A postgraduate student speaks with another attendee at a university networking event, with text highlighting the importance of showing up, making connections, and building community during the PhD journey.

Beyond the Desk: Why PhD Students Need to Show Up Where the Conversations Are Happening

Doing a PhD is not just about locking yourself away with books, notes, deadlines, and a document that refuses to behave. Some of the real learning happens when you leave the desk, enter the room, listen to other people’s work, and realise that your research is part of a much bigger conversation. This blog is a reminder to show up, sign up, pay attention, and make the most of the spaces that help shape you into the researcher you are becoming.

What’s a street for? Public spaces and cultural outreach

Reflecting on her current SGSAH-internship with the Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Archives, resident blogger Ebba shares her process of brainstorming public outreach ideas that highlight the existing strengths of a place or region rather than competing for space with established enterprises and creative practitioners. This exploratory post about roaming the streets of Aberdeen and Nairn aims to inspire the reader to let others into their own creative process sooner rather than later.