The added value of working in a Centre

We know that students with a robust social network tend to thrive more in their academic pursuits than students that are lacking in this regard.

“Community”, one of the PhD students exclaim when being asked what the added values of being part of Excited is. “Work as a researcher can be lonely if you’re not part of a Centre like this. I think it’s great that we have a place to discuss, exchange ideas and support each other” she adds.

The student in question is Justyna Szynkiewicz, one of seven PhD candidates in SFU Excited. Along with her are four of her fellow students, Vojislav Vujošević, Madeleine Lorås, Abdullah Bahmani, Gunhild Marie Lundberg and Hege Annette Olstad.

The Centre is divided in five projects, as are the PhD candidates. Justyna works in project 3, “Learning through construction”. She is researching project-based learning and how students are affected by it.

Through and through there is a genuinely positive attitude towards working in the Centre. The students especially highlight the social and comradery benefits. “We’re not just PhD students. We are like colleagues, working in an organization and supporting each other. We have monthly seminars where we share, learn, ask questions and plan activities. There is a lot of value in that.” says Abdullah Bahmani, who works in project four, “Sharing and diversity”.

“I travel and attend a lot of conferences for work. Going to conferences alone could feel intimidating and kind of scary. I found that being part of a Centre helped me, both in confidence through support and companionship, but also in getting a stronger sense of representing something. I know that even if I do horrible at a talk or presentation somewhere, my team will be there to clap or laugh at my jokes. That is the kind of support that I don’t think all PhDs get”, Madeleine Lorås points out with a smile and a nod to her fellow students at the table. Madeleine works in project 2, “Projects of Becoming”, where she measures first year computing student’s learning curve.

The PhDs all agree that being in the same Centre, working on similar cases towards a common goal bares many benefits. Especially when compared to past experiences working in solitude. Throughout our conversation with the PhDs it becomes increasingly apparent that their reflections and experiences match the Centre’s overall vision. Through close collaboration with project leaders and a shared goal of improving education, they seem to have gathered a plethora of positive experiences and helpful lessons.

The safety net of a research Centre

When asked for specifics on what value working in a Centre brings, the candidates all agree that financial security and a solid backbone of available project leaders and professors are major keys in allowing them to focus on their work.

“Having talked with some of my colleagues who aren’t part of a Centre like Excited, I see I’m very privileged in the financial security and opportunities the Centre brings”, Justyna explains.

Abdullah agrees. “We don’t have to worry about the same stuff that other PhDs worry about. As an example, we can always ask our project leader questions and get feedback, which is a very comfortable situation.”

They all talk warmly about the administrative coordinator at Excited, Ida Sortland who helps out in a myriad of ways, like suggesting professors to talk to, providing feedback and helpful tips for their projects.

“The centre coordinator is very open to discussion and helping out. We don’t use as much time on practicalities, which allows us to focus on the important stuff”, says Vojislav Vujosevic, who works in project one “Informed Decision”. “We always have someone to ask, that’s what a Centre is - that is the main benefit for me”, Hege Annette Olstad from project five “Career Readiness” adds.

The universal language of teamwork

Gunhild Marie Lundberg started out on her own, one month before the Centre was established.

“I worked as a PhD outside of SFU Excited for about half a year.” She is currently part of project 5, researching the transition from higher education to employment for IT students.

“Being the only PhD in my department was rather lonely, I felt like no one really understood what I was working on. Being included in Excited changed all that.”

Gunhild is currently writing a paper with Justyna. They both share their experiences on working on the same topic, coming from widely different backgrounds.

“Even though we are working on the same concept, it’s a lot of fun to see how differently we think. It creates lots of interesting discussions”, Gunhild shares.

“Coming in with a different mindset and having a different vocabulary from each other makes it so that we have to think twice about the words we use. One word for me can mean something entirely different for Gunhild. It’s a wonderful opportunity for us to learn how to communicate and collaborate effectively.”

The team laughs as they think of examples where varied backgrounds and different perspectives have been sources to discussion, new paths, strain, fun and great opportunities.

“Sometimes simple questions can trigger something big in your mind that fundamentally changes the roadmap for your project. If we were too like-minded, questions like these might not have come up at all” Abdullah concludes.