Every new RIMLS PhD candidate shares one common experience: an amazing 2-day retreat where you make friends, discover yourself, and get inspired. At least, that was the case pre-pandemic. No more communal retreats in an old convent, but the course still continues helping new PhDs online. Let’s explore what still works and what we miss.
“I often look back at waking up in Soeterbeeck. I looked through the window, absorbing the beautiful views of the forest and enjoying the early morning silence.” says Estel Collado Camps, reminiscing of the beginning of her PhD. Soeterbeeck is a beautiful estate surrounded by trees, where an Augustinian convent used to stand. A short drive away from Nijmegen, it is the usual venue for the introductory RIMLS course “In the lead of my PhD”. The two-day course welcomes new RIMLS members and tries to motivate and teach new PhD candidates how to take the lead in their personal and professional growth. It is a huge asset and a fun experience at the same time.
But I was not as lucky as Estel, I’m afraid. I woke up last Friday in my apartment, just like any other day, made my coffee, put a decent t-shirt on (but kept the pajama pants), and clicked the Zoom link to attend In the Lead. No cool convents, no silent forests, no people around. Just my computer screen, my pajamas, and me. That is because I am one of the many unfortunate PhD candidates who take this course during the lockdown.
Despite being on Zoom and all, I was still excited for the course because I had heard amazing things about it. I am in the unusual position that I am taking this course in my second year. So, I already have many friends. But for a newcomer PhD candidate, especially from a different city or country, In the Lead is a fantastic opportunity to meet and socialize with peers. The course involves a lot of work in small groups and pairs, so you get to know at least a few people during the assignments. And it is not like any other course in terms of the work that you do. You need to be honest and talk about your weaknesses, strengths, hopes, and worries with your peers during the assignments. PhD candidate Iris van der Hoorn says, “I simply liked that I could discuss or listen to simple hurdles that you face as a PhD with other people who are in the same phase.” I truly believe that sharing difficulties has a unique way of forming bonds between people.
Sadly, it is tough to have a real social experience outside of the coursework in the online version. Although Clasien Oomen, the research policy advisor of RIMLS, did her very best to keep us entertained and engaged, Zoom fatigue is a real deal. People choose to get away from the screen as soon as the sessions finish. There are no communal meals or coffee breaks like in the old days. “For me, especially the moments between the sessions were a good opportunity to get to know my fellow PhD candidates. And the food was absolutely delicious!” says Julie Verhoef, who attended a former face-to-face In the Lead. All the free food we got was microwave popcorn in our mailboxes. ☹
Actual long-lasting friendships can be formed in this course. Estel says that a small group from the course organized a dinner months later, and they have since been to events together, met to cook, or went out for coffee. These are all pre-pandemic memories, of course. Julie is grateful for the new people she met during In the Lead as well. She tells me, “Although I did my studies in Nijmegen and already knew a few people, I still met many new faces that I otherwise wouldn’t have.” Look how happy and close people were before the pandemic :’(
For me, the best opportunity to form bonds with someone was the paired session where we coached each other on how to improve a competency of our choice. Pair meetings were very much appreciated by the people who attended the in-person course as well. Barnabas Ilenwabor is one of them, and he recommends more intimate break-out room experiences for the online version. He believes that these sessions are more engaging and encouraging for the PhD candidates to be open about themselves. I had precisely the same experience. We had a heart-to-heart talk with my coaching buddy, which led to texting all day after the session and exchanging social media accounts to keep in contact. I made a beautiful new friend!
Making connections is especially challenging if you start your PhD in the middle of the pandemic and barely see your colleagues. Iris is rightfully frustrated as she says, “The new standard instructs you to come to work for work that you cannot do from home and then go home again. This makes your ‘PhD world’ quite small”. She participated in the face-to-face but socially distanced version of In the Lead in June 2020, between the first two waves of the coronavirus pandemic. It was a relief to be able to meet people again for Iris and her fellow participants. She really liked how the event was organized in-person while still respecting the COVID-19 rules. Look at them socializing responsibly:
To all the former In the Lead participants that I talked to, I asked what the course's highlight and the most important lesson or skill they learned were. The answers all lead in the same direction: People find immense value in the Strengthfinders session with the leadership coach Wim Bierman. Prior to the course, we were all asked to take a test that would reveal our top five strengths. During the session with Wim, we worked on how we can cultivate and use them to our advantage for our PhDs and beyond. As Julie puts it, “Thinking about your own set of qualities is not something you do during your daily practices.” For Estel, “The idea that energy might be better spent on potentiating and using your strengths, than on (slightly) improving your weak points, was an eye-opener.” Barnabas also tells me, “This brought forward talents often overlooked, and emphasized how to take advantage of these qualities to further develop myself.” I couldn’t agree more with all of them. This session is clearly the star of the meeting, no matter which version you attend.
I personally want to thank and congratulate RIMLS for still trying their best to organize this course. It is an important and beneficial event in many ways for new PhDs who tend to feel quite lost and confused. I asked if the former participants had any suggestions to improve the event, and they had none. Apparently, the regular version of this course is near-perfect. We don’t know how much longer we need to keep things online, but I’m guessing there will be at least one more online In the Lead. There is no way of avoiding Zoom fatigue. It’s nasty, looking at a screen all day, sitting in the same position. My suggestion going further would be having more frequent short breaks. A few minutes of stretching and eye-resting can really replenish the energy of people.
I will end with the group picture we took on the last day. We weren’t anywhere cool, so we pretended to be. I got in the mood a little too much and put my sunglasses on 😊
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