Supporting senior student researchers toward scholarly publication

A group of OPAIC students are taking part in our Advanced Wānanga Kairangahau Workshops, set up to help them take the next step in their research journeys.

These workshops support students to take their research and prepare it for co-publication at conferences or in scholarly journals.

We launched Wānanga Kairangahau in 2021, holding workshops both on-campus and online. These workshops resulted in more than a dozen students having their research accepted for co-publication.

It has been inspiring to see student work in the journal SCOPE, at IEEE conferences, and in OPAIC’s own journal Rere Āwhio – Journal of Applied Research & Practice .  

We are now lifting our sights through our Advanced Wānanga Kairangahau workshops, as we target conferences, scholarly journals, and the inaugural Smart Aotearoa - Sustainable Development event, sponsored by OPAIC.

We held our first Advanced Wānanga Kairangahau workshop last week. The event was opened by Deputy Chief Executive Academic, Dr Leoni Schmidt, and supported by several staff who shared their research stories.

Head of IT, Dr Farhad Mehdipour, spoke about the exciting opportunities at the upcoming Smart Aotearoa event, with the call for contribution now open and awards up for grabs.

Employability Lead, Christiaan Bredenkamp, discussed quantitative and qualitative data perspectives. 

Staff also spoke about the benefits of publication and joining the research community.

Students were then encouraged to create their own researcher biography for use in publications and at conferences and to start speaking to their lecturers about their publication intentions.

The Advanced Wānanga Kairangahau workshops will:

• Help students develop proficiency in creating written reports and presentations.
• Highlight how assessment research is elevated for scholarly publication.
• Outline different types of submissions and share upcoming submission opportunities.

Principal Lecturer and workshop lead, Marianne Cherrington, says studying and getting a qualification is a huge investment and students are preparing for a better future.

Students are already doing assessments with applied research including theories, citations, and references, she says.

“It makes sense to get the most out of that hard work and investment and co-publish your research.”

During the journey, students will become more proficient and build capabilities in writing and presenting. 

“Ultimately, the Wānanga Kairangahau process will support their career goals in many tangible, even unexpected ways,” says Marianne.