PhD Impact

Aurora Master Class on Public Outreach for Doctoral Candidates

University of Iceland, 5-8 June 2023

Do you want your doctoral research to reach a wide audience and make an impact on society?

Concept

PhD Impact, the Aurora Master Class on Public Outreach for Doctoral Candidates, will help you make a splash with your doctoral research not only in academia but in wider society. Under the guidance of experts in scientific communication and public outreach, you will learn how to present your dissertation project in three minutes or less to generalist audiences through an exciting Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Competition. You will also take workshops on public speaking, effective slides, social media, podcasting, videos and much more, all in the company of a diverse group of peers.

PhD Impact will bring doctoral candidates and science communication experts from across the Aurora Universities together at the campus of the University of Iceland in Reykjavík for an intensive master class at the height of the Icelandic summer, 5-8 June 2023. Each participating university may send three PhD candidates and one expert who will be chosen through an internal selection procedure. Mornings will be dedicated to small group workshops, whereas afternoons will be spent preparing for the 3MT contest. The week will culminate with the contest itself. No matter which individual wins, all doctoral candidates will gain valuable skills from the contest and the workshops for conveying their knowledge to non-academic audiences and thereby working toward the societal impact that is a core principle of Aurora.

Logistics

PhD candidates and experts will be responsible for financing their travel and accommodations for the Master class. Participants should inquire with the Aurora Institutional Coordinator at their university about the possibility of applying for an Aurora or Erasmus+ travel grant to defray these expenses.

The University of Iceland has reserved reasonably priced accommodations at the Student Hostel, conveniently located right on campus, for all participants, with check-inarrival on 4 June and check-out departure on 9 June. PhD candidates are expected to stay for the entirety of the master class. The cost for accommodations will be 84.500 ÍSK for rooms with twin single beds and with shared bathrooms (doctoral candidates) and 99.500 ÍSK for rooms with twin single beds and private bathrooms (research communication experts). Participants will pay upon arrival.

Selection and deadlines

Each university will choose its PhD candidates and research communication expert through an internal selection process. The deadline for submitting the list of participants to the organizing committee is April 11, 2023.

Schedule

Workshops: Monday-Wednesday, 9-12

3MT preparation: Monday-Wednesday, 13-16, Thursday 9-12

3MT competition: Thursday, 13-16

Group trip to the Vesturbæjarlaug neighborhood pool (bring a swimsuit and towel), Monday, 16-17:30

Post-3MT reception at Stúdentakjallarinn Student bar, Thursday, 17-19

A detailed schedule to be found in the following file:

information-packet_phd-impact_june-2023 Download

Workshops

Co-Creating Science Stories: Crafting Messages for Effective Science Storytelling and Engagement – Sem Barendse

Let’s get Hands-On! Science Communication through family activity at a Science Festival – Kay Yeoman

Discovering your voice: science communication through podcasting – Melanie Bartos

Marketing in science popularization – Matěj Dostálek

Storytelling in science communication – Bernard Weingartner

Nailing it: writing short descriptions of your research for social media – Toby Wikström

Breaking the Wall between science and society using cinema as a vehicle – Stéphane Kenmoe

3MT Information Session for the Judging Panel – Noro Andriamanalina

Location

Map of important locations

PhD Impact will take place at the University of Iceland main campus in central Reykjavík.

Participants will be lodged at the Student Hostel on campus. We ask all participants to ensure participantion throughout the whole period June 4th till 9th. The Hostel is booked for you for this period. If you would like to stay longer or arrive earlier, please takek care for accomodation on your own.

Keflavík International Airport (KEF) is located approximately an hour from downtown Reykjavík. Information about ground transport between the airport and Reykjavík can be found here. The most convenient option is the Flybus which will take you to the BSÍ Bus Terminal at the edge of downtown (see conference map). From there you can take a 5-minute taxi trip or walk to the Hostel and main UI campus (10-12 minutes).

The currency of Iceland is the króna (ÍSK). Iceland is part of the EU roaming area for mobile phones and data.