An Early Stage Researcher’s perspective on the PETER first Network Wide Event held virtually from May 26th to May 29th.
Under normal condition we would have been in Euskirchen (Germany) for the first Network Wide Event (NWE). However, due to the Covid-19 measures, this meeting was held virtually from May 26th to May 29th. Nevertheless, it was a very interesting week for all participants, especially for Early Stage Researchers (ESRs).
This post will cover most important events which took place during this NWE.
Day 1
The first day started with the warm welcome by the project coordinator, and soon after that the progress report of the PETER project was presented . During that day there were parallel sessions for each work package (WP). In these sessions all required milestones were discussed and documented by (co-)supervisors. Later on, this information was presented in an overview session.
After a 2-hour break, the mid-term project review session was began with a warm welcome by the project officer. After a short introduction of all participant, she made her speech advising the project management support team and the project coordinator about legal aspects of the PETER agreement, management, and the expected progress. After a short Q&A session, the project coordinator presented the consortium and mid-term progress report.
At the end of the day, half of the Early Stage Researchers (ESRs) talked about their research and their achieved outcomes.
Day 2
At the beginning of day 2, the remaining ESRs finished their presentations and after that they had a confidential discussion with the project officer. After another concluding session regarding this meeting, ESR’s council was held. During this meeting, PETER related dissemination and communication tasks were discussed, and these task were assigned to different ESRs. Day 2 was finalized with an overview session of the discussed topics during this day.
Day 3
During that day ESRs (also other participants from related projects) had interesting training for both hard (scientific and technical) and soft skills. The first two lectures was aimed at the soft skill training and started by an interesting talk about “structured working” and finished by an astonishing lecture about “how to give a high-impact presentation”.
After a short break, hard skill training session was started with a lecture about “short pulse technologies with illustrative applications” which had near 90 virtual attendants! Last lecture of this training session was dedicated to an important topic to all ESRs, “introduction to risk analysis”.
he end of the day all ESRs could enjoy an entertaining and funny online activity (Kahoot Quiz) that was arranged by two talented ESRs.
Day 4
The final day was short but really important to all ESRs. On that day we had a meeting with the PETER project and communication managers regarding the chosen communication strategy among all ESRs and Consortium members.
P.S. We are grateful to all organizers for organizing a wonderful online event, and already looking forward to seeing you all PHYSICALLY in Hengelo for the second NWE.
About the Author: Pejman Memar
Pejman obtained his Master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering from K. N. Toosi University of Technology (Iran, 2017) with distinction. For his Master thesis, he proposed a novel algorithm in Sleep Apnea Detection to eliminate the traditional requirements for performing a costly Polysomnogram test on every subject. Furthermore, he has a genuine interest in Data Analytics, Object-Oriented Programming, System Safety, and Embedded Systems.
