Loughborough Doctoral College

Training and events

The Summer Showcase for Doctoral Researchers took place on 28 June 2023. 

The Summer Showcase was a fun, half-day (09:30 – 13:30), event that brought doctoral researchers together from across the University to share their work and network in a vibrant and supportive environment. The event took place in-person and online. 

To follow the Twitter chatter about the event, please use #LboroDCShowcase and @LboroDocCollege

For queries, please contact the event's organiser Dr Katryna Kalawsky.

Activities

There were four main ways in which doctoral researchers could share their work at the Summer Showcase. Click on the drop down boxes below to find out more.

Three Minute Thesis Competition

Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is a research communication competition developed by The University of Queensland (UQ).

Entrants have three minutes (and a single, static, slide) in which to present a compelling oration on their thesis and its importance.

3MT® provides an excellent opportunity for participants to develop their communication and presentation skills. Moreover, 3MT® challenges Doctoral Researchers to share their ideas and discoveries concisely to non-specialists.

Competition Rules:

  • A single static PowerPoint slide is permitted. No slide transitions, animations or 'movement' of any description are allowed. The slide is to be presented from the beginning of the oration.
  • No additional electronic media (e.g. sound and video files) are permitted.
  • No additional props (e.g. costumes, musical instruments, laboratory equipment) are permitted.
  • Presentations are limited to 3 minutes maximum and competitors exceeding 3 minutes are disqualified.
  • Presentations are to be spoken word (e.g. no poems, raps or songs).
  • Presentations are to commence from the stage.
  • Presentations are considered to have commenced when a presenter starts their presentation through either movement or speech.
  • The decision of the adjudicating panel is final.

Between April and June 2023, each School held their own 3MT® competition and the following 9 School winners competed against each other for first place at the University’s 3MT® Final at the Summer Showcase. 

In due course we will make the recording available of all Loughborough University 3MT finalists.

Huyen Le 'From deadly surfaces to sustainable solutions' (Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering)

Salam Al Samman 'From deadly surfaces to sustainable solutions' (Architecture, Building and Civil Engineering)

Helen Johnson 'Engineering workplace culture has to improve!' (Loughborough Business School)

Ridzuan A-Rasid 'Goldfish vs. human' (Design and Creative Arts)

Siena Morgan 'The hitchhiker’s guide to the sport ecosystem' (Loughborough University London)

George Thoma 'To unlock mathematics roll your fractions on the number line' (Science)

Michael Bukur-li 'How can community health and wellbeing programmes engage individuals and groups of lower socioeconomic status more effectively? Learning from Parkrun’s outreach initiatives' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

Maddison Onions 'Saudi Arabia: An emerging democracy' (Social Sciences and Humanities)

Rameesh Bulathsinghala 'Super-smart textiles for health sensing' (Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering)‌

The judging panel comprised:

  • Professor Charlotte Croffie, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
  • Professor Dan Parsons, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation
  • Professor Steve Christie, Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor (Doctoral College)
  • Dr Jo Jennings, Visiting member

 

The results of the University’s 3MT® Grand Final are revealed in the 'Prize Winners' tab of this webpage.

Poster Exhibition

All Loughborough University doctoral researchers were invited to create and present a poster that outlines their current research and its (potential) impact at the Summer Showcase.

In addition to formal judging that will began online prior to the event, during the event, in-person delegates voted for their favourite poster. Also, a Twitter competition took place for those who posted an image of their poster on the day of the Summer Showcase with #LboroDCShowcase - the poster that received the most 'likes' on Twitter by 11:30 was deemed the winner!

Results of who won the poster competitions are revealed in the 'Prize Winners' section of this webpage. 

Posters can be viewed in the online gallery.

