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The Research Commons is pleased to offer you a range of workshops, developed in the context of SFU Library's Instruction Strategy. Register for upcoming workshops. Search by date in our workshops calendar.
If you do not see the topic(s) you are interested in and/or would like a specialized workshop for yourself and a group of colleagues, send a request to research-commons@sfu.ca.
SFU values diversity and is committed to inclusion. If you require any disability-related accommodations in order to fully access and participate in our workshops and/or events, please contact us directly at library-workshops@sfu.ca. All communication will be kept confidential. Please contact us as soon as possible as some accommodations will require lead time to arrange (i.e. CART, ASL)
Digital Humanities
Next semester's workshops will be posted soon.
English as an Additional Language (EAL)
Academic Writing for Graduate Students
This seminar-style workshop series is designed for graduate students for whom English is an additional language (EAL). The workshop focuses on writing tasks that may be required in the earlier stages of a graduate program. You will learn how to apply your analytical skills to the discourses of your chosen disciplines and explore how effective academic writing in Western scholarly tradition is achieved in order to position yourself as junior scholars in your chosen academic communities. Students will complete several reading, writing, and grammar tasks, all of which will be used to provide personalized feedback.
Required textbook:
Swales, John M., & Feak, Christine B. (2011). Academic Writing for Graduate Students: Essential Tasks and Skills (3rd Edition). Ann Arbor: U of Michigan Press (ISBN: 978-0472-03475-8).
Register for upcoming workshops
Learning
Next semester's workshops will be posted soon.
Research data management
For assistance with research data management, including help with SFU's Research Data Repository Radar, please contact data-services@sfu.ca.
Drop-in data support office hours are available this Spring semester:
Downtown Vancouver campus. Every Wednesday, from January 15 to April 8, data consultations will be available in person from 2:00pm-5:00pm in HC 7400, on the 7th floor at the Harbour Centre campus. For January 15, the consultations will be in HC 7027 from 1:30 - 4:30.
NOTE: No Data and GIS consultations available on March 4 or April 1.
Next semester's workshops will be posted soon.
Research programming
Let's Make Your R Code FastR: Part 1
- A computer with R and RStudio installed prior to attending
- Basic R programming experience
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Note: This workshop is organized and facilitated by SciProg. SciProg—short for Scientific Programming Study Group—is dedicated to building a community of SFU researchers who perform computational data analysis as part of their academic work. SciProg promotes skill sharing and collaboration by (1) organizing 60 to 90-minute interactive workshops covering a wide range of software tools, (2) providing Q&A sessions for peer-to-peer assistance and collaboration, and (3) bringing researchers together at social events like Hacky Hours.
Register for upcoming workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Monday, March 30, 2020 - 1:30pm to 3:00pm | Burnaby, Bennett Library, Rm 7200 Cancelled |
Research software
Citation Management
Next semester's workshops will be posted soon.
GIS
Drop-in GIS support office hours are available this Spring semester:
Burnaby Campus. Every Wednesday, from January 8 to April 22, GIS consultations will be available in person from 1:00pm-3:00pm in Room 7037 in the Research Commons of the W.A.C. Bennett Library, 7th floor.
Downtown Vancouver campus. Every Wednesday, from January 15 to April 8, GIS consultations will be available in person from 2:00pm-5:00pm in HC 7400, on the 7th floor at the Harbour Centre campus. For January 15, the consultations will be in HC 7027 from 1:30 - 4:30.
NOTE: No Data and GIS consultations available on March 4 or April 1 in Vancouver.
Next semester's workshops will be posted soon.
Python
Next semester's workshops will be posted soon.
Qualitative Data Analysis
NVivo Drop-in Lab
Bring your laptop and your NVivo questions to this drop-in lab session! Our facilitators are experienced NVivo users, and can help orient researchers to using NVivo software for organizing, coding, and analyzing textual, audiovisual, social media, and other data. They can also support other uses of NVivo, such as organizing literature reviews and handling survey data.
Register for upcoming workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Monday, April 6, 2020 - 10:00am to 12:00pm | Webinar |
R (Software)
Due to recent developments all drop-in consultation hours have been canceled until further notice. However, you can continue to email us at data-services@sfu.ca with your questions about using R.
Drop-in R support office hours are available this Spring semester at both the Burnaby and Vancouver campuses.
Burnaby: From January 7th to April 21st, our Graduate Peer for Research Programming will be available in person Tuesdays 1:00pm--4:00pm every week in Room 7010 in the Research Commons on the 7th floor of Bennett Library, SFU Burnaby campus. Note the location will change to 7037 in the Research Commons for March 3, 10, 31.
