Let’s face it; academia is not for the faint-hearted. It is widely recognised that to be successful in academia, we need to develop a thick-skin and deal with an onslaught of rejection. Experiences of rejection can come in a variety of forms, ranging from paper rejections, brutal journal reviewer comments, to unsuccessful grant applications. Regrettably, these are proportionately more commonplace within our academic lives compared to the successes. It is not surprising then that we might routinely experience a lack of self-belief in our abilities and in some cases, lose a sense of purpose in our careers. Sounds fun, eh?!
Speaking from my perspective as an academic, I am acutely aware that this career boils down to fulfilling two purposes: knowledge creation and knowledge dissemination.
Knowledge creation is largely satisfied from our scholarly activities underpinning published research. This can include: developing new research questions, proposing new conceptual models, making inferences about data which help us understand a phenomenon, making contributions to a research field; all of which can be evidenced in our published work.
Knowledge dissemination can be traditionally considered to be activities such as conference talks, exhibition events, and via our teaching activities. However, knowledge dissemination also can relate to activities which fall under the Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF) remit, such as consultancy and delivering continuing professional development (CPD) courses with organisations.
Whilst “knowledge exchange” (sometimes referred to as “knowledge transfer” ) is not a new concept in the context of knowledge dissemination activities, the increasing prominence of the KEF in the UK higher education landscape is pushing more attention towards this as a viable knowledge dissemination activity for those working in the sector. Importantly for universities, this also means additional income streams.
I have reflected recently on how knowledge exchange activities might be the much-needed “saving grace” for many of us who battle on through the constant blizzard of rejections and feelings of failure in our professional lives. From my own experiences of knowledge exchange, these are some observations which have brought me to this conclusion.
Opportunities can come to you, rather than you endlessly chasing (unsuccessful) pursuits
Let’s face it, writing grant applications can be sole-destroying. I constantly feel that I’m chasing an impossible dream when I spend days of my life preparing grant applications in the knowledge that it is most likely going to be unsuccessful. This feels like a huge time-sink and doesn’t offer me any real sense of job satisfaction or personal reward. On the other hand, I have often found that knowledge exchange opportunities have come to me which of course, gives me back my time, energy and quite frankly, my sanity. I’m not saying however, that we should be complacent in assuming that no effort is needed on our part. On the contrary, I have spent my time and energy in other ways to make sure I have set up ways to make my research insights publicly-available and accessible, and have been smart on how I communicate my research insights in a way which make sense to non-academics. However, these activities pay dividends when the opportunities come to you rather than vice versa.
You can evidence that people are interested in your work
Getting interest and engagement in your insights from different people can be reward in itself. I am a great believer than my h-index isn’t really the best indicator that people are interested in my work. On the other hand, seeing people in real-time being inspired by my insights, or asking insightful questions about how my insights might apply to their own challenges is hugely rewarding. In my experience, I have found that different audiences bring something different to how I think about my own work. Additionally, I find that the questions people ask are usually a great litmus test of the sorts of research questions I should probably be asking in my future research (I wrote a blog post on this sort of thing some time ago)
You can to think about your work from different perspectives and for different purposes
One of the things I enjoy about doing knowledge exchange activities is that I get to conceptualise and reconceptualise my research insights and expertise in different ways. Different audiences have different reasons for engaging with you and so I find it rewarding to be able to pitch my insights in a way which might align best to their own priorities, challenges or values. This is also a great way of helping me consider how I might be best placed to situate my future research plans, that might be mutually beneficial for any organisations I work with as research partners.
You can get creative
Whilst this might not be considered a positive for everyone, one of the things I enjoy about any type of knowledge dissemination is the opportunity to develop creative artefacts or visuals of my research insights. This is especially helpful as it can make your insights be more accessible and can broaden the reach of audiences who might benefit from your insights (my YouTube channel has my animations and book chapter soundbites as examples). Creativity in this context can also refer to thinking more innovatively about how to communicate your insights, in ways which are perhaps less traditional and more exciting. For me, being creative is fuel for the soul!
You get the chance to consider the impacts of your work.
Within the UK higher education sector, we have been conditioned to equate “impact” with REF (Research Excellence Framework). Whilst this is also a prominent feature of university operations, to me, impact is much more diverse than how REF defines it. In my experience, opportunities have come to me because an organisation is facing a challenge and are seeking some sort of solution. Knowing that my insights might help them overcome these challenges, or even to know that just one person in the organisation feels more confident as a result of my engagement, is what I would consider to be meaningful impact. Not all impact is best captured in an impact case study.
You might even forge an alternative career pathway
For me, knowledge exchange has helped me realise a more fulfilling and better suited career focus within academia. Not only is my research really well-aligned to addressing current and future organisational challenges, but knowledge exchange is well-suited to my own personal strengths. Another angle to take here is that working with organisations has helped me gain confidence and understanding of how different business sectors operate. This has helped me understand the types of ways my experience and skills could apply in different types of organisations and job roles. Whilst I see myself continuing in my academic career, hopefully building on my successes of knowledge exchange, this presents a useful reflection point to realise there are many other viable options. As academics, there are so many ways we can craft our careers which bring on personal reward and job satisfaction, and I hope that at least for some, the knowledge exchange agenda can be the redemption that we need.
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