Kim
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| Photo: Tom Moore inflatable art taken by K.B |
I must confess to some uncertainty about the benefits of going to a conference. Not the going overseas for a few days, staying in a hotel and experiencing a new city aspect, I had no doubts about that part. My uncertainty revolved around the amount of effort that goes into preparing a 15-minute presentation, and what I might subsequently gain from that amount of work.
And it is fair to say that a considerable amount of work goes into a conference presentation, however, being able to communicate key ideas to a group of strangers in a short time is a useful exercise for whatever field we might find ourselves in after completing a PhD. And so it was that the night before my slot, and early the following morning, and during the keynote speech, and skiving off during the session before mine, I was still messing about with my presentation! I had too many slides, too much text, I was missing an image reference, and generally being very paranoid. Presenting is quite a skill; as an audience member it is easy to recognise the presentation don’ts, but people who present well have an ease and assuredness that must only come with practice. We may not all have the luxury (or nightmare, depends on your position) of presenting at international conferences, but my take-home learning is be clear in my own thinking about my key message, and concentrate on communicating that message clearly. The lonely scholar discourse has been around a while now!
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| Slide from my presentation 2016 |
What of the conference? I attended the Quality in Postgraduate Research Conference, in Adelaide. I met some great, like-minded people who I enjoyed spending time with, and who were interested in my research. I learnt a lot about current doctoral discourses, and heard some very thought-provoking presentations. Adelaide is a great city, easy to navigate, and has free bike hire, as well as larger than life art. Amazing fresh food too!
How did the presentation go? Well enough; I was asked lots of questions that will be useful to think about when writing up my findings, and offered the chance to collaborate with someone I met. Since I was the only person who knew what I'd missed out, I must have said enough!
Tracy
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| Photo: Tracy Rogers |
Before I embarked on my trip to the UK for the International Girls' Studies Association inaugural conference, I thought that it was an awfully long way to go for 15 minutes of 'fame' (my allotted presentation time). But even after enduring two long haul flights and three trains to reach the little city of Norwich, I realised that the trip was absolutely worth it.
Firstly, it was such a rewarding experience to be at a conference solely devoted to the study of girls, in all its many forms and disciplines. There were studies investigating girls' leadership; girls and anorexia; girls' migration; girl culture on YouTube; wartime girlhood; Victorian girls; queering girlhood; girls' activism; and the list goes on. Over the three days of the conference, I never missed a session as I soaked up the information. I attended sessions that related to my own study on girls' schooling and identity in the Global South, as well as other presentations that were totally unrelated, but still really enjoyable and informative.
The second rewarding aspect of the conference was being able to present my study to an audience interested in girls' education. There was a total of three presenters in my session called 'The politics of global girlhood'. The other two women had independently done work with school girls in Zanzibar and Kenya. Our studies complimented each other and it was reaffirming to know that the work I have done so far is of interest to others. (This is not always the case when we, doctoral students, often work away in our little thesis bubble).
Lastly, by far the best aspect of the conference was the networking. I met so many amazing women from a variety of disciplines who really lent to an atmosphere of 'sisterhood'. And as most of us were staying on campus, we had the opportunity to share our work over breakfast and dinner. We even managed a last night fling in Norwich's famous lanes district - an area of small cobblestone lanes lined with quaint restaurants and bars. As a PhD student, and the only Kiwi at the conference, getting to know other more experienced researchers from around the world was hugely rewarding. I have since been in contact with many of the women I met at the conference. And there is talk of hosting another conference next year in Canada!
So if there is one bit of advice I can offer other Postgrads planning to attend a conference, that is to choose your conference very carefully. Think about who else is presenting, what the make-up of your audience will be, and whether the conference really targets your area of interest. Because if the focus of the conference is too broad, it will be more difficult to find academics and other individuals who are interested in your topic.
And you don't want to miss any networking opportunities following your 15 minutes of fame!
[Unless otherwise stated photostock images in this post are from unsplash.com ]
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