Tag: user research

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Summary of Desktop User Research – With Implications for the Development of Features

The application should enable matching between student and supervisor. This includes:

  • Identification of expertise (e.g. qualifications and publications) and mutual academic interests through the building of a profile, bibliography, and membership of particular research interest groups. This would also need to be supported by search options, so that users could easily find one another.
  • Options for posting materials about, and in support of, the PhD proposal. This could be kept on a private setting that would then only become visible to those tutors that the student approached to be their supervisor.
  • Private messaging and chats between student and supervisor, and between students and PhD students under a particular supervisor.
  • An algorithm supporting the creation of stable supervisory relationships (the Gale-Shapley algorithm ).
  • Templates and guidance matched to different stages of the supervisory relationship/PhD journey, for both supervisors and students. 

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User Research: Students Use of Social Media For Academic Purposes

Students Use of Social Media in Academia

Students use a variety of social networks both generally, and to support their academic work. In the past some universities have set up social networks for students, but many universities now just connect into mainstream platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.

Social media is being used broadly across higher education, and some applications are specifically designed for education.

Much of the literature on social media and higher education focuses on the integration of social media websites into the classroom, but social networks in education can have a wider reach and impact than this.

creative commons image from https://pixabay.com/en/social-media-blogging-marketing-439155/

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User Research: PhD Students Looking for Supervisors

Supervision is key to a PHD students’ success.

The Web is full stories of students finding it difficult to locate and work with PhD supervisors, this includes stories about PhD supervision that has ended up being a negative experience.

Across universities and disciplines, many students seem to have been poorly briefed on how they to develop their research proposal and then find the right match.

Fuller (2015) reported that 70–87% of full-time PhD candidates across 30 institutions in the UK completed in 7 years, but doctoral attrition rates are high in North America: an estimated 40% to 50% of candidates never finish.  This level of non completion alongside a rise in the number of students enrolling in PhDs.

Lecture Classroom Education Student University

creative commons photo by www.maxpixel.net

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Analysis of Existing Websites/User Research: Findings on Academic Social Networking Sites

Academic Social Networking Sites (ASNS)

There are a large range of social networks used by academics, this includes Academic Social Networking sites.

Four of the most popular ASNS are Academia.edu, Researchgate, Mendeley, and Zotero

These sites are used by academics to: organize, create profiles, display research work and connect with peers with similar research interests.    Continue reading “Analysis of Existing Websites/User Research: Findings on Academic Social Networking Sites”

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User Research: How Academics View Social Media

Social Media Use Among Academics

Academia relies on the generation, transmission and sharing of knowledge, and there are already many social networks that exist to support such dynamics between academics, and professional researchers.  Unsuprisingly social media usage has been growing rapidly amongst academics.

Jordan and Weller (2018) have undertaken an up-to-date and comprehensive review of current findings of views academics have of social media.

Creative commons image from https://www.flickr.com/photos/kitta/30811771492

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