Sök resebidrag för ESOF2020

Olivia Biermann, PhD student at the Department of Public Health Sciences at Karolinska Institutet

–ESOF 2018 was one of the best conferences I have ever attended. It helped me see the big picture in science, which felt both humbling and empowering. While the conference convened more than 4,000 people from different countries and disciplines, I loved that science communication was a common theme throughout.

Amir Keramatian, PhD student at Chalmers University of Technology

–ESOF is a unique scientific gathering, where people from different backgrounds share knowledge and expertise in a way that is understandable to the general audience. This is a great opportunity to realise how unified science is, and to develop a broader perspective. Moreover ESOF 2018 offered lots of socialising and networking opportunities for the participants. 

 Sandra Bergman, PhD student at Mid Sweden University

–The best part about ESOF is that you realise that you are part of a bigger community of scientists. Regardless of your subject, it is easy to get tunnel vision and forget that there is a bigger world outside the lab or the office. You’re part of a scientific community in Europe and in the world. How exciting is that?

Sandra has some advice for ESOF 2020 participants:

• Make connections! Talking to people is not the easiest thing, and making actual connections is even harder. Try to bring business cards with you, so that you easily can give out your information.
• Have fun! Go to the extra activities as much as possible. The gala at ESOF 2018 was an amazing experience, but the open discussions each night was also a great opportunity to mingle.
• Ask questions! If you are wondering about something in a lecture, don’t be afraid to raise your hand (at the appropriate time) and ask your question. The lecturers will appreciate your attention and it’s likely that someone else in the audience wondered the same thing. Don’t be afraid of the people on the panels, regardless of how many Nobel Price Laureates there are.
• Chose the lectures wisely. Don’t tag along to a lecture just because you know someone who is attending, go to the ones you are interested in. If you are interested, then the lecture will be interesting. Don’t waste your time going to lectures that just do not appeal to you.