Scholars from Imperial College, University of London and CSC staff during the virtual site visit
In May the CSC hosted its initial virtual site visits, bringing together CSC staff and Commonwealth Scholars for an informal discussion about living and studying under the changed circumstances of the UK’s coronavirus lockdown.
On 12 May, we welcomed Scholars from Liverpool Hope University, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) and the University of Liverpool to our first virtual site visit and heard about the resourceful ways Scholars have been continuing their studies with support from their respective universities. Although some concerns were raised about research timelines, on the whole Scholars reported that having an opportunity to share their experiences and connect with peers and CSC staff was very useful and had helped to alleviate the impact that the coronavirus lockdown was having on their studies. Scholars also enjoyed hearing from CSC Commissioner and Senior Lecturer at LSTM, Professor Brian Faragher, about his tips for managing physical and mental wellbeing and maintaining motivation whilst studying.
Following on from this, we held our virtual site visit with Scholars from Imperial College, University of London on 19 May. As with their peers at Liverpool institutions, Scholars at Imperial talked openly about the challenges involved in studying and sitting assessments remotely. Scholars also shared their insights on how the coronavirus might shape the development impact of their research and offered ideas for remaining resilient while isolating from others, including cooking new recipes and visiting green spaces in London.
With further virtual site visits planned throughout June, we hope Scholars will be able to join CSC staff to share their experiences and connect with peers at a similar event soon.
To find out more information about our development training programme 2019/20 and other virtual engagement activities, please visit the Development Training Programme page on our website.
