The student-led 2021 conference, held at We The Curious, in Bristol, was titled ‘Getting Through It: Uncertainty in Research’ and attracted doctoral students from all over the UK.

Sarah McLaughlin with her prize-winning poster at the 2021 SWDTP Conference in Bristol

Sarah’s prize- winning entry was created about her EDd research at the School of Education, University of Bristol.

She also presented at the conference on the creative research methods she used to enhance her research during lockdown in the pandemic. Face-to-face research was stopped, so focus groups and interviews moved online. She explained “I tried out a method using playdoh, whereby participants used playdoh to model representations of their experiences of returning to education as mature students. their creativity enhanced the online interviews.”

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Speaking about this fantastic achievement, Sarah said, “The prize was a book voucher, which I am using to take my son to the bookshop to choose a book, as I want to encourage his love of reading, and also as a reward for understanding I spend a lot of time writing my EdD.

It gave me confidence in presenting my work, especially as I am at writing stage and feeling unsure of whether I am good enough!”