Written by Peter Bryan and Naima Adan, PhD Students from the Department of Bioengineering
Last month, Imperial College London’s Black Doctoral Network (BDN) held its inaugural inter-university event bringing together attendees from Imperial, London School of Economic (LSE), King’s College London (KCL), University College London (UCL), Cambridge, Bath, Swansea and more to share experiences, insights and anecdotes of postgraduate studies and careers. With over 40 attendees, the event was a resounding success.
Panel discussion
The event kicked off with a panel discussion hosted by Dr Wayne Mitchell, Associate Provost (Equality, Diversity and Inclusions). Joining Wayne was Kathryn Plummer, Patent Attorney at Carpmaels and Ransford, Dr Andrea Attipoe, co-founder of BDN and Microsystems Engineer at Beyond Blood Diagnostics, and Dr Emily Muller, Machine Learning Engineer at the Wellcome Trust and co-chair of Indaba.
The panel delved into their experiences as they transitioned from PhD researchers to their current careers. Andrea also discussed why he and Du-Shaine Murray started the network 4 years ago, and shared his vision for the BDN.
“We wanted this network to become a community to share joys and struggles, and to provide strong roots to navigate an environment that is often hostile to ethnic minorities.”
After the event we talked to Andrea and asked his thoughts on Empower and how he found coming back to the network..
“I thought the event was thoroughly enjoyed both by the audience and the panel. It’s always great to share your experience, hoping it can help someone who’s on a journey similar to yours. From the questions the audience asked, it was apparent that events like these are very much needed and appreciated by a Black community at Imperial that can often feel isolated and forgotten about. I’m very happy and proud that the network manages to provide the level of support and advice its members need to keep going with their head up proud!”
Wellbeing session
The second session focused on wellbeing, delving into the expectations and realities of the PhD process. Speakers shared methods and techniques for managing and protecting ourselves, and we learnt techniques to stabilise the journey.
“The comfort and familiarity of walking into a room with people who look like you and have an understanding or similar experience cannot be overstated” PhD student and BDN member
UK Black Research Network
The event sparked the creation of the UK Black Research Network (UK BRN). The purpose of the network is to support Black researchers during and after their PhDs and facilitate connections within and across universities. The network is based in a WhatsApp group chat where opportunities, events, resources, and socials are shared. The network’s first games night is already in the calendar!
Closing the event with Afro-Caribbean food and the obligatory selfie with Dr Sunday Popo-Ola, there was a powerful feeling of community as attendees reflected on the future of the BDN and new UK BRN.