5 reasons to attend DSA 2023
Are you a first time conference attendee? Or are you a conference stalwart, trying to remember what conferences were all about before COVID made us stay home in sweatpants?
Here’s five reasons we think you should attend DSA2023, plus the views of some our members on why it’s beneficial to attend.
- Networking Opportunities: Attending academic conferences provides an opportunity to network and meet other researchers, scholars, and professionals in your field. You can exchange ideas, collaborate on future research, and build professional relationships that can lead to job opportunities or collaborations.
- Learning from Experts: Academic conferences feature keynote speakers and experts in various fields who share their knowledge, insights, and research findings. You can learn about the latest research and trends in your field, gain new perspectives, and discover innovative approaches to your research.
- Presenting Research: Presenting your research at a conference allows you to receive feedback from your peers and experts in your field. You can gain insights into your work, refine your research questions, and receive constructive criticism that can help you improve your research.
- Career Advancement: Attending academic conferences can help you advance your career by allowing you to showcase your work, build your professional network, and gain recognition in your field. Conference attendance can also provide valuable information about publishing, meeting publishers, authors and attending sessions on writing and publishing.
- This is the first in-person gathering of development studies practitioners and researchers since the start of the pandemic. You’ll get to see friends and colleagues old and new, both at coffee breaks and lunch but also special activities we’ve organised for socialising including Thursday night food trucks, the chance to visit see Reading’s crops work on its Sonning farm, a tour or Reading’s Centre for Dairy Research (CEDAR) followed by a visit to the Cocoa Quarantine Centre and a visit to the Museum of English Rural Life.
Member’s views
Here’s why DSA members have attended an academic conference in the past:
“I benefited from attending conference as a PhD student in the late 1990s (where there was methods training) and my first DSA conference paper in 2001 became my first journal paper in JID in 2002.” Sam Hickey, Professor of Politics and Development at the University of Manchester
“I have attended the annual DSA Conference to connect with and learn from other researchers working in my field of study.” Cynthia Kamwengo. Researcher on the politics of knowledge production, global governance and South-South cooperation. Centre for Development Studies, Bath.
“For me, attending an international conference like DSA2023 is one of the highlights of the academic calendar. Not only does it provide a great opportunity to present and gain feedback on my research, but it also provides a way to meet and connect with peers doing similar work in other universities and research institutes.” Alex Arnall, Environmental Geographer, University of Reading
“I’ve attended the DSA conference for the past two years because it’s a great event for meeting researchers working in the same field, hearing about their work and keeping up to date with the latest debates in development studies.” Clare Cummings, Research Associate in the Politics and Governance team at ODI.
If you’d like to find out more about attending DSA2023, visit our conference pages or if you’re ready to join us, simply register here.