The roll-up at the back of the room sets the tone: "EUTOPIA: what's in it for me? Around the table, 17 PhD students from universities all over Europe listen attentively as the trainer explains the best way to disseminate their work, based on an abstract projected on the wall. "In a news article, the most important information should be in the first paragraph," stresses António Granado, associate professor at NOVA University Lisbon, who is leading the session.
We are in the Convent of Nossa Senhora da Arrábida, where the 1st EUTOPIA Doctoral School has been held for a week, dedicated to a pressing current issue - the fact that scientists are increasingly required to simplify their message and interact with a wide range of audiences, ensuring the effective transmission of a scientific message without sacrificing accuracy.
With this in mind, NOVA has invited a number of students from all the partners of the alliance of ten European universities to participate in this EUTOPIA Doctoral School. All with the aim of providing them with the tools to better communicate with different audiences, be they peers, non-specialists or the labour market.
"We know that it is fundamental to obtain results in our research, but it is also very important to be able to communicate them in the best possible way", emphasises Alicia Tostão, 24 years old, PhD student at FCT NOVA and one of the four Portuguese in the group - but the only one there with a EUTOPIA scholarship to develop work with the University of Warwick.
The students also find other added value - such as "discussing points of view with people from other universities and different fields of work, and also improving their English", adds Magdalena Gapsa, who is Polish, studies in Ljubljana and had the good fortune to come to Lisbon for her 28th birthday.
Indeed, the group included students from countries as diverse as Romania (Babes-Bolyai University), Slovenia (University of Ljubljana), Belgium (Vrije Universiteit Brussels), Spain (Universitat Pompeu Fabra) and even Sweden (University of Gothenburg), who were encouraged to network, discuss ideas and write together.
The programme ended with a round table on employability and scientific careers and the promise of more to come.
The first EUTOPIA Doctoral Summer School will take place from 19 to 23 June, during the EUTOPIA Week - the name given to the bi-annual meeting of the Alliance Universities, which will take place at NOVA in a month's time. I have already registered," Alicia confides.
Find out more and register here.