Attending a conference is a great way for students to present their work, but there is so much more to be gained from attending a conference that goes beyond a presentation.

“Our students benefit from the experience of publicly presenting their work and interacting with academics and professionals.” said Dr. Ann Gordon, Associate Professor of Political Science. “They build up their confidence along with their resumes.”

Conferences are an essential part of academic life. Wilkinson sends its students to different conferences around the country throughout their time at Chapman. Whether it be for presentation or creative purposes, it can benefit the student in so many ways. At these conferences students are given the opportunity to increase networking skills, meet with leaders in their fields, improve their communication and presentation abilities, and learn about the latest research in their area.

Hawaii University International Conference

Recently Dr. Gordon took five of her students to the 9th Annual Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences & Education Conference in Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii.

Each student presented their work while meeting with other researchers and scholars from around the country.

“It was quite a rewarding experience to present my research poster based off of data from the Chapman Survey of American Fears, which is a significant research project I have been involved with since I began at the Henley Lab,” said Shreya Sheth (Peace Studies Major). “At the conference, I shared my research with scholars and academics from a wide array of disciplines and discussed with them real-world implications of climate change, as well as how they engage in social science research and multidisciplinary exploration,” she said.

Presenting at a scholarly conference is an essential component of the undergraduate research experience.

 

The Adobe MAX 2019

In the fall several graphic design majors attended the Adobe MAX 2019 — The Creative Conference in Los Angeles to see what the future has in store as far as creativity is concerned.

“I’ve walked away from Adobe MAX feeling incredibly inspired and excited for what the future could hold,” said Genevieve Geller (’21, BA Graphic Design). “Some of my personal highlights were the keynote talks.”

The 3-day conference hosted many industry creatives, but some of the more “popular” talks were with Photographer David LaChapelle; Writer, Director, Producer M. Night Shyamalan; Musicians Dave Grohl and Billie Eilish; Lettering Artist Lauren Hom; Visual Artist Shantell Martin; Graphic Designer Paula Scher and Writer, Comedian John Mulaney.

“Lauren Hom spoke about the importance of not discrediting silly ideas that you have. Much of her success is a result of taking a funny idea a little too far. The internet is an amazing tool and people will share and send things that they think are funny or relatable. This could be an important key to success—you never know who could see the work you post,” said Geller.

Known as one of the most acclaimed designers in the world, Paula Scher talked about several of her identity projects. “It eased my mind to hear her explain that no logo is iconic and universally recognizable from its birth, and that it takes years of  a company existing and building its reputation in order to achieve Nike status with their logo. This was a bit surprising coming from the most renowned logo and identity designer of our time,” said Geller.