to real world situations e.g. career planning and knowledge sharing.
Work Package 4 (Sustainability & Dissemination) transformed the online learning environment into an open, stand-alone educational resource for self-guided education in open science and open innovation:
https://open-tdm.au.dk/blogs/openingdoors/(s’ouvre dans une nouvelle fenêtre). Some of the students self-organised into a small group to create further online PhD education in open science. They named this project “Agape” which focuses more on practical research tools and approaches in Open Science. With another EU funded project, CHAMELEONS, we hosted a 2-day conference at UCD entitled, “Innovations in Doctoral Education” which was open to the academic community and the general public.
