IT Sligo is hosting the second Science Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) conference tomorrow, Friday 27th September.
This national event involving nine 3rd-level education institutions across Ireland is also simultaneously held this year on the campuses of TU Dublin and IT Carlow.
The conference will open with a keynote address from the Minister for Higher Education, Mary Mitchell O’Connor, which will take place on the TU Dublin Tallaght campus and will be live streamed across the three venues.
Science graduates of the 2019 classes from IT Sligo, GMIT, LYIT and AIT will come together to Sligo to showcase the product of their final year projects via oral and poster presentations. The science topics covered are very diverse and include among others studies on the toxicology of food-additives, the effects of parental feeding styles on children or the fate of microplastics in water treatment plants.
Speaking ahead of the event, Dr. Jeremy Bird, Head of the School of Science at IT Sligo, says “it is with great pleasure that we welcome students and academic staff from Letterkenny, Athlone and Galway on our vibrant campus for an exciting day of peer-to-peer exchanges and stimulating conversations on the fantastic scientific work carried out by last year’s cohort of final year undergraduate students”.
Last year convenors of the conference at Athlone Institute of Technology Dr. Therese Montgomery and Dr. Anne Maire O’Brien enthusiastically recalled that “the event was a celebration of student achievement, empowering students as they presented their work in front of an audience of peers, academics and industry professionals. The SURE conference highlights the importance of the final year undergraduate project as a key educational tool bringing together practical, analytical and communication skills, which is both challenging and rewarding for students.
This conference is viewed as an experience development platform for students as they continue their academic journey toward the professional work environment, honing on the modern communication skills demanded by employers in the science and technology sectors.
The conference will also include a panel discussion with postgraduate students on career planning, approaches for effective preparation for interviews, how to deal with setbacks or accessing funded postgraduate research opportunities.
The SURE Network was recognised as the ”best academic partnership” at the 2019 Education Awards. Further information about the SURE Network can be found at http://sure-network.ie/. Registration for the conference at IT Sligo is now open on Eventbrite.