Support for Academics

I can coach academics because I have lived the realities of the sector. I don’t need the norms of HE explained to me, and I also know what the sector-wide assumptions about wellbeing are and how damaging they can be. I bring properly trained and certified coaching alongside my background in academia to offer something more than just productivity goals and accepting burnout.

About me:

I completed my PhD in the Chinese Studies department of University of Edinburgh in 2017, funding my way through with GTA and RA work. I went on to two temporary contracts in Scotland before lecturing in Chinese History at the University of Manchester for four years. During that time I applied, was shortlisted, and rejected, for a series of research postdocs, and had three articles rejected for being too interdisciplinary. I had one of the largest WAMs in the department. I taught online from Scotland during Covid, and started running a zoom writing community for my fellow ECRs from my back garden. It was the first time in my academic career that I had space to think and write the way I wanted to. When I went back to commuting and teaching in person in 2021 I felt strongly that my colleagues deserved better care. I applied for the Coaching Certificate programme run by University of Cambridge. At the end of the nine month training I gave my resignation and set up Beatha Coaching with the aim of providing intelligent, informed, genuinely helpful mentoring and support to other women in HE.

The support I offer:

Coaching – £80 p/h if self-funded (£420 for 6 sessions)

Coaching is a therapeutic intervention designed to give you the space to think through what is and isn’t working in your life right now, and what you would like to change. A package of sessions might focus on a specific issues, such as workplace conflict, writing block, or stress management, or it could be a more general enquiry into how you are managing the pressures of the sector and finding tools for greater resilience. I work with all my coaching clients in an embodied way, shifting the conversation from pure intellectualising to awareness of your body, nervous system, and emotions, so that you can really build patterns of change that last.

I also take funded clients at a higher rate. If you have institutional funding or an Access to Work grant please contact me for a quote.

Beatha Coaching Community – £20 p/month or less

My main way of providing ongoing support for women in academia is via the Beatha Coaching Community, which operates on a low-cost monthly membership model. Members have access to a monthly workshop, a monthly group coaching call, a weekly co-working hour, an archive of past workshop recordings, and reduced cost 1-2-1 coaching with me. Our community is a truly lovely group of early and mid-career women from HE in the UK, Europe, S Africa and Australia who collectively practice self-compassion, systemic awareness, and gentle goal-setting.

To find out more and to join the community visit the Community Page.

Workshops & Retreats – £12.50+

Non-members are invited to join the monthly community workshop for a drop-in rate. You can find listings for the next few months of workshops on the Workshop page. Workshops are usually 1-1.5hours, take place on a Wednesday lunchtime, and are recorded with links sent out by email to all participants afterwards. I also run regular writing events and retreats that you are welcome to join as a guest. Subscribe to my Newsletter to avoid missing an event.

The Summer Coaching Programme

The Summer Coaching Programme is a ten week writing programme that runs between July and September each year. Participants receive weekly writing prompts, a weekly chatty co-writing hour, three group coaching calls, and Whatsapp support from me.

This year’s programme begins on Monday 6th July – visit the Workshop page for full details and to register.

I am happy to discuss delivering workshops and trainings at your institution. Please get in touch to make an enquiry.