CPD Awards 2024: Top Tips

These are our 2024 CPD Award winners recognised for their continuing professional development (CPD). The winners share some of their top tips for how to succeed in CPD.

Jamie Cameron RSciTech – Royal Society of Biology

Senior Chemistry Technician, Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit

Be proactive in seeking out training opportunities and asking for guidance from people around you. Most people will be happy to help you improve your knowledge and skills, and you will also get to know your colleagues better, which helps to build a friendly and supportive research environment.

Katie Dias RSciTech – Association of Anatomical Pathology Technology

Mortuary Quality and Operations Manager

Set clear goals for your professional development and regularly reflect on your progress. Keep learning diverse skills, stay updated with industry trends, and actively seek feedback. Remember consistency is key—commit to small, regular CPD activities to ensure continuous improvement and make a lasting impact in your field.

Lucy Owen RSci – Royal Society of Biology

Research Scientist, ECHA Microbiology Ltd

Try to log your CPD as you go. This gives you time to reflect on how the activity can help with your professional practice and how it might benefit others while it is still fresh in your mind.

Mr. Michael Detyna SFHEA FRGS RSci – Institute of Science and Technology

Learning Technologist, King’s College London

I think professional development can take a number of forms, not limited just to formal training, but also writing papers and taking time to digest and understand relevant literature, can all be forms of development. I also think there’s a clear parallel between exploring the world through travel and understanding the world through scientific experiment.

Deborah Hansen CSci – Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology

Senior Open Access Adviser, University of Cambridge

If you find reflective practice difficult, there are some simple guides available. Try searching for ‘CPD reflection tools’ or similar. Investigate different approaches until you find the best ones that work for you – and even record this activity in your CPD record!

Dr. Robin Price CSci – Institute of Water

Director of Quality and Environment, Anglian Water Services

I use my CPD to stay in control of and to stay focussed on my personal development and my career. I seek to keep my development goals simple and achievable, surrounding myself with supportive people, and making sure I take plenty of time to reflect!

Emma Victory CSci – Institute of Biomedical Science

Senior Biomedical Scientist, Clinical Parasitology (Hospital for Tropical Diseases)

The game changer for me was switching all things CPD to one notebook. Everything you do is CPD so all you need to do is note the date/activity/your thoughts in your notebook as you go and you’ll have no problem extracting a record if you need it for audit purposes.

Mohamed El-Guindy CSci – Institute of Science and Technology

Senior Cybercrime and Cybersecurity Expert, UNODC

My top tip for outstanding CPD is to stay curious and continuously improve. In cybersecurity, regularly engage with new research, attend conferences, and participate in professional networks. Make learning a habit, and collaborate with peers—knowledge sharing often sparks new perspectives and innovative solutions. Never stop challenging yourself.

Thomas Pitcher CSci – Royal Society of Biology

Regulatory Science Manager – Kings College London

Look out for any opportunity for personal development, large or small in work or home. Always reflect on what you have done as you may have had a PD moment without realising it.

Dr. Timothy Ross CSciTeach – Association for Science Education

Headteacher at Papa Westray Community School

I look for opportunities that:
– Meet a pupil or curriculum need
– Are high quality and involve quality partners.
– That I will enjoy. (this is often a great signal that pupils will enjoy it too!)
If CPD meets these criteria then it’s likely to be a real success.

Gary McDonald CSciTeach – Royal Society of Biology

Biology teacher, assisting co-ordinator of the International Baccalaureate, Beijing, China

Join The Royal Society of Biology! Their support for your personal development is invaluable.

Pete Robinson CSciTeach – Association for Science Education

Independent Teaching and Learning Consultant

The most important thing for me is to maintain a balance between CPD that is directly relevant to my work with CPD that is relevant to wider education issues and CPD for my personal interest. Time spent on CPD must be spent effectively as well as enjoyably.