About the conference
The South West undergraduate conference was founded by the British Psychological Society, it was developed to enable students to practice their presentation skills while meeting with people who have similar interests to them. Seven South West universities participate in the conference every year and take it in turns to host: Plymouth, Plymouth Marjon, Exeter, Bath, Bath Spa, University of West England and The University of Bristol, including the School of Education.
The University of Bristol's School of Psychological Science is hosting this year's conference, the organizing of the event is run by three students in their fourth year of study as part of an apprenticeship project.
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The conference offers students to present either a poster or a presentation of their final year project to their peers and typically includes talks from keynote speakers, separated by various breaks, and finishes with a drink reception. It is a brilliant way to enter the world of academia and meet like-minded people. Undergraduate conferences are suggested to "complete [the students] research cycle" and can help build vital communication skills for areas such as publishing.
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What does the day feature?
Throughout the day, students will give a presentation of their project that will last 10-15 minutes including time for questions. Presentation sessions will last approximately 1 hour and will include up to four presentations per hour. These sessions will be split up by breaks and talks. Students presenting posters are encouraged to watch the presentations and ask questions.
Poster presentations will be presented during an allocated time slot during the day that will last one hour. During this time, students will stand by their poster and discuss/answer any questions people have about their project. Students not presenting posters are encouraged to browse during this session and engage with poster presenters.
A renowned speaker will be present to give a talk for approximately one hour. This might be on a piece of research they are conducting or their academic journey as a whole. This talk will take place in a big lecture theatre and is welcome to everyone attending the conference. It will not take place during presentation or poster sessions.
A panel of speakers, each whom have taken a different avenue with their psychology degree, will answer your questions. This session will be heavily career focused and will include a brief introduction of each speakers journey from undergraduate study to the present followed by a question and answer advice session. This session is open to all and will take approximately one hour, separate from poster and presentation sessions.
