Huddersfield Employability Fund blog: Ryan Wilkinson

Introduce yourself / course / year group / nationality:

I’m Ryan and I’m studying towards a PhD here at Huddersfield. My research is focussed on e-learning in the Creative Arts and I’m coming towards the end of this project. I live in Halifax, and I’ve been studying at the university for eight years.

 

What did you use the HEF for?

I used the fund to pay for the registration fee at the Textile Institute World Conference at The University of Leeds (http://www.tiworldconference.org). The conference was spread over four days and I presented a poster on part of my research.

 

What was the value in this activity?

It gave me the chance to talk about my work in a supportive environment with people who are interested in my research field. Presenting a poster also gave me the opportunity to respond to questions as opposed to just delivering a presentation.

 

How did it help you to develop?

Responding to questions from peers was really useful for helping me to reflect on my research. I met some interesting people who used e-learning in their teaching and related to some of my findings. There were other people who were using specialised technology that could influence future research I undertake.

 

How did it affect your future employment opportunities or ideas?

It was good to meet people who worked in the private sector as well as academics working in Higher Education. It helped me get an understanding as to how my research could be applied outside of an academic setting and so made me think about careers outside of universities.

 

What will you do as a result of this activity?

I made some good contacts from the networking I did whilst at the conference. I was also told about some funding bodies that I will consider once I have completed my PhD. I’ll keep in touch with the people that I met and keep an eye out for the funding bodies that were recommended.

 

Thinking about this experience, what advice would you give to other students?

It’s always important to get around people who may be interested in the work you’re doing. You also get the chance to hear about other research projects that can help you with your own work. There’s also the opportunity to meet new people at different institutions who could help you out in the future.