Cardiovascular Winter School

As a PhD student in the Cardiovascular Research Program you must attend 2 out of 3 Winter Schools during the course of your PhD study. However, the 2/3 attendance rule only applies for students enrolled from 1st of January 2021.

This course is organized in collaboration with Danish Cardiovascular Academy (DCAcademy).

Course content

Day 1 consists of workshops of different skills relevant to the different stages of the graduate studies.

1^st year students will attend the course on ‘writing skills in academia’:

Writing is an integral part of academia, and includes specific genres such as the abstract, manuscript or the thesis.

This workshop contents are:

• How to get started
• Structure your writing
• Abstract style
• English grammar
• Legible scientific English

2^nd year students will attend the course on ‘Posters: can they deliver the goods? Yes!’:

Get ideas and tips about what to present, how to portray it, and how to present it orally.

3^rd year students will attend the course on ‘Communication & presentation in the academic context: How to be confident and persuasive’:

Whether small talk or academic subject presentation – the ability to present oneself adequately and to communicate one’s concerns effectively is a deciding factor of career related success in academia.

With a few fundamental strategies for communication and presentation techniques, it is possible to illustrate complex data in a context relevant way, to convince others, to win supporters and thus reach the respectively set goals.

In this workshop the participants engage with their personal communication strategies. Through exercises and role-plays they familiarize themselves with established presentation techniques and train their communicative competencies. The workshop contents are:

• Communication basics: Good communication presumes set goals
• Presentation basics: Preparation is key
• Go public – go scientific! The context makes the difference
• Everything under control? Dealing with difficult situations
• Role-play: Presentation situations in practice
• Minima rhetorica: Tips & tricks on the art of oratory
• Communication & presentation: My next steps

Day 2 contains plenary lectures and presentations from the PhD students in the graduate program in cardiovascular research: 2^nd year PhD students present their research projects on posters and 3^rd year PhD students present their projects orally. The presentations will be reviewed and evaluated by the 1^st year students under guidance of a group of supervisors in the graduate program.

Plenary lectures will be given by prominent researchers who will map the field of cardiovascular research in Denmark.

Prizes will be given to best abstract, poster presentation, and oral presentation at the CardioDinner taking place the same evening. Graduate students and supervisors affiliated with the cardiovascular graduate participate in day 2.

Participants

The course is intended for PhD students affiliated with the Cardiovascular graduate program, but PhD students in the field of cardiovascular research, but associated with other graduate programs are also welcome.

Learning objectives

A student who has met the objectives of the course will be able to:

1^st year graduate students

1. Critically review abstracts and poster presentations
2. Reflect on oral presentations
3. Apply correct scientific writing to their research papers and thesis

2^nd year graduate students

1. Present and discuss a scientific poster
2. Reflect on oral presentations
3. Apply poster presentation skills to their poster presentations

3^rd year graduate students

1. Present and discuss their research project orally
2. Apply communication and presentation skills to oral presentations