Those who displayed a poster at this year's Summer Showcase are listed below:

1. Abdullah Zaheer 'Energy flexibility of buildings' (Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering)

2. Noura Alosaimi 'Clustering of health behaviours: A systematic review' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

3. Ridzuan A-Rasid 'Technology for generation z' (Design and Creative Arts)

4. Nouf Bamuhair 'Women's sport participation in Saudi Arabia' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

5. David Bellini 'Racial differences in cardiovascular responses to hot water immersion' (Design and Creative Arts)

6. Agnes Bokanyi-Toth 'Liquid bridges suspended between horizontal cylinders' (Science)

7. Lara Carter 'Examining the impact of physical education on the health and well-being of prisoners in England and Wales' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

8. Will Chartier 'Synthesis of graphene supported efficient nano-catalyst for biomass applications' (Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering)

9. En Chen 'Unveiling the untold stories of AI recommendation systems (Loughborough University London)

10. Zuleikha Chikh 'An intersectional examination of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) women in sports leadership' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

11. Lars Claussen 'A year in a T-shirt's life' (Design and Creative Arts)

12. Adam Dickinson 'Assessing the barriers, benefits and facilitators to participation in wheelchair basketball: a qualitative meta-synthesis of the literature' (Loughborough University London)

13. Yishi E 'How contemporary Chinese animation is interpreted and understood by audiences in different cultural contexts' (Design and Creative Arts)

14. Sara Elhusseiny 'The impact of board busyness on non-executive directors effectiveness in the UK' (Business)

15. Ying Feng 'Impact of digital agent’s types and humanoid features on para-social relationship: Evidence of online gym exercises (Loughborough University London)

16. James Finn 'Sparking sustainable solutions: Selenium's role in electrochemical carbon capture' (Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering)

17. Zhuoning Fu 'What make older adults have less motivation in healthcare technology?' (Design and Creative Arts)

18. Rhianna Garrett 'How racism affects career trajectories' (Social Sciences and Humanities)

19. Kerry Glendon 'Recovery from sports-related concussion: Rest vs exercise' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

20. Iain Gowans 'Classification: The greatest risk to the integrity of paralympic sport' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

21. Henriettta Graham 'For the long haul, start small' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

22. James Haley 'The behaviour change wheel and accessercise' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

23. Emily Hansell 'Turmeric: A new 'shot' at recovery for footballers?' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

24. Carrie Harrop 'Transitioning to adulthood without Family Privilege: An exploration into the financial needs of Care Leavers during the emerging adulthood period' (Social Sciences and Humanities)

25. Yajie Hu 'Contemporary jewellery: improving well-being and quality of life' (Design and Creative Arts)

26. Muhammad Ismail '5G/6G signals propagation inside factories' (Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering)

27. Melek Kucukuzun 'Authoritarian populism in tongue and heart: Content and sentiment analyses of the 2023 Turkish presidential candidates' election campaigns and voter interaction on Twitter' (Loughborough University London)

28. Raquel Lampaça Vieira Radoman 'Application of open architectures in military systems' (Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering)

29. Lixu Liu 'Exploration of green infrastructure's spatial-morphological characteristics in the UK' (Architecture, Building and Civil Engineering)

30. Pablo Marco Garrido 'Development of high-throughput bioengineered platforms for real-time assessment of musculoskeletal rehabilitation' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

31. Ghazaleh Mazaheri Tehrani 'The effect of charge and rigidity on the interaction of liposomes and gold nanoparticles' (Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering)

32. Maria Mendoza Hidalgo 'Bioengineering the sensory system of the stretch reflex' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

33. Alexander Minns 'Neural waves' (Science)

34. Zhanar Molgazhdarova 'Digitalisation roadmap in garment manufacturing SMEs' (Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering)

35. Hassan Muhammad '5G/6G radio propagation over and close to the water during severe weather conditions' (Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering)

36. Tunmike Olowe 'Navigating criminal investigations in the age of AI' (Business)

37. Maddison Onions 'Saudi Arabia: A democratic future awaits?' (Social Sciences and Humanities)

38. Finlay Potter 'Designing a quantum brain' (Science)

39. Rieman Rudra 'The impact of US credit uncertainty on global business cycles' (Business)

40. Shadi Soheilian 'Nanoplastics; heavy metal hitchhikers' (Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering)

41. Jingjing Wang 'Human nose variability for product fit design' (Design and Creative Arts)

42. Zhe Wang 'A typology of corporate social responsibility activities in the Chinese Basketball Association League' (Loughborough University London) 

