As ECREA Young Scholars Network (YECREA) representative for the Digital Culture and Communication (DCC) section, I am organising the YECREA meeting in Bonn, themed ‘Planning a non-conventional academic career in digital culture and communication: Challenges and opportunities’.
Bonn 2-5 October 2013.

Researchers in the early stages of their career and young scholars share similar concerns that relate to the current state of insecurity in academic fields, throughout Europe. For scholars in the fields of digital media and digital culture in particular, this insecurity can be even more pressing, especially since questions around ‘big data’, internet and society are increasingly becoming the focus of other disciplines. At the same time, this spread of focus provides some new opportunities for digital media and communication scholars, to cross-fertilise their research and to work across conventional disciplinary boundaries, and seek alternative homes, practices and collaborations that can help their ideas grow. This workshop is aimed at young and emerging scholars, and will address questions such as: How can I draw a career path that is responsive to the changing state of the field? How can I develop my first grant proposal in digital culture and communication? How can I write a CV which reflects my strengths to produce robust research?  And what is the actual situation of professionals in the field – how do they see the opportunities and hindrances for a professional future in digital culture and communication?

In this workshop we aim to discuss how scholars in different stages of their careers confront  specific challenges in our field. We will try to draw on similarities and differences that apply in different European contexts, as well as on experiences and strategies that scholars at different stages have followed in their personal careers. The plenary discussion will provide helpful insights and will help to address questions and personal issues of participants.

Target Participants: ‘Young’ scholars (Postgraduate students, Doctoral students and early-career postdoc scholars) within the field of Digital Culture and Communication.

Invited Speakers:

– Prof Elisenda Ardevol (Chair of ECREA Digital Culture and Communication)
– Dr Kate O’Riordan (University of Sussex)
– Dr Veronica Barassi (Goldsmiths, University of London)
– Jessica Einspänner, MA (University of Bonn)
– Lucia Vesnic-Alujevic, PhD (European Commission – JRC)

Chair: Dr Aristea Fotopoulou (YECREA Representative in the DCC Section, University of Sussex)

Objectives:

To help young and other emerging scholars to think ‘outside the box’ and to develop successful career plans
To learn from the career experiences of established senior scholars in the field
To share thoughts, questions and challenges related to the state of the field
To network with other junior and senior scholars in the DCC academic field

Places are limited, so if interested to participate or for any further information please contact Aristea Fotopoulou (a.fotopoulou@sussex.ac.uk)

For full programme see: http://131.220.42.248/wordpress/?page_id=11

Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/302147786597601/

YECREA website: http://yecrea.eu/node/2331