Presenting a paper at a Europaeum Event
The Europaeum is a network of Europe’s leading universities (including St Andrews, of course). Europaeum events are open to postgraduate students at member universities. They also provide students with accommodation and reasonable travel expenses, which is very helpful! Saoirse attended the 2021 Classics conference, and here’s what she thought of the experience:
“In the last week of November 2021, I was so happy to attend the Europaeum Classics Colloquium in Madrid. It took place at the centre of the Complutense University of Madrid and at the Museo Arqueológico Nacional, so we were able to see a lot of Madrid! The colloquium consisted of a three-day conference where students presented their papers on the theme of “change” in Classics.
Initially, I had been unsure about my presentation since my paper – “Catasterism: Exploring Environmental Political Thought in Metamorphoses” – was more about the reception of Classics than others’ appeared to be. However, there was such a variety of talks. The days were filled with different discussions, including student-led panels, roundtables, and key-note speakers by prominent academics. Interspersed among these were meals organised across Madrid which provided opportunities to discuss the ideas in relaxed setting, or just get to know the people you were listening to speak.
Thanks to this mixture, I really gained a lot more from the experience than I had initially expected. I had anticipated that the conference would be a good opportunity for me to develop my ideas within my research-area, but the variety of talks encouraged new ideas and enabled me to recognise how I can make my research engage with the wider environment. I can’t thank the Europaeum Network enough for their support throughout the conference, up until the very last night when they assisted me with the last-minute Covid changes! I’d finally also like to thank the University of St Andrews and the Spanish Society for Classics Studies for the opportunity.
For anyone considering applying for the Europaeum events, my one piece of advice is: do! It might seem a little daunting at first, but it offered amazing opportunities to challenge and improve my research approach in a constructive and friendly environment.”
