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"It was an inspiring and intriguing experience to feed off of each other's academic interests," said Kyle Trainor, A&S '09, on the Undergraduate Research Symposium, which was held on Friday. The symposium provided undergraduates a chance to present the results of their research and grant-funded travel to their peers.
The event, which was the first of its kind, was divided into three different parts, allowing for poster presentations, film presentations, and panel discussions. The participating students were placed in their respective groups (and, in the case of panel presenters, one of nine different panels) based on their research projects and were spread throughout Gasson Hall.
On the whole, students found the symposium to be a resounding success. Matt Hamilton, A&S '09, discussed his paper that he submitted to Elements as well as the time he spent working with migration workers. His presentation was well-received, which was in part due to the organization of the event.
"The panel that I was on was discussing American affairs as a whole, so my presentation was a good fit," said Hamilton. He also mentioned that his presentation was a bit longer than the others, so the questioning period at the end was cut short, but he was still able to talk to many people afterward if they still had questions for him.
"It was a well-run event. It was an academically stimulating day, and it really encourages research and sharing," he said.
Robbie Kubala, A&S '09, gave a presentation regarding his trip to Iceland that was funded by his grant. "I wanted to look into the interaction between language and culture," he said, "so I wanted to go to a place where people are conscious of language." Kubala, who is a philosophy major, focused on the philosophy of language. "This was a great opportunity to see what the other undergraduates are researching and where they are traveling," he said.
Trainor concurred with Kubala and Hamilton's sentiments.
"The symposium was a good way for students to further develop and explore everyone's interests that have crossed over into academics," he said. He also stated that because of the quality of the presentations and the success of the event, he saw this as an instance of students doing a great service to the University, and vice versa.
The symposium was also successful in showcasing a variety of presentations, including Trainor's display of a trailer for his documentary on Italian culture in the face of changing times, I Signori. Aside from the trailer, Trainor also had a PowerPoint presentation prepared for his audience. Both Hamilton and Trainor said that they found the presentations to be diverse and to cover a wide range of topics.
Criticism of the event was relatively minor. "The only suggestion I would have is to spread the day out so the presenters could see more of their peers' work, because people want to listen and feed off of your vibes," said Trainor. But he added that given that this was the first year that the symposium was held, plans for the future are undoubtedly already in the minds of professor Donald Hafner and the other event organizers.
Kubala, who was equally satisfied with the symposium, said he hopes that next year, people will have more time to speak and that people will be more prepared.
"I hope that they will do a better job of publicizing the event in the future, but for the first thing of its kind, it was very successful," said Kubala.
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