Why would you join an ECR Network? (Compiled by Tseen Khoo)

Photo by Christian Bisbo Johnsen | unsplash.com

I saw it as a great opportunity for La Trobe ECRs from different disciplines and campuses to come together to support and inspire each other, share ideas and experiences, and potentially forge new research partnerships. I believe we achieved those outcomes with the inaugural conference in 2015.  

Personally, I have enjoyed getting to know the ECRs on the committee, have learnt valuable skills in conference organisation, and have had an insight into how the university works. It has certainly been a worthwhile experience, and one that I would encourage other ECRs to considering volunteering for if the opportunity arises.

Being involved in the ECR network and conference has proven to be an effective way of expanding my network across the University. It is too easy to immerse yourself in your own research and for your networking opportunities to reflect an ever narrowing focus. Through the network, I have met other ECRs who I would not have met in the ordinary course of my work – I enjoy hearing about their research, finding the commonalities in our work or research approach, or just marvelling at the differences in how we think.  

Building a broad network of connections can only be beneficial in terms of widening our thinking and creating opportunities for collaborative projects and grants.

It was just what I needed to get motivated and re-engaged with work! Spending the day with researchers at a similar stage in their careers and learning about some of the amazing ECR research happening at La Trobe was inspirational.  

The conference and subsequent ECR Network events have provided me with lots of practical advice and helped me engage with my work in new ways. When the opportunity arose to join the committee for the 2016 conference, I really wanted to help out on something that I have benefited from so greatly.

Being part of the network has given me the opportunity to meet great people and be involved with activities that provide a stable platform of discussion and exchange between ECRs at La Trobe.  

To me, this affiliation has been contributing to building my confidence, and helped me plan out a more coherent pathway as an academic.  

Apart from learning more about the support program for ECRs, specifically at La Trobe, I can now actively help to create events that further build, extend and strengthen the interdisciplinary ECR network at this university. The La Trobe ECR Conference in September is a great opportunity for people to come together, share their research interests and network in a positive and supportive environment.

As a new staff member at La Trobe, being involved in the ECR conference committee has enabled me to meet great people and to contribute to the broader ECR community. 

The ECR Network conference committee aims to facilitate discussions about navigating an academic career, and positively sharing ways that early career academics can build careers in the academy.

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Dr Tseen Khoo is a lecturer in research education and development with the RED team at La Trobe University. Melbourne. She has held research-only fellowships at the University of Queensland and Monash University, and was a research grant developer at RMIT University.

Tseen created and manages the Research Whisperer with Jonathan O’Donnell. 

She convenes the Asian Australian Studies Research Network (AASRN), and publishes on critical race studies, diasporic Asian cultures, and racialised academic identities. 

She’s on Twitter at @tseenster.