Training Needs Analysis

As an Open-Oxford-Cambridge DTP student you are expected to complete an individual Training Needs Analysis (TNA), normally within the first term of your studies. This TNA is designed to help you make the most of your time as a doctoral student, and to inform the DTP's programme of training.

Inkpath logo

You will need to register with Inkpath , a skills and career development app that will enable you to track your personal and professional development during and beyond your doctorate.

  • Download the Inkpath app, or visit https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk to see a browser version on a laptop/PC
  • Click the “Sign up” tab. The “Use Single-Sign-On” option is not available to Open or Oxford students. Single-Sign-On is only available for Cambridge students, so Cambridge students should click on the 'Single-Sign-On tab, select 'University of Cambridge', and you will be directed to your institutions' SSO sign in page.
  • Students at The Open University and University of Oxford - choose your home university. Enter your university email address – the full email address which can receive mail, not any shortened user ID you may have within your university
  • Accept the “Terms of Use”, “Privacy Policy” and optionally subscribe to further emails
  • Press the “Sign up” button
  • You will receive an email from Inkpath with a password to login (we recommend you change this password later)
  • If you need any help, please contact the Inkpath team on info@inkpath.co.uk

Once you have created a profile in Inkpath you need to register your course details, and importantly your source of funding as the Open-Oxford-Cambridge AHRC DTP:

  • Open the app or web version
  • Oxford and Open University students: Enter your university email address and your password from Inkpath and click the “Login” button (do not use the “Use Single-Sign-On" option). Cambridge students: use the 'Single Sign On' tab, select 'University of Cambridge', and sign in using your institute's SSO page.
  • You will be invited to complete your profile when you first sign in. If not, or if you wish to return to your profile later
    • Click on the ''Account'' button in the top right of the app
    • Select ''About You''
  • Enter you name, faculty/department, programme (PhD/DPhil), and year that your studentship funding started
  • Press the purple “Save” button
  • Press the green "My Affiliations" button
  • Press the purple "Add an Affiliation +" button
  • Choose “Open-Oxford-Cambridge AHRC DTP” in the “Organisation”, your programme and your start year.
  • Press the “Save” button

If you do not link your profile to the OOC DTP, you will not be able to see the activities open to you as a DTP student, nor will you be able to scan the QR codes used at DTP events.

CamRDF

Once you have created your profile in Inkpath you will be taken through a series of short questions to help you assess your existing skillset and identify areas for improvement.

We use the Cambridge Researcher Development Framework (CamRDF) for this. The CamRDF maps out what is involved in conducting up-to-date, professional research, in what is an ever more interdisciplinary and international context. It breaks this down into fifteen competencies, all of which are highly valued and sought after by employers both within and beyond academia.

The work required to complete your research and write your PhD thesis is one part of that process, but you will also be able to learn through formal training and by applying your skills in non-research situations.

The competencies are grouped into four inter-connected areas:

  • Research Expertise
  • Personal Effectiveness
  • Engaging Others
  • Career Progression

Once you have completed your TNA questions in Inkpath, please meet with your supervisor to discuss the TNA and any specific training that you require for the successful completion of your doctoral research. You might also take this opportunity to remind your supervisor about the AHRC expectation that you will submit your thesis within your funded period, and discuss whether you might be eligible to apply to the OOC DTP for an extension to your studentship funding.

Please see the pages on additional funding for further guidance on how to apply to the DTP for research-related expenses, support for individual training needs and extensions to studentship funding.

If, following the discussion with your supervisor, you feel that you need further assistance, please contact the OOC DTP team on training@oocdtp.ac.uk for further advice about the ways in which study visits, conference trips, placements, workshops, language tuition, and other forms of training might contribute to your doctorate or broader professional development.

The OOC DTP Manager will be able to advise further on extensions to studentship funding.