New Initiatives Report: Historical Perspectives Conference 2012: Fresh Perspectives on the Past
Day 2: Employability Panel Session
Over two days on the 10th and 11th May 2012 we booked seminar rooms in the Wolfson Medical Building
to give postgraduate speakers the opportunity to present their research in a series of sessions through 20
minute presentations followed by questions from the audience and discussion. Over the two days we
heard a total of 25 papers from PG students and the delegates were given the opportunity to meet and
discuss their work with other postgraduates during the buffet lunch, tea/coffee and dinner.
On the afternoon of day two of the conference we held an employability panel session where 2 earlycareer historians, a career advisor, and the UK student recruitment officer of Glasgow University, all of
whom had carried out PhDs in historical topics, were invited to speak about their experiences and field
questions from the PG delegates regarding steps to take and how to proceed with postdoctoral careers
both within and outside of academia. It was specifically this section of the conference for which the New
Initiatives Funding was used and it helped us to provide refreshments for delegates and Panel members
during the networking/coffee session held immediately after the employability panel session.
Originally we were also supposed to have a social researcher from the Scottish Government on this panel
but as she had to cancel last minute she provided delegates with a 2 page breakdown of her career path
and steps postgraduates might take if they want to pursue a career as a social researcher. This was sent to
all delegates as an email attachment after the conference. As the panel members are currently employed
both with and outside of academia this session provided the delegates with helpful advice regarding the
realities of an academic job in the current climate and ways to enhance your academic CV, as well as
advice about how to recognise the transferable skills that are developed throughout a PhD and how to
apply these in careers outside of academia such as in social research, teaching, and working within nonprofit organisations.
This conference was geared towards postgraduate students throughout the UK, but with a focus on
enhancing the PG networks of University of Glasgow students and encouraging them to meet, discuss
their work, and develop lasting networks with other PG students from around the UK. We hoped to bring
in postgraduate researchers in arts and social sciences who carry out historical research but who do not
necessarily work within a history department, thus encouraging interdisciplinary discussions and
awareness of the variety of fields where a historical perspective can be useful.
We had 45 delegates from a wide variety of universities such as the Universities of Glasgow, Edinburgh,
Strathclyde, Caledonian, St Andrews, Dundee, University of the Highlands and Islands, Birmingham,
Southampton, Kings College London, Lancaster, Oxford, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. There
was, however, a strong University of Glasgow base, with around half of the delegates being based in the
University of Glasgow, and so Glasgow students definitely benefitted from this conference. The delegates
were based not just in History Departments (modern, early modern, and medieval) but also in language
departments (French, Gaelic), and in Education, Film and TV, Music, English Literature, and the Social and
Public Health Sciences Unit. Therefore this conference met its aims of appealing to an interdisciplinary
postgraduate community and encouraging interdisciplinary research discussions and networks.
Feedback forms were filled out by all delegates and collected at the close of the conference. The feedback
forms focussed upon how the conference had enhanced the ‘employability’ of the delegates and whether
they felt the conference had been useful to them in this respect.
100% of the respondents felt that this conference had ‘enhanced their employability and career prospects
in general’.
A number of positive comments were received from participants on the feedback forms, for example:
‘I picked up lots of tips about other people’s presentation styles and the conference increased my
confidence in general.’
‘This conference broadened my awareness of what is currently going on in my academic field. The
employability panel was informative, reassuring and highly useful.’
‘Helpful for meeting other people in different disciplines, but with cognate interests. The employment
panel was useful for hearing a realistic but encouraging perspective on jobs after the PhD.’
‘The employability session was informative and engaging.’
‘Great experience in a friendly peer environment. It enhanced my presentation skills and networking
experience. The employability panel was friendly and pragmatic and provided info on careers outside the
academy. The conference gave us opportunities to gain knowledge about other
universities/departments/networks.’
Overall the conference organisers felt that this conference was extremely successful and that we met our
stated aims and outcomes. We enhanced not only the employability prospects of the delegates but also,
as co-ordinators of this conference and employability panel session, we enhanced our own skills in this
area which will be useful in future careers both with and outside of academia.
Eilidh Macrae,
Treasurer, Historical Perspectives Postgraduate Committee