Day 2

The absolute highlight of the day was the guided mountain walk… and, while walking back, thinking that it really was all the sweat and - at sometimes - the regret of even started worth, made me reflected back on all the speakers of the day…

Maybe research feels like this mountain walk …

First you have to start…

“Research should be fun, rewarding and be seen as a privilege…” – according to the first speaker of the day, Prof. Saurabh Sinha, who took us through all the stages of the PhD pyramid. Our second speaker, Carla Tsampiras, actually illustrated how a history PhD student can be excited and enthusiastic about research. Back to the mountain walk: although at one stage I really regret even started it, I actually felt proud being one of the few who finished the walk and reached the beautiful waterfall... Research can also be a difficult process – and you may sometimes regret even started it – but, at the end – knowing that you are one of the few who finished it, it is worth all the sweat and tears…

I don’t think I will ever try to do this mountain walk on my own... Our guide, Michael, guided us on the right tract – he gave interesting information about the fauna and flora on our route, he motivated, informed and assisted those who needed a little support through difficult areas – made me think of the role of the supervisor (or in some cases the librarian?) The third speaker, Prof Diane Hildebrandt emphasised the importance of group work and peers helping to assist each other: What can I say – if it wasn’t for Esther, and Roelien, and Yusaf, and Suzy, and Biziwe, and Viv, and Carine and Richard and Sulvej and Wouter…as well as all the others – I don’t think I would have been able to reach that waterfall…

Prof. Meg Samuelson focussed on interdisciplinary research from the perspective of literacy or cultural studies, while Prof. Leslie Swartz told us more about collaborative research.

To conclude the day, our librarians, as the guardians of knowledge, were informed about epistemiologies, onthologies and the branches of knowledge...

…the mountain walk was worth everything…