PhD Students

Conference attendance

We look forward to holding a dynamic space at the conference for you to develop your research and explore your ideas. All PhD students can participate in three ways:

  1. Offer a 15-minute paper*

  2. Participate in Table Talks**

  3. Exhibition & Open Mic performances


*You are highly encouraged to present a paper. **All PhD students are expected to participate in one of the table talks.

Please see below for more participation guidelines.

Participation Guidelines

Present a 15-minute paper

If you would like to offer a paper, please submit an abstract by Monday, January 16th 2023 at 12:00 to cws.sisterhood@gmail.com. Talk to your supervisor and think about one aspect of your research to work up into a paper. Offering a paper on part of your research, rather than the whole topic will enable you to develop and test an argument about a specific idea that you may be struggling with. We know your paper will be work-in-progress but producing a paper and being open to discussion will help refine your ideas.

Your abstract should be one paragraph of 200–300 words. It should include:

                • a title

                • aim of paper

                • context of this paper within your overall research

                • why your topic is important (politically and/or academically)

                • how your work fits in and differs from other work in the field

                • methodological context of your argument (what you have done/what you are doing to develop your ideas)

                • the main argument* or ideas you will address in this paper

                • and finally, (for those in an advanced stage of their research) conclusions, challenges, contradictions

Notes:

*The argument should form the main part of the abstract (there should be less emphasis on the background problem and more emphasis on your research practice – aims or findings, depending on the stage you are at).

Participate in Table Talks (all PhD students)

Exhibition & Open Mic 'performances'

The table talk sessions will offer all PhD students an opportunity to talk to their CWS peers about their research. You'll be asked to join a group of other students at varying stages of their research, the groups will be arranged thematically, covering a range of different subjects and disciplines.

All CWS students are invited to share their artwork for our Sisterhood in Action exhibition space. Likewise, you are all invited to share (or perform!) something creative, loud, energetic, artistic, political, hot, and wild at our open mic session at the end of the day. We welcome prepared work but there will be space for spontaneous contributions; aim for 3 minutes with 5 minutes maximum for each ‘turn’.

Please note:

All full-time PhD students are expected to attend Sisterhood in Action. If you have any reason for which you cannot be involved, please talk to your supervisor.

All part-time PhD part-time students are encouraged to attend, but we realize this is not always possible. If you are a part-time PhD student who cannot attend but would like to offer a paper, please contact us, and we will make suitable arrangements for a summer-term FRACS session.

Any queries, contact the organising team members (cws.sisterhood@gmail.com ).