TRAINING NEEDS ANALYSIS FORM
This Training Needs Analysis (TNA) form should be completed by all Higher Degree by Research students and
their supervisors (1) in the first few months of the candidature, and (2) annually thereafter, preferably at the time
of each Annual Progress Review. A new TNA form is required each year. For more information about the TNA
process visit http://sydney.edu.au/graduate_studies_office/students/tna.shtml
INSTRUCTIONS
 Save this form to your computer. You can then complete it electronically (no signatures required).
 A copy of the completed form should be kept by both the supervisor and the student after each
annual completion to be retrieved for referral the following year.
 Students must email a copy of the completed form to their Faculty Office.
STUDENT DETAILS
Student ID ……………………………..
FAMILY NAME ..………................................................. GIVEN NAME …….........................................................
Name of Supervisor ...............................................................................................................................................
Discipline/ School (in which student is enrolled) ……........................................................................................
Date this TNA was completed (dd/mm/yyyy) ……….............................................................................................
PART A:
GENERIC SKILLS
1. Communication skills (e.g. writing and oral skills) for a technical and non-technical
audience. This could include the following:









Departmental presentations
Media training
3 Minute Thesis competition
Conference Presentation
Oral Presentation Skills (Learning Centre)
Critical Writing at Postgraduate Level (Learning Centre)
Writing up Research in the Social Sciences/Sciences/Humanities (Learning Centre)
Writing Introductions, Conclusions and Abstracts (Learning Centre)
Writing a Literature Review (Learning Centre)
TNA FORM
2. Professional conduct (e.g. time management, project management, team work, research
integrity, ethical and legal issues).
Post research employment skills development opportunities might include:

Responsible Research Practice on-line module (compulsory)

Workers Health and Safety on-line module (under development)

Project Management workshops or award courses

Opportunities to work with others

Goal Setting (Learning Centre)

Working with Your Thesis Supervisor (Learning Centre)

Planning and Concentration Strategies (Learning Centre)

Emotional intelligence at work (Careers Centre)

Overview of a Thesis (Learning Centre)
3. Interdisciplinary perspectives
Reflect on opportunities to understand how your research is embedded in a wider context.
How can you understand the broader context for your research?
(e.g. attendance at cross- faculty or cross-institutional seminars, student exchange experiences, Sydney Ideas talks )
2
TNA FORM
4. Employability skills (includes entrepreneurship, innovation, commercialisation, industry
perspective, networking)
Reflect on your employability skills and discuss with your supervisor the training you will need to improve career outcomes. This training
may be undertaken later rather than earlier in your research candidature. This might include:

Commercialisation of Intellectual Property or research products

Career counselling

Industry engagement and internships

Exchange opportunities and research collaborations

Careers Centre workshops:
o
Making the Most of your Postgraduate Degree
o
How to succeed at Interviews
o
Writing a Winning Resume
o
International Students: Australian Resume Basics
o
Job Search using LinkedIn and Facebook
o
Postgraduate: Networking
o
Job Interview Techniques

The Process of Getting a Journal Article Published (Learning Centre)
PART B:
DISCIPLINE SPECIFIC SKILLS
1. Research design (e.g. sampling, formulating questions, philosophical rationale)
Reflect on the types of training you need to help you design an excellent research project .Such training could include:
Departmental seminars, short courses or award courses in experimental design.
3
TNA FORM
2. IT Skills (e.g. spreadsheets, information literacy, database, specialist software)
Reflect on any specialist IT skills required for delivering your research project.
3. Data collection and analysis (e.g. statistics, quantitative and qualitative methods)
Reflect on your training needs in relation to data collection and data analysis
PART C:
ACTION PLAN
Actions to be taken this year
Anticipated date of completion
(mm/yyyy)
1. Responsible Research Practice on-line module (compulsory).
Please see latest information at http://sydney.edu.au/graduate_studies_office/students/tna.shtml
2. Workers Health and Safety on-line module (compulsory)
Under development. You will be required to
complete this module when available.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
We have met and discussed these research training needs and have agreed on the training activities
and action items set out in this document:
STUDENT NAME …….........................................................................
DATE (dd/mm/yyyy) .......................
SUPERVISOR NAME ……................................................................... DATE (dd/mm/yyyy) ........................
4
TNA FORM
Student and supervisor each to keep a copy. Please email a copy to your Faculty Office.
5