The September 2026 International Postgraduate Deanery (IPD) Induction was a great opportunity to welcome new IPD members, share what the College is all about, and — as always — learn a few things along the way about how we can make it even better next time.
We started with a pre-event meeting with faculty, making sure everyone was on the same page and, importantly, knew what everyone else was talking about! This helped create a more consistent programme and meant we were ready to support one another on the day.
We also took the opportunity to refresh the slides and references. Some references were, shall we say, well established — with a few dating all the way back to 1505. Given the age of the College, we felt this was historically appropriate, if not quite cutting-edge. The updated materials brought the programme more firmly into the present day.
As ever, not everything went entirely to plan. A couple of speakers were unable to attend due to unforeseen circumstances. Fortunately, our fabulous faculty stepped in and stepped up, filling the gaps and ensuring the programme continued smoothly. It was a great reminder that flexibility, teamwork and a willingness to say “yes, I can do that” are invaluable qualities.
One particularly special moment was welcoming our first refugee doctor to the induction. He was genuinely grateful and delighted to have been invited, and his enthusiasm was a wonderful reminder of the importance of making our College a welcoming and inclusive professional community.
We also tried something new: Mentimeter. For the first time, we invited participants to share their thoughts and responses digitally. The answers were insightful, useful and, occasionally, very funny — proving that audience participation can be both informative and entertaining.
Finally, we changed our feedback approach, focusing more on the content and value of the programme and less on the venue and catering. This should give us much more meaningful information about what worked and what could be improved. Although, between you and me, we all know that catering remains a critical component of any successful educational event.
Overall, the induction went very well. There were some challenges, but they provided useful opportunities to demonstrate teamwork, try new approaches and identify areas for continual improvement with a post event faculty meeting. The aim for next time is simple: keep what works, improve what doesn’t, and perhaps retain at least one well-fed participant.
Feedback From Our Delegates
Got this from 4 happy Malaysian attending the induction. Well done Birms team.
IPD September 2026 Delegate