Annual OOA PhD day

The OOA PhD day was very informative day with as the opener an interesting keynote workshop providing valuable tools for effective communication which I have used ever since. It was difficult to select a workshop out of all the interesting options, but in the end I attended an eye-opening, interactive workshop about Science Communication which I enjoyed.

My experience with the PhD day was super positive as in the previous year. It was an interesting event, not only related and focus on the PhD journey itself, but also in our career and personal development. I enjoy a lot the Workshops, I always learn a lot of nice tips related to presentation skills. I would definitely recommend to others, especially because it is such a fun event and can help you to develop personal skills, that are sometimes even more important than lab technics.

The OOA PhD was a valuable opportunity to network with fellow PhD students while learning about soft skills in the workplace and honing my presentation skills. I would totally recommend this event to peers who want to be more comfortable and confident in their PhD!

The two main talks were very stimulating, especially the first one as it let me understand better how to deal with team-work dynamics in the safest way. However, the most valuable aspect for me has been the ‘Graphical Abstract’ workshop, as I got more confident in how to effectively represent scientific concepts in a nutshell. I recommend future PhD students to participate to this event, and in particular if possible to this specific ‘Graphical Abstract’ workshop, as I believe it would be extremely useful in the preparation of posters for scientific conferences.

I enjoyed the PhD day last May. I attended two lectures about communication and PhD management and a workshop about Imposter Syndrome. These topics were not directly linked to the content of my PhD project. Nevertheless, the topics were placed in the context of the daily life as a PhD student and the lessons learned from it could be really helpful throughout my whole PhD tract. I would definitely recommend to attend the PhD day. The topics of the program meet the struggles that most PhD students come across once during their promotion tract and it is nice to see that you are not alone and that many other students share the same struggles as you do. On top of that, the borrel with drinks afterwards is nice to meet other PhD students.

I think the most valuable with the PhD day is the workshop on TED talk. I have learned some skills of presentation. Because I will have a lot of presentations during my PhD. This course provides me with a way to practice and to show a good presentation. So I will recommend this course.

I’ve really enjoyed the OOA PhD day! Both the workshops and the talks were very relevant, ending with an inspiring keynote lecture. See you next year!

I attended the workshop about burnout prevention. It helped me open up my eyes and become aware of the amount of pressure I (unnecessarily!) put on myself. Especially in the last year of your PhD, when the workload tends to be very high, it is important to realize that you’re already doing more than enough – no need to set the bar even higher. The session inspired me to be more kind to myself. I’d recommend the OOA PhD day to any PhD student, irrespective of the year you are in.