Blog 3 - My First Conference!
I am so excited to get to talk about my experience at my first scientific conference!! I was able to attend ACS this spring in New Orleans and even had the opportunity to present my research at the graduate student poster session! I know that conferences are just as important as publications, so I was excited to finally get to attend ACS! In this blog I want to not only talk about my experience, but also give pointers for those who plan to attend their first conference!
Going into this, I was sooo nervous. I had never been to a conference and I had also never presented my research to people other than my group members. I was told that I shouldn’t attend ACS as my first conference because it can be overwhelming, and that thought also scared me. I spent the week before mentally preparing and practicing my poster spiel over and over. I was prepared for the worst and (spoiler alert) I had the best time! Walking into the conference center for the first time was a little overwhelming, I’ll be honest, but once I realized that everyone there just wanted to have fun and learn, it got so much easier to handle.
One of my favorite parts of ACS was going to listen to all of the interesting talks! I spent most of my time in the chemistry education symposiums and I feel like I really learned a lot through those! I also attended a chemistry education social event and I met so many cool people! It was super crazy to meet people whose papers I read frequently. It was really cool to see all the major chemistry education researchers, and no lie, I did fangirl a little bit! In this social, I also met some other graduate students in chemistry education and it felt good to make those connections! That same day, I presented my poster in the graduate student session. This is what I was most nervous about going into the weekend. I, however, had an amazing experience! I was surrounded by really nice researchers and loved getting to talk about my research! I also had the chance to walk around a little and look at other posters! I quickly realized I was nervous for no reason! And now, I can’t wait until my next conference to present again!
Overall, I had an amazing experience at ACS Spring 2024! I met some really cool researchers, made some new friends, ate good food, and learned so much! I feel like I can tackle any conference now and I can’t wait until my next one! I also left feeling so motivated to start my new research project and excited to plan for my future as a chemistry education researcher! There are a couple of things I wish I had known before attending this conference, and I am here to share these with you in case you have the same questions!
1. Wear comfortable walking shoes! I knew that I was going to be walking a ton, but I defiantly underestimated just how much walking that meant. The conference hall itself was so massive. I knew I wanted to wear fancy shoes for my poster presentation, but I also knew not to wear those all day. Thankfully, I had some nice sandals I could wear during the day and I just packed my heels with me so I could change before presenting. I do, however, wish I had packed some nice tennis shoes because the sandals definitely weren’t the best option for comfort. Everyone was wearing good walking shoes during the day and so now I know that I need to buy some before my next conference!
2. Bring a water bottle everywhere you go! I thankfully had one to carry with me during the day, but I noticed some people without one. You’re going to be doing a lot of walking and talking, so you want t have water with you at all times! Hydrate or die-drate!
3. Don’t be afraid to talk to new people! These conferences are a great place to network and grow your research circle! I not only got to meet and talk to well-known researchers, but also some graduate students from other universities. These connections are so important! We’re all just a bunch of students struggling in grad school, we can and should lean on each other for support! I also got to learn a lot from these people since some of there research was in fields and topics I didn’t know much about!
4. Bring a notebook for notes! During the talks, I found myself writing notes for either myself, or notes for other people who weren’t able to attend the conference. If there was a talk presenting something that I knew my friends would be interested in, I would write down their info to pass on later! I also would write any questions I had. Sometimes there wasn’t enough time between talks to ask the questions I had, but I could find the presenter later and ask, or even reach out and ask if I was able to get their email!
5. Finally, have fun! I was so nervous at first that I forgot to have fun! Remember, everyone there is just like you! We all just want to learn and meet other people! Have fun, walk around, meet new people, it’s so much fun!
If you have any questions about my experience, or you just want to reach out and chat, don’t hesitate to send me an email! I would love to talk to you!
