The Firebird Volume 3 (2017-18) | Page 14

Student Stories Postgraduate Symposium Poster Boy Marcus talks about the success of the Postgraduate Symposiums Hello, my name is Marcus Lancashire and I am the Post- graduate Mentor at Grey College. One of the events that we run for the Postgraduates at Grey are the Postgraduate Symposiums, which take place twice in every term. Students are given the opportunity to prepare a presentation about their work or a topic that inter- ests them, and present it to an audience of students and staff. As is the case every year, the talks have been of a very high standard, with presentations on a wide range of topics, from Phenomenology and Human Evolution to the WWF Atti- tude Era. The highlight of the Symposium series was the day long Postgraduate Symposium held on the 10th March. A total of eight talks were given, followed by the presentation of four posters. Prizes were awarded for the best presen- tations and this year, they were given to, as voted for by both the student and staff attend- ees, Rhiannon Gittins (Cave Art: Was It a Waste of Time? Costly Signalling in Palaeolithic Cave Art) and Daniel Kinch (Why is the Sky Blue?). It has been encouraging seeing both the skill and passion with which the postgraduates present, and the level of interest that other students have for the work of their peers. I know that the Postgraduate Symposiums have been enjoyed by all that attended, and I hope that they have helped students develop the confidence and presenta- tion skills that they will need for the future. Marcus Lancashire (Postgraduate Mentor) 14