43. Jike Yang 'The role of healthy lifestyle technologies in young people's physical activity participation and health learning: A systematic review' (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

44. Nesrin Yuksel 'Investigation into the artificial simulation of human connective tissue' (Design and Creative Arts)

45. Yurou Zhang 'Exploring the cross-cultural experiences of international students in the UK through internet meme diaries' (Design and Creative Arts)

46. Kaixi Zhao 'An examination of the identities of Chinese female athletes with physical impairments: Marriage and social status (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

Creative Gallery

Loughborough doctoral researchers were encouraged to unleash their imaginations to express their work/research experiences using creative methods. For example, this could involve baked goods, sculpture, Lego®, crochet/knitting, poems/song writing, drawing, storyboarding, newscasting, photography, animating, dramatisation, puppeteering, computer simulations, and so much more!

We are excited to share that the following doctoral researchers will be takeing part in the Creative Gallery at this year's Summer Showcase:

1. Imoleayomide Ajayi ‘Secondary Electron Emission’ (Science)

2. Hung-Ju Chiu​ ‘The policy effects on physical education and school sport’​ (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)

3. Erinn Cox ‘Presence in Absence’ (Design and Creative Arts)

4. Mickella Dawkins ‘The Art of Helping to Save the Plant’ (Science)

5. Sara Elhusseiny ‘The impact of board busyness on non-executive directors’ effectiveness in the UK’ (Loughborough Business School)

6. Rhianna Garrett & Iman Khan ‘In or out?: Racially impacted PhD experiences of white spaces’ (Social Sciences and Humanities)

7. Robert Gaukroger ‘What is home, when is home’ (Design and Creative Arts)

8. Milly Kate Harrison ‘A bachelor’s enquiry into the Occult (1900)’ (Social Sciences and Humanities)

9. Naomi Howard ‘A work in progress’(Science)

10. Pangkhi Medhi ‘Pain-free drug deliver through dissolving microneedles’ (Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering)

11. Tunmike Olowe ‘What do you see? How can this be solved?’​ (Loughborough Business School)

12. Maddie Onions ‘Democracy pick n mix: What's in yours?’​ (Social Sciences and Humanities)

13. Florence Sheen​ ‘I am the expert!’​ (Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)​

14. Helen Sutherland ‘Grassy thoughts’​ (Design and Creative Arts)

15. Artemi Tonikidou ‘Between the lines’​ (Loughborough Business School)

16. Ehryn Torrell ‘Tearing up Vogue to read images of women’​ (Social Sciences and Humanities)

17. Jikun Yin​ ‘Older adults and digital society’​ (Design and Creative Arts)

18. Yurou Zhang​ Memes world’​ (Design and Creative Arts)

Interactive Exhibition

New to the Summer Showcase 2023 was the 'Interactive Exhibition' whereby doctoral researchers were encouraged to share activities/outputs related to their research that attendees could engage with. 

The following doctoral researchers took part in the 'Interactive Exhibition':

1. Lisa Barrett ‘How squishy is a tumour’ (Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering)

2. Alizée Cambier ‘What would you do?’ (Loughborough Business School)

3. Bibi Samshad Duman ‘TBC’ (Design and Creative Arts)

4. Ying Feng ‘Unveiling consumer insights: Exploring the power of eye-tracking technologies in neuromarketing research’ (Loughborough University London)

5. Elizabeth Jane Lovely ‘Tea and Tales’ (Design and Creative Arts)

6. Georgios Thoma ‘Roll your fractions and cat-fish laser-felines!’ (Science)

Prize Winners

Several competitions were associated with the four main activities in which doctoral researchers could share their work at the Summer Showcase. Click on the drop down boxes below to find out more.

Three Minute Thesis Competition Winners

People' Choice - Ridzuan A-Rasid (DCA) - £50

Runner-Up - Rameesh Bulathsinghala (MEME) £75

Winner - Ridzuan A-Rasid (DCA) - £150 and put forward to the regional (East Midlands Doctoral Network) and national (Vitae) competitions

 

‌EXCITING NEWS! We are delighted and proud to share that Ridzuan A-Rasid was not only selected to be one of twelve national 3MT finalists but also one of six finalists - a Loughborough University first on both levels! 

