The Wales Academy for Professional Practice and Applied Research (WAPPAR)

WAPPAR is a centre for excellence in practice development and learning offering bespoke CPD/programmes from short courses to doctorates to professionals and their organisations.

For the complete guide to our services and offers download our prospectus:

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Research and Innovation

Our thought leaders in professional learning support our Doctoral/Master’s research groups and our research/consultancy offer.

WAPPAR is at the forefront of research and evaluation in practice and development. Our faculty maintain their own individual research profiles as well as run Doctoral research groups in Coaching and Mentoring.

Our unique Doctorate in Professional Practice welcomes senior practitioners across sectors and disciplines. Join our international Doctoral community with candidates from Hong Kong, America, and Europe.

Doctorates We Offer

Research in Professional Practise and Development

Impactful and innovative research solutions to real-world challenges. Our Doctoral candidates have produced three books in the last year!

Research and Scholarship
The Senior Fellow Programme
What Kind of Work Will Be Done by Senior Fellows?

Research is at the heart of our work in professional development so you can be assured that our provision is at the cutting edge of practice.

Our lead faculty: Prof Stephen Palmer, Dr Annette Fillery-Travis and Dr Christine Davies are some of the most productive and well-cited researchers in coaching, mentoring, coaching psychology, stress and wellbeing, professional learning, doctoral education, e-learning, and organisational change whilst maintaining a true focus on the needs of their doctoral candidates.

Prof Stephen Palmer is the author of over 50 books and numerous peer-reviewed publications
Dr. Annette Fillery-Travis has published widely and been part of a range of EU projects including leading one on best practice in doctoral supervision and a current Horizon 2020 project on e-learning
Annette has not only developed the Academy’s unique vision as a home for the generation and critique of applied research but she has also trained doctoral supervisors across Europe in its development
Dr. Christine Davies has a particular interest in pedagogical research and enhancing the student experience during their programme

We have a thriving research group in coaching and mentoring that meets monthly in London and can offer doctoral supervision in a range of areas. If you would like to join us on your own research journey then please see our doctoral programmes here.

The WAPPAR has created a fellowship opportunity at this pivotal time at the Institute.

We have recently adopted a new strategic plan that gives us the bold goal of becoming a leader in work-based learning, coaching, mentoring, and wellbeing. We are asking new questions of ourselves, our candidates, and the fields in which we work.

We are looking much more deeply into issues related to organisational performance and well-being, where we need better evidence, better ideas, and new thinking. We wish to partner with qualified people who can join us in exploring some key challenges in our work.

Each fellow will participate in a range of WAPPAR activities, including but not limited to:

Research priority topics related to coaching, mentoring, and well-being and to identify opportunities for Institute initiatives and programmes
Interaction with key thought leaders in the development of Institute initiatives
Writing and researching content for Institute communications, including blogs and articles
Interaction with WAPPAR doctoral students

Fellows will have the opportunity to apply their lived, professional, and academic experience to think about new and existing challenges to bring new perspectives to our work.

If this opportunity appeals to you then please email coaching@uwtsd.ac.uk.

Coaching and Mentoring

The WAPPAR Coaching Society brings together cutting-edge research with practitioner seminars underpinned by a Master’s programme and Doctorate route.

We are a community of practice of coaching and mentoring practitioners and academics from around the world dedicated to the development of coaching and mentoring.

Our vision is to form a community of best practice, research, and enquiry into coaching and mentoring practice drawing upon the expertise of practitioners, organisations and academics to encourage practitioner-led enquiry and dialogue with coaching and mentoring peers and partners.

By research, we mean the whole continuum of enquiries we undertake from individual reflective practice through to large-scale multi-partner research projects. For researchers who are interested in improving practice from individual practitioners interested in using the most up-to-date information and tools to sustain the cutting-edge of their offer to clients through to full-time academics interested in individual learning and change.

The Aim

But, more importantly, our Society aims to learn from each other, share experiences, and seek to develop the best practice for coaching and mentoring practitioners.

We will achieve this through:

Our annual coaching and mentoring conference

A series of Masterclasses from subject leaders

Skills workshops

Discussion groups

All Coaching and Mentoring Students receive annual free membership.

Contact Coaching and Mentoring in the Workplace to join:
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At the Wales Academy for Professional Practice and Applied Research (WAPPAR), we offer a range of Coaching and Mentoring learning and development options for individuals up to Masters level and for organisational cohorts.
Why UWTSD?

Who We Work With

What Is Available?

Fast Track Options

The Coaching and Mentoring Programme at the Academy has been developed to provide learning and practice in coaching and mentoring from levels 4 to7. The Coaching and Mentoring Programme draws upon the vast experience of our team, who have worked across all sectors, and so provides you with the assurance of quality in provision.

We work with you if you are starting to build coaching skills, further developing your professional practice in the field of coaching and mentoring. Or, if you are an experienced practitioner, you can develop your own learning pathway with the support of our lecturing team. We can also support your development should you wish to develop this specialism within your leadership or human resource role.

We also host are also a community of practice for coaching practitioners interested in building a body of knowledge through regular masterclasses and an annual coaching and mentoring conference.

Whether you are looking to commission a bespoke programme to meet your organisational needs or you are an individual seeking to start or develop your practice, we will work with you to develop a route that is best for you. You can study from a range of modules, or we can develop a programme tailored specifically for your own needs.

Suggested Programme Structure if you are a novice coach or mentor:

Initially, the programme includes a series of taught workshops where you will have the opportunity to explore the theoretical basis for coaching and mentoring and the approaches that can inform a coherent model of practice. You will also have opportunities to develop your practical skills through peer-to-peer coaching and mentoring practice.

You will then extend your focus beyond the personal and explore the context of the coaching in terms of organisational change and you will discover the basis of systemic change and the role of the individual as the enabler.

Further studies can be undertaken whereby you develop your understanding of appropriate research methodologies that will support the final piece of academic work, your work-based project. This requires you to critically investigate an aspect of coaching or mentoring that resonates with you, and so it could be a gap in the market you have identified, a change you wish to implement in your organisation, or a new business venture you wish to research. At all stages, you will be supported by your supervisor to help ensure your work is methodologically sound and who guides and supports you through your studies.

For experienced coaches, there is an opportunity to claim credit for prior learning and the prospect of making an application to bring credits to your qualification from prior and certificated learning achieved at level 7.

For example, the type of learning that can be recognised include:

The current ILM Diploma in Executive Coaching and Mentoring awards 40 credits, and you could apply to bring 40 credits into your qualification.

The current CMI Level 7 Diploma in Leadership Coaching and Mentoring carries 46 credits, of which 45 could be used against the programme.

If you think that you could be in the position to take advantage of this ‘fast track’ option for the Masters then please discuss it with the programme leader before making your application to join the programme.