Michele Giblin |
I am a post graduate student at Trinity College Dublin. My interest lies in a small subset of third level education, that of alternative access routes, specifically mature studentship. I am fortunate to receive funding from the Irish Research Council. However, to engage with colleagues and other researchers working in this arena, usually requires planes, trains and automobiles, so I was delighted and very grateful to receive a bursary last year which made it possible for me to attend the SCUTREA conference in Leicester. (Editor: The Conference was organised by Leicester's Institute of Lifelong Learning and was part of their celebration of Vaughan College's 150th Anniversary)
The first thing that you would notice when
attending a SCUTREA conference is the sheer diversity of nationalities
represented. Over the course of the
three days I was exposed to ideas and experiences of those involved in third
level education from all corners of the globe, and at all levels; academics
reflecting on programme development and experiences, students recounting their
work, and analysts elaborating on the
tensions surrounding policy and policy implementation.
Based on my experience from last year I'm certainly looking forward to coming to Glasgow and look forward to meeting new people as well as catching up with colleagues I met last year.
For details of SCUTREA student bursaries and to register for this year's conference
For details of SCUTREA student bursaries and to register for this year's conference