A focus on…Networking

The Engineering Academics Network (EAN) is an inclusive community of colleagues at all stages in their careers, where everyone can share ideas, concerns and good practice, collaborate, find support or recommendations, and connect with colleagues across the UK and beyond. Every academic at any EPC member institution is automatically a member of the EAN. Those who are not currently attached to an EPC member as a member of staff –between roles or retired – they can still be a member of the EAN for a small annual fee. The Engineering Academics Network exists to make the benefits of EPC membership more personal and relevant to individuals and not just the sector as a group with shared concerns. It is here for you when you want to know more about what’s going on, when you want to improve your professional practice, when you want to move jobs, when you want to find research partners, when you want to share worries, when you want to understand something better, when you want to find an external examiner, when you want to find stimulating events and so much more…

On the EPC’s website members can now update their interests in their unique My profile section once logged in. Members will also receive personalised content to their email inbox in our newly formed bulletin, to update them on any new content that has been added to the site such as new articles and upcoming events every day, week or month depending on their preference. If members are active within our Committees or Discipline-based Communities they will also receive access to events, meetings and news specific to their groups. Members have access to our discussion boards where they can start threads themselves and / or comment on existing threads to discuss important topics for engineering academia but also to ask for help from peers in the EAN.

Under the umbrella of the EPC, there are communities of members with shared interests. Some are specific to particular engineering disciplines. Several of these have been well established for decades and were previously known as the ‘sectoral groups’. Others are for communities who belong to a subset of engineering academics (such as visiting professors) or who share a specialist interest (such as educational practice).

When you log in and visit your My EPC profile, you can sign up to hear more about these communities and their activities.

The current communities are as follows:

Discipline-based communities:

• Aerospace Academics Network
• Heads of Chemical Engineering
• Association of Civil Engineering Departments
• Council of Professors & Heads of Computing
• Professors and Heads of Electrical Engineering
• Academics in Mechanical Engineering (AiME)
• The Consortium of UK University Manufacturing and Engineering Heads

Communities of special interest:

• Engineering Education Research Network
• Ethics Ambassadors
• Visiting Professors

As the Network develops we intend to foster new communities, we are currently working on a new community for early career staff. Please contact us if you would be interested in starting your own community (or being part of a new one), or post a discussion to see who else might also want to join. We’ll be happy to help connect you with other members.