BUP PhD Students Training 2022

The training was arranged by the BUP National Centre in Poland and BUP's Associated Secretariat at the Lodz University of Technology. The PhD Students Training is an opportunity for PhD students to become better acquainted with other academic perspectives. The 2022 PhD Students Training took place 23-27 November 2022 at Lodz University of Technology, Lodz in Poland.

Information about the training

The objective is to give PhD students from BUP participating universities the possibility to meet and discuss scientific problems with a focus on sustainable development in an interdisciplinary, international, multicultural, and regional context. In this way, students will also get the opportunity to become acquainted with other universities and their scientific traditions.

PhD students are offered training in interdisciplinary research cooperation with the guidance of an international group of interdisciplinary research experts, composed of senior scientists.

The program of the training includes: lectures, workshops, students’ presentations of PhD work, individual consultancies of PhD work with international experts.

Book of Abstracts

The PhD students that participated in the training were given the opportunity to send in an abstract from their oral presentation to be presented in the Book of Abstracts.

Book of Abstracts from the BUP PhD Students Training 2022 Pdf, 844 kB.

Participating PhD students and experts during the BUP PhD Students Training at Łodz University of Technology, Poland. Photo: Krzysztof Ciesielski

Evaluation PhD Students Training

The training admitted 17 PhD students from ten BUP participating universities in Germany, Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Ukraine. During the event 14 experts participated. The evaluation is based on answers from 14 of the participating PhD students and 9 of the experts.

The PhD students appreciated the interactions with other students and the meetings with and feedback from experts. Many of the students will bring with them knowledge regarding how to give a research presentation as well as all the new contacts that they have made.

Getting to network with students working in different fields was helpful for the participants. One suggestion regarding changes in the program was to have a bit more time for feedback and questions regarding the other students presentations.

The experts felt that the students were receptive to feedback and input and that they were able to make a positive contribution to the students work. All of the experts would you like to be invited to take part in future BUP activities.

Regarding possible developments the experts thought that the students should be given more time to interact with each expert and that the students should have more time to interact with each other. Some experts would like to see developments in the PhD Students Training in terms of substance (sustainability), learning for the students and the students' selection process.

Participant evaluations

The PhD students expectations before the event were estimated to be 7.2
The participating experts expectations before the event were estimated to be 8.1
The PhD students gave the event a 9.8 overall rating
The experts gave the event a 9.1 overall rating
Some students thought that the event would have been more helpful if they had participated at an earlier stage in their studies

All overall ratings were made on a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 is considered negative and 10 considered positive.

Voices of participants

Ilona Zhovta - Participant from the National Technical University of Ukraine "Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute"

Before attending the event I expected it to be a more formal event and I was pleasantly surprised by the friendly and pleasant atmosphere.

The best part of the BUP PhD Students Training was getting to know different people from different countries and their scientific interests and backgrounds. There were various moments when it was fun as well as educational, whilst the communication between all lecturers and PhD students was at a high level. The help of an expert in my field of research was useful and informative.

It was an interesting experience with communication between scholars of different specialties, the interaction of different experiences, which made it possible to understand people better. It also gave me the opportunity to use a wider range of multidisciplinary approaches in the field of my interests.

Adrian Gawęda - Participating student from University of Lodz

I heard that the BUP PhD Students Training was a great opportunity to get a comprehensive view on PhD concepts, progresses and research methods. Also, I had heard that the BUP is not only about scientific research but getting to know people who share the same passion for science. After participating in the BUP PhD Students Training I can gladly say that this was all true.

The best part of the training, except for new friendships, was that, even though most the students represented different disciplines, we were able to share our insightful thoughts on each other’s research.

From the BUP PhD Students Training I will take with me all the great contacts that I have made here together with the experts objective opinions on my research, which I will implement in my other research as well.

Laís Viera Trevisan - Participant from Hamburg University of Applied Sciences

Before the event began I had many expectations regarding the Training, especially to present my work and listen to the experts’ opinions on it.

The BUP PhD Students Training as a whole was amazing. However, I think the best part was receiving feedback from the experts.

I learned a lot from colleagues and experts. Now I feel more confident to present my work and talk about it. In addition to it, I remember having some issues with my PowerPoint presentation and I learned more about what to do and not to do.