University graduate students labor over their research for years, and often times, it goes unnoticed. However, a forum being held today aims to finally shine a light on their efforts.
Composed of panel and poster sessions that include discussions and display graduate student research, the Graduate Student Research Forum will center around the theme of “University’s Big Ideas: The Americas in a Globalized World; Global Oregon; Green Product Design; Human Health and Performance; and Sustainable Cities.” The forum is an opportunity for the student body to see research from graduate students who have collaborated across departments and showcased their efforts in a centralized place.
“I think the attention is often on our outstanding sports and we have a great undergraduate population, but a huge community of the school is graduate students,” said Brenna Wolf-Monteiro, a journalism graduate student.
Wolf-Monteiro is presenting a paper on the “Global Oregon: Sustainability and Justice” panel, which entails the social and environmental impact of communication technologies and how people learn about the implications of electronic waste.
The forum is also beneficial for the participants. Caitlin Mahy, a psychology graduate student, is participating in the poster session.
“I would love to show our research and also get feedback from other students on ideas for improvement.” Mahy said.
Mahy is showcasing research she conducted with Jesse King, a business marketing graduate student. Their research included a variety of tests on humans to observe perspective, inhibition and working memory. When discussing the fundamental difference between psychology and marketing, Mahy said both fields benefit from the research, which is a goal of the forum.
Although the departments aren’t often related, the forum gives them the opportunity to work together when they wouldn’t have otherwise.
“Outside of the department, there isn’t a lot of cross-talk, so I think this is a really nice opportunity to find out what’s going on,” Mahy said.
Stephen Rust, an English graduate student, helped create the research forum since inception. Rust explained that the forum gets more prestigious as it grows, and he is confident that there will be an element of competition.
“The pressure for the work to get better and better to get into the conference will step up as well,” Rust said.
Faculty and undergraduates can participate in the forum, too. Mahy said the forum is great for those interested in what’s going on in other departments, especially those in interdisciplinary work.
“This is really an opportunity to meet up with people that may be studying things from a different perspective,” Mahy said.
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