Over 70 attendees participated in the annual Symposium for Early Researchers in Social Policy & Intervention (SERSPI) that took place on May 17th at St Hilda’s College.
This full-day event gathered early career researchers to discuss pressing social and economic issues. With 25 speakers, the conference featured diverse presentations on inequality measurement, child and family wellbeing, and community development, fostering vibrant intellectual exchange.
Recently selected to give the Reith Lectures by the BBC, Ben Ansell, Professor of Comparative Democratic Institutions at Nuffield College, University of Oxford, kicked off the event with a thought-provoking keynote on “Who Wants Wealth Taxes?”.
In addition to the traditional, longer-format presentations by DPhil students more established in their research, this year also saw the introduction of an exciting and fast-paced ‘3-minute-thesis’ format, which gave Master’s students the opportunity to share their research proposals and ideas in a fresh and engaging way.
The event concluded with a panel discussion where Selçuk Bedük, Amiya Bhatia, and Kenneth Nelson, facilitated by Isang Awah, shared their unique insights on failures, successes, and personal growth. During the session panellists opened up allowing young researchers to understand the importance of normalizing failure in academia, and even sharing it with peers.
“The positive feedback we received from students and young researchers on our senior faculty panel discussion has been overwhelming! It truly brought the DSPI community closer together, fostering a sense that anything is possible, even in the face of setbacks." Organising committee
The symposium was also supported by department and college staff, including Professor Jane Barlow, Head of Department and Chair in Evidence-Based Intervention and Policy Evaluation.
A dedicated and well-coordinated team was essential in executing the event flawlessly. Overall, the SERSPI event's success highlights the importance of thorough planning, effective marketing, and interactive engagement in hosting a memorable and well-received event.
The members of the SERSPI 2024 organising committee are Enrico Benassi, Ines Echevarria, Janke Tolmay, and Jonathan Klapwijk.
