The Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers is an agreement between funders and employers of research staff to improve the employment and support for researchers and research careers in UK Higher Education.
The Researcher Development Concordat sets out clear standards that research staff can expect from the institution that employs them, as well as their responsibilities as researchers. The Concordat was updated in September 2019 to a statement of three principles in support of researcher career development, outlining specific expectations and responsibilities of each major stakeholder:
We have published our 10-year HR Excellence in Research progress report and our 2022-2024 Action Plan. This is also our first Action Plan as a Concordat Signatory.
Researchers are encouraged to proactively engage in their own professional and career development by engaging in at least 10 days (70 hours) per year of continued professional development (CPD) activity.
The RD Concordat sets obligations for funders, institutions, managers of researchers, and researchers themselves to ensure that the policies that govern researchers' employment conditions, and the culture that shapes their experience, to enable them to fluorish. Postdocs and managers of researchers are represented on our RD Concordat Implementation Group (RDCIG), as well as the faculty-level cutlture and advisory groups that shape our action planning.
The EC's HR Excellence in Research Award marks an institution’s commitment to upholding the RD Concordat (UK equivalent to The European Charter and Code). The award is granted to research organisations for empowering, supporting, and developing their research community.
Responsibilities & Review: To maintain the award, institutions publish an action plan every three years demonstrating a positive trajectory toward implementing the RD Concordat. These are reviewed by an external panel of experts.
QMUL become a signatory of the RD Concordat in January 2021. For a list of current signatories, visit the RD Concordat webpage and scroll to signatories section at the bottom.
QMUL Concordat Signatory Letter [PDF 169KB]
Responsibilities & Review: Following our initial action plan as a signatory (AP2022), we report our progress to our Senior Executive Team and Council, annually. In harmonising these two reporting processes, every third year we will publish a new 3-year action plan. as part of our HR Excellence in Research Award renewal submission.
Implementation & Review
Appraisal (Employment Principle)
Induction (Employment and Environment and Culture Principles)
Mentoring (Professional and Career Development and Environment and Culture Principles)
Researcher Development (Professional and Career Development and Environment and Culture Principles)
Environment and Culture
Guided by the Queen Mary Strategy 2030, we present the following Aims that focus on further improving our support for research staff and for the academic staff who manage them which fall under four themes:
The Researcher Development Concordat Implementation Group was launched in August 2020 and meets regularly to strategize, formulate actions, and report on feedback from our research community.
QMUL’s Concordat Champion is our Vice-Principal for People, Culture and Inclusion*. Members include two Postdoctoral Researchers, one Academic Staff (Manager of Researchers), and one strategy/research manager from all Faculties; representation from HR, Equality Diversity and Inclusion, and the VP-Research & Innovation office; and the group is chaired and managed by staff from the Queen Mary Academy.
*currently our VP-Research & Innovation, while we recruit a new VP-People, Culture, and Inclusion.
The RDCIG's Terms of Reference: RDCIG - Terms of Reference (Oct 2022) [PDF 284KB]
For further information please contact Dr Rui Pires Martins.