A student's perspective on SKOK's master relay

What was your expecations of the  master relay?

I have to admit, that before I got the email from my supervisor, I did not know about SKOK. But the topic “gender” has been a red line throughout my studies (Anthropology) from the Bachelor level until today. So, I would say I have a basic background and a big interest in gender-related studies. Therefore, I am very glad to have had the chance to get to know about SKOK and participate in the relay.

What do you think you have gained from participating?

What I took with me from the master relay is a big portion of inspiration. I got - once more - a glimpse of the spectrum of gender-related research. And - once more - I got confirmed about how vast that area is, how interesting and mostly how relevant it is.

Is SKOK's master relay something you would recommend to fellow students ?

I highly recommend to take part in the SKOK's master relay. Seeing that I am an international student with just basic knowledge in Norwegian, I was a little bit scared, because I thought I would not understand much. But I was pleasantly surprised to see that the majority of the presentations were held in English and that I could understand large parts of the Norwegian ones too.

Also, I think it is very interesting that the participants at the event came from different academic backgrounds and had so very different questions and research objectives. I mean, I knew, that “Gender” is a big topic, but it is fascinating to see that it reaches from topics like “LGBT Tango in Italy” to “Male Cleaners in Norway” to the philosophical question of “Shame” and beyond. I got very inspired by the contributions.

Furthermore, the atmosphere in the master relay was very welcoming for students to give each other feedback. It is not about being judged or challenged by professors; there is no jury that criticizes your performance. It is the opposite: SKOK staff and students were all on the same team, helping and encouraging each other with constructive feedback and advice.

When it was my turn to present, I was very nervous. But the feedback I got was encouraging, supporting and very constructive. Taking part in the master relay helped me a lot in my research preparation.