First you have to define your specific scientific goals and a reasonable time frame. The goals and time frame are perhaps most clearly formulated for the graduate students: One need to publish at least three papers within one´s field of interest and write a Thesis within the doctoral time frame. It is perhaps less clear what the goals are, if you are postdoctoral fellow or a younger researcher who would like a successful career in science, but a friend in Boston used to say that within the postdoctoral time period one should try to achieve the following three goals: to carry out interesting and publishable experiments, to publish a good paper, and obtain an independent grant. He also believed that these three goals were part of a cycle where they reinforced each other’s chance mutually: You do not get grants without papers, and you do not get papers without experiments and you do are not able to carry out experiments without any form of funding.

Amra Grudic-Feta

Somewhere in the cycle, however, you need to jump in, and here we hope that a new initiative from the Department can come to your assistance: The Department has defined its goals for better research in the Strategy Plan, and in June we will employ a research consultant, Amra Grudic-Feta, who will help us reach several of these goals. In particular, she will contribute towards four of the defined goals:

– in the structured approach for writing grant applications (F2),

– in follow-up of grant calls as well as publication of these in K2News (F2),

– as a resource that can help career counseling and career research education (RIK1), and

– as a contact point (catalyst) who may help scientists navigate to find the desired advanced equipment and expertise within the Department (RIK2).

We wish Amra welcome to the Department and hope she can help you to reach your goals.

Helge

Innovation was one of the topics discussed at the spring’s strategy meeting. In collaboration with the The Department of Biomedicine, we follow up on the matter with a joint seminar on Innovation and biotechnology. May 11^th, Professor Ulf Landgren from Uppsala University will hold two seminars on “Innovation and biotechnology” and “Molecular tools for high performance analyzes of proteins and nucleic acids”, the latter is held as a BBB-seminar. It also gives the opportunity to speak with Landgren in smaller groups.

Ulf Landgren delivers a number of inventions that are commercialized successfully, including Padlock method for amplification of DNA and “proximity ligation” that provides ultra-sensitive detection of molecules. The latter method led to the creation of the company OLink (www.olink.com).

Mark the day in your calendar already now

Good innovative weekend

Eystein

University of Bergen got a new faculty on January 1st 2017 . The offcial name is Faculty of arts, music and design. It consist of the former Bergen National Academy of the Arts and the Greig Academy. The main purpose of the new faculty is education, artistic development, research and dissemination of art, music and design.

It’s just appointed a faculty director of the new faculty. It’s a person we here at K2 know well. Check who it is here.

Why does the the new faculty affect us at K2? For several reasons. Firstly because music and art has the potential to be used as a part of patient care, or to improve patients’ quality of life. Secondly, because art and design can be used to enhance both research applications and articles. Whether it concerns an application or a publication wishes to sell a message, and the phrase ”a picture tells a thousand words” is still valid. Thirdly, by working with people who are good in the audiovisual expression, we can better dissemination which is one of our main tasks, whether it involves the disclosure of our business in general or procurement of an application. Finally, we must be immodest enough to say maybe we can add something to the new faculty.

There is an increasing requirement to provide funds from externally. To do that, we need to think outside the box. One way is to seek cooperation with the people at the new Facutly of Arts from the points mentioned above.

Per

Teaching is one of our core activities and we want it to be given good education at K2. Pedagogical skills will be emphasized when recruting academic positions and salary negotiation.

Conversion to Medicine in 2015 an enormous boost, thanks to everyone who helps out in both in semester boards and as educators and administrators! Also thanks to those who are Department mentors for students in early practice (this is where we can lay the foundation for an interest in Our own Field and emerge as good role models) as well as those who have taken on the leadership of their own mentor Groups.

Teaching the new curriculum be restructured from substantial traditional cathedral lectures to considerably more varied and student activating teaching methods.

Are you familiar with educational activities / principles PBL, TBL, flipped classroom or case-based teaching? Otherwise, I recommend educational foundation or any of the other courses at educational Department UiB (for example: Hot Moments in Teaching and Learning). Lectures will of course not be abolished but it has been shown that VARIETY in educational activities promote learning and that different teaching methods should be “tailored” to the kind of skill that must be learned. Then comes the concept of learning. Once it’s clear to us what we want the student to learn with the teaching tools at your disposal can then choose the best teaching Method.

At this year’s Teaching Price (NOK 50,000!), We want to honor an educator or an educational environment that has shown great interest in implementing new teaching; New study with other education than we have had in the past, new teaching methods, developed new courses (for example elective courses); Thus INNOVATION in education.
I would like to have nominated candidates, send reasoned proposals for me on jone.trovik@med.uib.no within March 10th!

Multiple Choice Database (MCQ) is being established, we have started testing data solution. It’s only for all educators to initiate to create tasks from their individual topics: a small case history with one more question and four alternative answers there ONE answer should  clearly be the best. We must add validation / comment for at least one of the available options. If each of us makes A puzzle of each lecture / group we teach the database will be kept up in volume. Questions should be validated by another teacher than yourself and happily send it to a student (who have finished the current installment) or a newly appointed assistant doctor who can ensure that the questions are relevant to the target group of students (and not just for the enthusiast professors …). Good luck!

And remember Teaching Day 27th April!

Jone