The national 3MT Final will take place online on 15 September 2023. We shall share details on how you can attend in due course.

Poster Exhibition Prize Winners

Poster Exhition Prize Winners

Twitter Competition - Rhianna Garrett (Social Sciences and Humanities) - £50

People's Choice - Abdullah Zaheer (Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering) - £25‌

 

Runner-up - Maddison Onions (Social Sciences and Humanities)- £75

Winner - Zuleikha Chikh (School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences)- £100

Creative Gallery Prize Winners

People' Choice - Imoleayomide Ajayi (Science) - £25

Runner-Up - Pangkhi Medhi (Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering)- £75

Winner - Maddison Onions (Social Sciences and Humanities) - £100

 

Interactive Exhibition Prize Winners

Interactive Exhibition Prize Winners

People' Choice - Elizabeth Jane Lovely (Design and Creative Arts) - £25

Runner-Up - Lisa Barrett (Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering) - £75

Winner - Elizabeth Jane Lovely (Design and Creative Arts) - £100

Exhibitors

The Summer Showcase included the opportunity for doctoral researchers to talk to a variety of people, professional services and organisations that can support them during their research at Loughborough and beyond. 

Careers Network

At the Careers Network stand you can meet members of the Careers Network Team, find out about careers support available to you, take part in a quiz to check your careers knowledge (there are prizes to be won!), and pick up a freebie! 

Centre for Postdoctoral Development in Infrastructure, Cities and Energy

The Centre for Postdoctoral Development in Infrastructure, Cities and Energy is a UKRI funded programme that offers training and opportunities for net zero careers and general career development for postdocs. Ask us any questions you have about transitioning into a postdoctoral research role after finishing your PhD!   

Energy Research Accelerator

Energy Research Accelerator Skills provides a holistic energy-related skills provision to develop high quality energy workforce; to create a diverse talent pipeline to secure the UK’s position as a leader in energy research and innovation. Come and visit our stand to find out about the fantastic activities and events you can take part in to help your development as an energy and/or net zero researcher. 

Intellectual Property Management & Commercialisation Team

At our stand you can meet IP management & Commercialisation associate (Monalie Bandulasena) and learn about how research & Innovation Office and the LUInc. can support you through your entrepreneurial journey.  

Knowledge Transfer Partnership

Interested in Knowledge Transfer Partnerships? Come and meet the KTP team and learn more about innovation opportunities and how we can support you in finding a KTP role.

Library

Come and meet the Library team and learn more about how we can support you in finding information, evaluation of resources, critical thinking, open access and research, systematic reviews, reference management and much more. 

Open Research Collective

The Loughborough Open Research Collective (ORC) is a grassroots-initiative to promote open research practices and policy at Loughborough University and beyond. We host regular events and trainings, share opportunities in our newsletter and overall build a supportive community of open research enthusiasts. Over 100 doctoral researchers and staff are already part of our community. Drop by our stand to learn more about open research, play a picture guessing game to demonstrate the importance of transparency and positionality, and discover how to get involved in the ORC! 

Loughborough Students’ Union

Loughborough Students’ Union (LSU) are here to represent and support Doctoral Researchers and provide opportunities and experiences to enhance your time at Loughborough. Come along to our stall to meet colleagues from our Advice and Representation teams to find out more about what support is available for you and spin our wheel to win prizes! :) 

PhD Social Support Network

The PhD SSN is a social and support network which organises fun and engaging activities for doctoral researchers at Loughborough University. This is a space which welcomes people from different research disciplines, cultures, and identities to come together, socialise and unwind after busy days in the office! We organise lots of exciting activities from our weekly Tuesday Lunches to our monthly Cultural evenings; from our East Midlands explorations to our local pub trips - there are always opportunities to connect with like-minded people. We look forward to meeting our fellow researchers and growing as a community! See our social media for more details: @LboroPhdSSN 

Wellbeing Team

The wellbeing team provides a range of support to assist with your wellbeing alongside your PhD. Support can include 1:1 appointments, workshops, signposting and online resources. Come and meet some of the team to learn what services sit within support services, how to access them and find out how we can support you.