Abstract

You knew from the time you were a child you wanted to become a research manager and administrator when you grew up, right? No one in the history of ever has probably uttered those words. Everyone is different and seems to fall into or meander into the profession along different paths. Unfortunately, there is no degree course to get you into the profession - it is not something that is (yet) on the horizon of most undergraduates. The entry into the world of research management and administration is still uncharted territory, so how do we end up here, in “The best job of all”? This is the question we aim to answer with the 3rd iteration of the Research Administration as a Profession (RAAAP) survey, to be launched in early 2022.

Previous surveys (including previous iterations of RAAAP) have provided some information about routes into the profession and recent initiatives for collecting testimonials and personal stories are in place (eg. SRAI call for participation) have added some colour. Our poster will summarise some of these findings and initiatives, and call on the RMA community to actively participate in them.

With easy QR Code access, visitors will be called to fill in the RAAAP survey with their data, but also will be able to record and write their personal stories about “How they became RMAs”. The data collected during the EARMA Conference will be part of the overall RAAAP-3 data collection exercise and later anonymised and disseminated to the whole community. There will also be an opportunity to leave details for possible follow-up interviews.

In this burgeoning profession, learning more about the pathways leading into our particular craft can help inform future curriculum developers, policymakers, institutional administrators, and indeed those trying to find the right profession for themselves. It will also be interesting to look at the geographical contexts in getting to the profession and to suggest target actions, relative to each context.

Learning outcomes:
- Increased awareness of the RMA profession worldwide, in particular of the pathways leading to the profession.
- Acknowledge the ongoing initiatives for mapping and discussing the professional pathways of RMAs.
- Engage in the RAAAP survey, and potentially actively participate in sharing a testimonial about their own professional pathway