Training Programme
MIBTP 2025 Training Programme
MIBTP recognises the need for skills training, particularly in theoretical and experimental approaches to bioscience, cohort development and professional internships. You will engage in a programme of activities scheduled to run concurrently with your PhD. You can find more details on these activities below.
Training Outline
Year 1
- Induction week: End September/Start October.
- Programming and Statistics Training: 2 weeks face-to-face at Warwick in October.
- Programming and Statistics Training: 6 weeks online during October and November (1 day per week, usually Monday).
- Exams: 2 days face-to-face at Warwick in November.
- Research Training Placement: 3 months at a MIBTP Partner institution to be completed between January and August.
- Attendance at MIBTP Symposium: 1 day in April at the host institution (held at a different MIBTP institution each year).
- Responsible Research and Innovation week: 3 days online training in June.
- Poster presentation: 1 day face-to-face at Warwick at the end of September.
Year 2
- Bioinformation and Modelling Training: 3 weeks face-to-face at Warwick in October.
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Bioinformation and Modelling Training: 3 weeks online during October to November (1 day per week).
- Reproducibility, Ethics and Plagiarism: 1 day online in November or December.
- Poster and attendance at MIBTP Symposium: 1 day in April at the host institution.
- Coniston Teamwork Course: 1 week residential at the Raymond Priestley Centre in the Lake District during July.
Year 3
- Science Communication Training: 5 days face-to-face at Leicester.
- Careers Fair: 1 day online at Leicester, usually in January or February.
- Presentation talk and attendance at MIBTP Symposium: 1 day in April at the host institution.
Year 4
- Careers Workshop: 1 day face-to-face, usually in March.
- Attendance at MIBTP Symposium: 1 day in April at the host institution. Optional unless chosen to give plenary talk.
Flexible Training Elements
Professional Internships for PhD Students (PIPS)
- All MIBTP Students will undertake a 3-month non-academic work experience placement during the four-year programme. The timing of this is flexible; however, we do not recommend undertaking the placement in year 4 due to the intensive nature of the final year.
Masterclasses
- A schedule of masterclasses will take place between November and August of each year.
- MIBTP students should undertake 12 days of masterclasses during the PhD.
- Masterclasses are devised to allow you to experience advanced techniques from world-class researchers across the six universities.
- The workshops are usually practical, short, one to three-day events.
- Some workshops are themed to allow more involvement with the technologies.
Scientific Visit / Technical Mini-project
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Students and Supervisors are expected to organise a scientific visit of between 1 day and 3 months in year 2 or 3.
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The purpose of the visit should allow students to learn a specialised technique or use custom equipment to generate data.
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The visit could be to a different lab/group within the same institution or it could be external to the MIBTP partnership.
Emerging Researchers Innovation Challenge (ERIC)
- 2-day event held at Birmingham in July.
- Can be taken in any year of the PhD, but must be taken by year 3 at the latest.
Training Elements in More Detail
Programming and Statistics
Your training will begin with a refresher on A-level maths needed for the Year 1 modules. You will then undertake two modules on quantitative methods for life sciences:
- Biostatistics: You will be introduced to statistical tools for summarising and analysing data in the life sciences.
- Computer Programming: You will be introduced to the essentials of computer programming using the R programming language.
Research Training Project
This 3-month training project will immerse you within a research group at a partner MIBTP institution. You will have a free choice to experience any lab environment or technique. This offers a great opportunity to gain technical skills or an experimental approach that could be useful to your PhD, but may not be generally available at your home institution.
Responsible Research Innovation
Aston University hosts this 3-day course, where you will explore the Responsible Research and Innovation toolkit and examine Citizen Science, Open Access, Public Engagement, Publication Ethics, Equality and Diversity and Gender Equality in research and innovation.
Bioinformation and Modelling Training
Your second year training will begin with a refresher on the further mathematics you will need for the Year 2 modules. You will then take three specialist modules in quantitative methods for life sciences:
- Machine Learning: You will build on the statistical foundations from Year 1 as you are introduced to the core principles of machine learning and explore their applications in biosciences.
- Bioinformatics: You will gain hands-on experience with tools for analysing high-throughput sequencing data, using RNA-seq data as an example. The module includes a primer of command-line scripting as well as bioinformatics methods in R.
- Mathematical Modelling: You will explore deterministic and stochastic models in biology and parameter estimation, using epidemiological models as an example.
Science Communication
Through a series of interactive workshops delivered by University of Leicester staff and external communication experts, you will gain the skills and confidence required for effective science communication, public engagement, and working with the media.
Coniston Teamwork Course
In the summer, the University of Birmingham hosts a residential event in the Lake District at the Raymond Priestley Centre, Coniston. This immersive experience brings together second-year students for a varied programme of activities designed to suit all levels and abilities. The residential offers a unique chance to deepen connections within your cohort, strengthen your collaborative skills, and enjoy dedicated time for personal and professional development in an inspiring setting.
Emerging Researchers Innovation Challenge (ERIC)
The University of Birmingham hosts this 2-day event designed to focus the skills learnt throughout your PhD on industry and innovation. Through a combination of practical, thought-provoking, skill-testing and creativity-inducing activities, you will work collaboratively with multidisciplinary students to take on a unique challenge that will benefit your future career.
Annual MIBTP Student Symposium
Every year in April, one of the six universities host our annual MIBTP Symposium, with the location rotating each year. This event is student-led, and all current students will attend. You will be presenting your own research, helping with organisation and contributing to discussion forums (previous topics include research ethics, writing and reviewing research grants, managing budgets, patent/IP management, ‘principles’ of public life, and careers).
Further Information
Assessment
Assessment will be varied - seminars, group presentations, posters, laboratory reports, essays, writing and refereeing grants/papers. There is an emphasis on the ability to communicate across disciplines. Feedback is encouraged for each module to ensure that the training meets student expectations and delivers the skills intended. The Management Team will consider all feedback promptly in order to continually improve the student experience.
Careers Focus
A major annual event is the University of Leicester careers fair, an annual career-focussed training event at which industrial representatives will be invited to mix with MIBTP students and talk about their career paths and working experiences.
Industry Mentoring
MIBTP has a group of professional Advisors from relevant, linked industries who sit on the Management Board. These Advisors will be asked to act as MIBTP career mentors and be available for career path guidance.
Personal Development Plans (Development Needs Analysis)
All MIBTP students will use online or local provision to review their own skills and draw up personal plans for skill development. This will cover both specific skills (project-based) and generic professional career skills. MIBTP also encourage students to set up conferences in their own areas helping develop networking and project management skills.
Plans are reviewed annually with an MIBTP director.
Research Skills Training
All students will continue to receive research skills training during their projects as directed by their individual needs. Student travel will be supported for external courses, summer schools, etc. as appropriate. Attendance at the MIBTP cohort workshops will be mandatory.
Further Training
After the initial training year, students will manage their training depending on their own research interests and needs. Much of this training will be provided on a one-to-one basis by supervisors and other members of the research group. Attendance at seminars and other discussion forums will be encouraged so that network interactions with a larger group of researchers will provide students with a much broader choice of research experience. Students are also encouraged (and supported financially) to attend external courses, summer schools, conferences, and laboratory visits as appropriate.
Further training and transferable skills will be offered and vary by university and department, but examples include team-building, entrepreneurship workshops, communications, and academic writing.