Written by Emily Bastable, PhD Student at the University of Southampton.
I am a PhD student at the University of Southampton researching student knowledge exchange and enterprise in the curriculum. As part of my initial research into my topic, I found PraxisAuril. I started attending several webinars and that’s when I first heard about the 2024 conference. The Advocate Program was a great access point for people like me who are new to KE so do not yet have larger budgets for professional development.
Coming to the conference, I wanted to learn more about the landscape of the KE sector, including current themes, challenges, and different roles available to have an idea of what my career in KE could look like. Conferences are a great opportunity to not only network but be exposed to ideas you wouldn’t otherwise come across. I was pleasantly surprised at how friendly everyone was at the conference. By 10am, I had already met five new people! I noticed that there was a great respect for each other, that everyone has a part to play in the sector and that there is always something new to learn. Whether I met someone who was 3 months into their role in research commercialisation, or someone who has worked in tech transfer for over 30 years, our conversations were based on mutual curiosity.
The gala dinner was definitely a highlight of the conference, as an opportunity to informally meet other delegates, and experience the grandeur of the Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens. I liked that the conference was split into four pathways, and I managed to go to one session for each pathway to gain insight into each one! With my main research interest being student knowledge exchange, I particularly enjoyed learning about Nick Pearson’s technology transfer internship at the University of Exeter, Tom Bramald from Newcastle University’s review on Knowledge Exchange in the sector, and the KE metrics workshop as the last SHAPE session. A moment that particularly stuck out was the question of ‘what is knowledge exchange’ that was posed during one Q&A session. As a PhD student who constantly has to explain what I research, I appreciated that even people who have been working for a long time in the sector still recognise this as a challenge. Knowledge exchange has grown and diversified so rapidly so it will be interesting to see how this challenge will be tackled through the new branding of Knowledge Exchange UK.
Emily Bastable,
PhD Student at the University of Southampton