Research students from the School of Humanities are holding a conference this week to provide peer review and support for their diverse works-in-progress.

The two-day conference will see 22 students undertaking Masters and PhD courses within the School make presentations on their thesis work to enable feedback and encouragement from their fellow postgraduates. The conference also includes a roundtable session with experienced academic supervisors to provide practical guidance.

The conference, entitled Work (Honestly) In Progress, is being organised by PhD candidates Natalia Sanjuán Bornay and Emma Maguire.

“The conference has become an annual event, and we have found that explaining your work and its  progress to your peers has benefits all round,” Ms Bornay said.

She said that exchanging ideas in a supportive environment generates a sense of community that is great for morale in general terms, and can also help in addressing specific academic and theoretical problems or obstacles.

The students presenting at the conference are drawn from the disciplines of Screen and Media, English and Creative Writing, Philosophy, Theology, Language Studies, Tourism, Drama, Archaeology and Australian Studies.

The topics of their projects include: humour as an indicator of intercultural competence; the role of manipulation in purportedly “true” memoirs; the working lives of Greek-Cypriot migrants to Australia; a novel-in-progress that traces the experience of Adelaide sex workers; and an examination of on-line webcams and blogging as an autobiographical form.