Vancouver: From January 22nd to April 8th, our Graduate Peer for Research Programming will be available in person Wednesdays 1:00pm--4:00pm every week in Room 7027 on the 7th floor of the SFU Harbour Center campus.
Registration not required! Please drop in with your R questions including using R for visualizations, and bring your own laptop with R and RStudio installed. Questions about using R? Email us at data-services@sfu.ca
Data anonymization: Please note that any data needs to be suitably anonymized if working with sensitive subjects before meeting with the Research Programming Peer.
Let's Make Your R Code FastR: Part 1
- A computer with R and RStudio installed prior to attending
- Basic R programming experience
-------------------
Note: This workshop is organized and facilitated by SciProg. SciProg—short for Scientific Programming Study Group—is dedicated to building a community of SFU researchers who perform computational data analysis as part of their academic work. SciProg promotes skill sharing and collaboration by (1) organizing 60 to 90-minute interactive workshops covering a wide range of software tools, (2) providing Q&A sessions for peer-to-peer assistance and collaboration, and (3) bringing researchers together at social events like Hacky Hours.
Register for upcoming workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Monday, March 30, 2020 - 1:30pm to 3:00pm | Burnaby, Bennett Library, Rm 7200 Cancelled |
Statistics
Next semester's workshops will be posted soon.
Visual Analytics
Next semester's workshops will be posted soon.
Scholarly communication
Make Waves: Raise Your Research Profile
Are you looking to raise the profile and impact of your research? If you have a thoughtful, curated, and professional academic profile, your research is more likely to be found, read, discussed, and shared online. Building your online research profile can connect your research with relevant communities and increase uptake and application of your work. Bring your laptop to this facilitated drop-in session. We will be available to support you with any of the following:
- Depositing your work to Summit, SFU's Research Repository
- Creating, updating or refining your online profiles in ORCID, Google Scholar, or ImpactStory
- Leveraging #AcademicTwitter
- Discussing options for going public with your work
- Developing strategies for building or enhancing your personal website to host your online bio and CV
Register for upcoming workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Tuesday, April 14, 2020 - 12:00pm to 1:00pm | Burnaby, Bennett Library, Rm 7010, Research Commons Cancelled |
Writing
Graduate Open Writing Lab: Write Time, Write Space (drop-in)
The Graduate Open Writing Lab is for all graduate students who want the time and a quiet, dedicated space to work on their writing. A Graduate Writing Facilitator will be available for consultations and to answer questions.
Registration not required - please drop in!
Spring Semester 2020 [January 10 to April 6]
Effective March 13, 2020 - Graduate Open Writing Lab has been postponed until further notice.
Burnaby Campus
Graduate Open Writing Lab - Mondays, 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm, SFU Burnaby, W.A.C. Bennett Library, Research Commons, Rm 7010
Vancouver Campus
Graduate Open Writing Lab - Fridays, 10:30am to 1:00pm, SFU Vancouver, Harbour Centre - Room HC 7400*
Writing Workshops
Please register for the following writing workshops:
Next semester's workshops will be posted soon.
Thesis
The Thesis Submission Process
After you have defended, the final step for graduation eligibility is submitting your thesis, project, or extended essay(s) to the Library. This workshop will walk you through the thesis submission process.
Note: A good time to take this workshop is sometime during the semester that you’ll be defending or sometime after you know when your defence date is.
You will learn:
1. How to log into the Thesis Registration System (TRS)
2. What required documents you need to upload to the TRS
3. What “if applicable” documents you need to upload to the TRS
4. What happens after you have submitted
Register for upcoming workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Tuesday, April 7, 2020 - 11:30am to 12:30pm | Burnaby, Bennett Library, Rm 7010, Research Commons Cancelled |
Thesis Word Template: Advanced (Fine-tuning & Trouble-shooting)
Prerequisite: This workshop assumes that you have taken the Thesis Word Template: The Basics workshop or equivalent
This workshop covers more advanced features of the Library’s MS Word thesis template. The workshop can help with fixing issues with your thesis or addressing any personal preferences you might have (that are allowable within the template). Topics covered may include, but are not limited to:
- how to fix margins
- how to fix page numbering errors
- how to properly include terms in the List of Acronyms and Glossary sections
- how to create a landscape page to better fit your figure or table
- how insert an 11x17 page to fit larger tables or figures
- how to crop your figures in Word
- tips on table design and tweaking tables to fit your data without making your text smaller
- how to see all of your footnotes at once
If you have any issues with the thesis Word template that you want to discuss, please bring them to the workshop.
Register for upcoming workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Tuesday, March 31, 2020 - 1:30pm to 3:00pm | Burnaby, Bennett Library, Rm 7010, Research Commons Cancelled |