Postgraduate degrees and conference perks

One of the great things about being a postgraduate student at the University of Southampton is the chance to attend conferences. Last week I attended a conference day held by the Global Health Research Institute called ‘Exploring commonalities between global health research and public health stakeholders: a workshop to define future action’.

 Admittedly they could have chosen a snappier title, but since it essentially sums up my masters degree I of course signed up to go along. The day involved 5-10 minute talks from a huge range of lecturers both from the University and from other institutions in the morning followed by stakeholder talks in the afternoon.

Professor Maria Evandrou giving a talk on global ageing and health

Conference days are brilliant and I advise everyone to keep an eye out in their department for any that might be coming up. They allow students, academics and professional stakeholders the opportunity to share their work with one another and network, which is key for maintaining interdisciplinary research and creating new contacts for the future.

While some of the talks were given by academics that I am familiar with from my course, many were from others outside of my department or from outside of the University, and it is rare that one has the opportunity to hear so many interesting people talk about their research. An added bonus of this was that it gave me ideas for my master’s thesis, and I was able to discuss some of these ideas briefly with the academic during the networking sessions.

Dr Janis Baird discussing a lifecourse approach to Non-communicable Diseases

Even better, the day was completely free to attend, and food was provided! I don’t mean just sandwiches; we were treated to a full cooked lunch and the chance to chat informally with some of the other people who had attended.

The fanciest lunch any of us have had in a while! 

However, a day at the Chilworth Manor hotel does not quite compare with the week at the LA conference centre that my partner will be enjoying very soon! I am trying very hard not to die from jealousy, particularly since he will be there when the Oscars is on. I have however told him that if he doesn’t come back with at least two boxes of lucky charms then he won’t be allowed back in the house.

PhD application deadlines are fast approaching and for any one still deciding whether or not to apply, consider the conference budget that you will receive as part of your PhD. The chance to travel internationally and meet key members of industry and academia has got to be worth the 80,000 word thesis at the end!

Emma