Pictured from left: Terrance Gatchalian, Ashley Chand and Paris Gappmayr.
The third annual Language Sciences Undergraduate Research Conference (LSURC) is coming up next week, showcasing undergraduate language research.
Wholly student-organized and run, the conference provides a space for undergraduate students working on language-related topics to present research and make connections, while learning about opportunities in undergraduate language research.
Organizing committee co-chairs Ashley Chand and Paris Gappmayr, and program committee member Terrance Gatchalian, sat down with Language Sciences to discuss who should attend, what’s on offer, and just how much sleep they’ve had in the run-up to the conference.
Who should attend this conference?
AC, PG, TG: Anyone who is interested in languages!
TG: It’s nice for undergraduate students not conducting research right now to see the kinds of research occurring in different departments.
PG: As a first and second year student, I didn’t know that undergraduates could conduct research, and I wish I had known about the types of research going on.
What’s in store?
AC: We have a plenary round table session featuring Language Sciences members School of Audiology & Speech Sciences Associate Professor Stefka Marinova-Todd, Linguistics doctoral student Oksana Tkachman, and Linguistics postdoctoral fellow Ryan Taylor, as well as four speaker sessions and 11 poster presentations featuring student presenters.
Click here for the conference program.
How has the conference changed since last year, and why?
AC: The conference has broadened in scope, and we’ve invited students from different departments, such as computer science.
PG: We’ve also invited student presenters from other universities, and broadened our collaborative efforts with other UBC groups.
TG: We believe the original goal of the conference was to bring together researchers in languages, not just in linguistics.
PG: Language is inherently multidisciplinary.
“It’s something that cements all focuses, all studies. We use language to communicate our ideas.”
Can you explain this year’s theme, #global?
PG: Globalization is something that has impacted the way language has adapted and changed, and how societies interact. We wanted to show the change and differences in languages across the world, and how they might be united by social media, and in a digital era.
Why do you think it’s important to focus on undergraduates for this conference?
AC: Conferences today usually have a price tag. We wanted to ensure students had an outlet to showcase their research without financial pressure.
TG: It’s one thing to do research, and another to present. There aren’t a lot of opportunities for undergraduates to present at a big conference. For a lot of people, this is their first conference presentation.
PG: Research tends to feel like a big, scary thing. As undergraduates, you can feel like you don’t have groundbreaking enough ideas. But undergraduate research is valid. This conference is a space for students to feel comfortable, validated, and proud of the work they have done.
How much organization has this taken?
TG: The core committee team of around eight people has been meeting since April last year.
AC: I’ve answered so many emails!
LSURC will be held from February 8th and 9th at the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre with the theme #global. Click here to register.
LSURC is funded by the Speech and Linguistics Student Association (SALSA) and the Language Sciences Initiative.