eSharp

Awards

The range of activities undertaken by the postgraduates of eSharp, and the fact that the initiative is ongoing, requires particular attention to ensure successful continuity. This was recognised in early 2005 by the Enhancing Student Employability Co-ordination Team (ESECT) awards, funded by HEFCE and held in collaboration with the Higher Education Academy. eSharp was delighted to be 'Highly Commended' by ESECT, in recognition of its success in embedding employability into the postgraduate experience. For more details please see http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/1703.htm.

Grants

In addition to the financial support which it receives from the University of Glasgow, eSharp has been successful in obtaining funding from a number of sources, both internal and external:

• In the academic session 2006-7, eSharp gained an award of £2990 from the University's Skills Training Fund. As well as enabling us to purchase IT equipment and develop new publicity materials, this grant funded the high-profile lecture series Academia: The View From Within, Peer Review training for other postgraduates and training for the editorial board.
• In the 2005-6 session, eSharp was again successful in attracting funding form the Learning and Teaching Development Fund here at the University of Glasgow and were able to continue providing Peer Review Training for other postgraduates, in addition to organising launches and information evenings to raise the profile of the journal around campus.
• In 2005 eSharp successfully bid for support from the Collaborative Research Training Fund held by the Graduate School of Arts and Humanities at the University of Glasgow. Support totalling £3,300 was secured for two events: one two-day training course on reviewing and editing, open to all postgraduates in the university, and a one-day invitation-only conference on The Future of Postgraduate Journals, open to the editors of other postgraduate-run journals. For information on the Graduate School of Arts and Humanities, see www.sgsah.ac.uk/.
• In the academic session 2004-5, eSharp applied for and successfully obtained financial support from the University of Glasgow's Learning and Teaching Development Fund. The grant of £4,500 enabled the journal to hold regular training sessions for new journal reviewers, and increase advertising activity. For more information, visit www.gla.ac.uk/employability/projects/projects.html.
• In 2004 eSharp was successful in gaining the maximum award of £2,000 for Collaborative Research projects, offered by the (then) Arts and Humanities Research Board in order to hold a one-day conference on the subject of Borders and Boundaries. For more details on the AHRC and its activities, see www.ahrc.ac.uk/.

eSharp will continue to seek new sources of funding, in order to continue to develop its activities and increase awareness of its presence both locally and internationally.

Media Coverage

Media coverage is increasingly important in developing awareness of eSharp as an initiative, and we are pleased that a number of publications have covered our activities over the years. These include:

• 6 November 2008: 5th anniversary covered by Times Higher Education
• June 2007: Soule, Daniel PJ, Whiteley, Lucy and Phipps, Alison (2007) "Views from the bridge: publishing as a voyage of discovery" SOJEL 1(1), pp 33-42, http://www.sojel.co.uk/.
• May 2007: The eSharp lecture series Academia: The View from Within was promoted in the May edition of UK GRAD
• September 2006: Review in Enhancement Themes
• 30 August 2005: Review on HERO Higher Education Gateway
• 7 July 2005: Future of Postgraduate Journals Conference report
• 6 February 2005: 'Scotland on Sunday' article on eSharp and ESECT award
• 5 April 2005: 'EducationGuardian.co.uk' article on the 'Borders & Boundaries' colloquium
• 4 April 2005: Online article in University of Glasgow's 'Employability: Latest news' section
• March 2005: 'Multilingual Matters' journal newsletter article on eSharp and ESECT award

Conferences

To spread the word about our journal, and also to inform others of the benefits and possibilities of a student-led initiative such as ours, eSharp representatives have given papers at various conferences around the UK. This has often been as a result of personal invitation!

• May 2014: 'Dialogue Across Decades' (University of Glasgow), eSharp's 10th Anniversary Conference. Michael Black, Michael O'Brien, James Morris and Alexandra Campbell
• May 2014: Postgraduate Symposium (University of Hull). Debora Agazzoni and Lynne Kelman
• July 2013: '(Re)vision: Editing across Disciplines', (University of Edinburgh) presentation of eSharp and The Kelvingrove Review at the Postgraduate Journals Round Table - Sharing Practices. Debora Agazzoni
• October 2008: 'When Postgraduates run the show: Training, Employability and Intellectual Desire' (International Dialogue on Education, Berlin) Anneliese Mackintosh and Alison Phipps
• June 2006: 'eSharp: a Postgraduate Training Vehicle' at 'Integrating Employability into the Curriculum' (University of Glasgow) Lucy Whiteley and Aurelia Laitano
• November 2005: 'Some Sharp Words on Publication' at 'Horizons and Time: The Researcher as Voyager' (Institute of Education, University of London) Dan Soule and Lucy Whiteley
• July 2005: 'eSharp: Establishing and Running a Postgraduate eJournal' at 'NPC Annual Conference' (University of Strathclyde, Glasgow) Dan Soule and Alice McLean
• March 2005: 'Enhancement Themes 2004-5: Enhancing Students' Employability - Strengthening and Developing Partnerships' (Dundee University) Sebastiaan Verweij and Dan Soule