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Doctoral College

Teaching

PGR Teacher Conference: Programme

‘Evolving Experiences in Postgraduate Teaching: Navigating Changing Landscapes, Practices, and Technologies’

Friday 27th June 2025

Scarman Conference Centre and online

Click here to download the full conference programme.
The Warwick Postgraduate Teaching Community (WPTC) warmly invites you to its first conference, ‘Evolving Experiences in Postgraduate Teaching: Navigating Changing Landscapes, Practices, and Technologies’.
As the landscape of higher education continues to transform, postgraduate teaching stands at the intersection of innovation, adaptation, and tradition. Within this dynamic environment, postgraduate teachers (GTAs) face challenges such as navigating evolving pedagogical practices, adapting to emerging technologies, and balancing the complexities and pressures of our backgrounds and positionalities whilst maintaining the rigour and depth of higher education teaching and learning.
This trans-disciplinary conference invites GTAs to reflect on and share their experiences with the broader postgraduate teaching community here at Warwick, exchanging narratives, insights, and strategies relating to the shifting landscape of postgraduate teaching and the evolution of their roles and practices as GTAs. Some themes that submissions may wish to discuss are:
  • Positionality and Teacher Identity: Exploring how personal experiences and equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) intersect with and shape postgraduate teaching identities.
  • The Evolution of GTA Teaching: Examining the journey from novice to expert as a GTA and the milestones, challenges, and skills associated with that transition.
  • Navigating Technological Shifts in Teaching: Addressing the impact of technological advancements, such as the role of artificial intelligence (AI), in higher education teaching and learning – whether as a transformative tool or a challenge to traditional pedagogy.
  • Cross-Cultural and International Perspectives: Understanding the importance of culturally diverse approaches to and experiences of teaching and learning in higher education.
  • Balancing Wellbeing and Professional Growth: Reflecting on the relationship between maintaining personal wellbeing while seeking professional and academic success.
With this theme, the conference serves as an opportunity for GTAs from all walks of life to engage in thought-provoking conversations, connect with peers, share successes and challenges, and develop new approaches that elevate their teaching practice. Join us as we chart a course across the shifting landscapes of postgraduate teaching, leveraging change to enhance the pedagogic experience for educators and students alike.

Why teach as a PGR?

Warwick has nearly 11,000 postgraduates - and 1,250 of them teach on Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) contracts. Whether it's lab demonstrating, seminars, tutorials, lectures, or project management, teaching as a PGR offers a wide range of opportunities and benefits:

  • gaining valuable experience for future academic careers
  • transferable skills you can use outside academia
  • enhance your understanding of your own discipline and your own thesis research
  • collaborate with other teachers and researchers in the field
  • a link between staff and student experiences
  • extra income
  • a fun opportunity to engage with and shape the UG students
  • training opportunities and the chance to access Associate Fellowship status with Advance HE

Apply for teaching jobs

  • Browse GTA Vacancies
  • PGR Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) role profile overview
  • More information on GTA roles (Human Resources)
  • You can also ask your Department directly about opportunities with them

  • Please liaise with your supervisor(s) and department before applying, as it is important that you do not take on too much alongside your PhD.

Academic Development Centre

Warwick's hub for teacher training and professional development.

PGRs who teach are expected to complete Preparing to Teach in Higher Education prior to commencing work.

PGRs who teach can enrol on training such as APP:PGR, completion of which leads to Associate Fellowship membership of AdvanceHE.

There are also continuous development opportunities like the Cultivate series and the Teaching for Learning Online course.

Warwick Postgraduate Teaching Community

A network for PGRs who teach, run by PGRs: a buddy scheme, teaching resources, information about teacher training, and the Journal of PGR Pedagogic Practice.

Warwick Awards for Teaching Excellence (WATE)

Open to all PGRs who teach. A great chance to reward their hard work.

Seven winners will each receive £350 and seven commendees will each receive £150. These will be split evenly across the Faculties and also include a dedicated award for interdisciplinary education.

Studying on an IATL module gives you the opportunity to work with students and lecturers from right across the university. Find out more about IATL PG Modules.

AdvanceHE

Advance HE is a member-led, sector-owned charity that works with institutions and higher education across the world to improve higher education for staff, students and society.

The Brilliant Club

an award-winning university access charity. They recruit and train doctoral and post-doctoral researchers to deliver programmes of university-style teaching to pupils in schools that serve under-represented communities.

Return to the PhD Life root page.

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