About Public Engagement with Research

Public Engagement with Research is about involving non-academic audiences in the design, conduct and dissemination of research, ideally generating mutual benefit for the public and researchers and ultimately enhancing the quality or impact of research. There are lots of different ways that this engagement can take place, from giving a talk at a science festival, to online consultations or citizen science – using the power of the crowd to source and/or analyse large data sets.

^{Curiosity Carnival images courtesy of Ian Wallman}

There is an obvious need for universities to be transparent and share the fruits of research to ensure ongoing societal support for investment in research, and the need to engage the public in conversations about the big issues of our time has never been more pressing. Most funders support this view, asking about the impact of the research as part of the application process. On these pages you can find further information about Public Engagement with Research, and access resources to support your own activities:

• How does the Medical Sciences Division engage? offers case studies and information about the diverse ways researchers bring their science to the public
• The Medical Sciences Division’s Researchers’ Toolkit offers information on training, funding, and opportunities for Public Engagement with Research across the Division.
• Training provides details of courses (run together with MPLS) to support researchers in developing PER activities. 
• The Medical Sciences Materials suite offers details of Divisional resources (including t-shirts, tablecloths, banners, and iPads) that are available for researchers to borrow for PER activities. 
• The Public Engagement with Research Seed Fund page offers information about central University funding for Public Engagement with Research, and includes case studies of successful projects from the Medical Sciences Division. 
• The Vice Chancellor's Public Engagement with Research Awards includes videos and interviews with projects from across the Division that received awards. 
• The University's PER webpages offer details of central University support for Public Engagement with Research

Keen to get started? Contact your departmental lead on Public Engagement, or the Divisional Public Engagement Coordinator Naomi Gibson.