University Affairs

Counting down to Congress

With less than a week to go I’ve taken University Affair’s Five Tips to Make the Most of Congress to heart – here’s my list.

Come prepared

This will be a crazy week for me, so being prepared means scheduling out my days. I belong to three associations, have a bunch of Career Corner events to participate in and, believe it or not, a stack of essays to grade (marks are due the day after I get back). By reviewing the agendas of the different associations and planning out when the presentations and events most related to my interests are being held I should be able to make the most of time.

Socialize actively

I can do that. I purposely booked a room on campus to facilitate this very activity. I am also checking out all the receptions and social events that I can get into. Apart from free food and drink, these are places where lots of folks are looking for people to talk with and will be only too pleased to respond to any attempt to strike up a conversation. Hey, look for me at the Grad Student BBQ from 4-6 pm on Thursday (28^th) in the Quad Beer Garden, introduce yourself, and I promise I’ll respond!

Go outside your discipline

That’s the whole point of Congress after all – to find convergences between disciplines and build relationships based on complementary interests. Student membership rates in associations are usually nominal, which is why I belong to three. It’s like indulging in an intellectual smorgasbord! Now if I could just figure out how to clone myself – hopefully some of the sessions will be videotaped.

Consider a longer stay

Well, I have extended my visit for a couple days longer than I need to be there for Career Corner so I guess I have this covered too. But really – if you don’t have to go back when your presentation or meeting is over, allow yourself the luxury of engaging in the largest celebration of higher ed in the country. It really is an amazing experience.

Don’t be shy

Well that’s a bit like saying don’t be short (or tall). I tend to be an observer – I like watching people – really. But there are few things I enjoy more than that feeling of excitement I get listening to a really great talk or even a new idea embedded in an average talk. So when that happens, I find it’s a lot easier to go up to the speaker later and ask them the question I didn’t ask during the talk – usually because it didn’t occur to me until later. There’s not a presenter in the world who gets tired of hearing that people enjoyed their ideas, it’s a great conversation starter.

Well I think I’m in good shape for Congress this year – hope you are too. Now, back to grading (sigh).

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