The fourth IEHF Early Career Research Symposium (formerly the Doctoral Consortium) will provide an opportunity for postgraduate research students and early career researchers and practitioners studying and working in areas related to ergonomics and human factors to meet each other and learn about each others’ research interests and activities.

This year, as well as the change to the event name, we have altered the event format to ensure that it is as relevant as possible to all PhD students and early career ergonomics/human factors researchers and practitioners. Our first change is to encourage current PhD students as well as recent graduates. We hope this will enable the continuation of the community building activities that have been led by the Early Career Researchers Special Interest Group. We would still like PhD students to present their work, and the day will also include workshops and panel sessions led by senior experts.

Secondly, the CHI+Med project (www.chi-med.ac.uk), a major project examining HCIHuman Computer Interaction in a medical context, is sponsoring a specialist doctoral consortium on the day after the Research Symposium, 14th June 2013. Doctoral students (PhD/EngD) who are studying in areas related to human factors for safety-critical systems are invited to apply for this event. The CHI+MED project is also sponsoring a dinner on the Thursday evening for all PhD students who are attending either the IEHF Research Symposium or the CHI+MED Doctoral Consortium.

Abstract submission

We invite doctoral students (PhD/EngD) to submit a short, 3000 character abstract, stating a preference for which day you’d like to present at (depending on your research topic), by Thursday 2nd May. These will be reviewed by two independent reviewers. Students will be notified in late April whether their paper has been accepted for an oral or poster presentation, and whether for the IEHF Early Career Research Symposium or the CHI+MED Doctoral Consortium day. The decision about the day will depend on your indicated preference and also on the fit within the overall two-day programme. All participants are welcome at a dinner (free to PhD students, £30 for others), sponsored by CHI+MED, on the Thursday evening, and reasonable travel and accommodation costs will be covered by CHI+MED for students selected to present on the Friday.

Submit an abstract now

We know that different PhD students will be at different stages of their research, so we encourage you to write about a small part of your research that demonstrates how your activities will fulfil the overall aims of your PhD topic. It can be fairly tricky to describe a whole PhD in 3000 characters, so we recommend you don’t attempt this but instead choose a focus! See this as an opportunity to get feedback on your work, whether it is the theoretical framework that you are using or a specific study that you would like to present. All submissions accepted as posters will be invited to participate in our quick-fire poster presentation, so everyone who attends will get a chance to let colleagues know about their research.

Students will also be welcome to bring along any technologies, systems or products that they are developing to demonstrate either during their talks or informally during the breaks and lunch interval. Our colleagues at UCL will also offer a guided tour of their research labs.

The event is intended to provide a constructive and supportive forum for discussion of research ideas and opportunities, and to strengthen the community of researchers in ergonomics and human factors, with a particular focus this year on research on the design and use of safety-critical systems.

Event cost and booking

The IEHF is running the Thursday event on a not-for-profit basis, so IEHF members who are PhD students or early career researchers/ practitioners within three years of graduation can attend the one day Research Symposium for £50, non-members for £75. There is an additional charge of £30 to attend the evening meal (though PhD students for free).

Those selected to attend (for free) the Friday CHI+MED Doctoral Consortium will also receive the meal on Thursday, and reasonable travel and accommodation expenses. They can also choose to attend the Thursday IEHF Research Symposium for £50.

Book your place now

Nearby hotels

• The Goodenough Club (club.goodenough.ac.uk). It may help if you mention that you’re attending an event at UCL.
• The Imperial Group of Hotels (www.imperialhotels.co.uk). Of those, the Imperial itself has old-fashioned grandeur. The Tavistock is very convenient, but rooms may be small. The County is a cheaper option.
• UCL provides a list of hotels & hotel chains in the vicinity, see www.ucl.ac.uk/procurement/all-hotels. Of those, The Crescent is modest, inexpensive, and family run.

Future events

We are delighted that the IEHF Early Career Research Symposium continues to attract students from across the country, and has helped them to form their own network in the form of a Special Interest Group that is linking with ergonomics and human factors students internationally. We are also pleased to announce that the University of Leeds has agreed to host the event in 2014, but are happy to take any offers of colleagues to host in 2015! If any students or supervisors are interested in helping with the organisation of this event either this year or in the future then please email Sarah Sharples, email sarah.sharples@nottingham.ac.uk.

Conference Organising Committee: Ann Blandford, Simon Hodder, Jo Iacovides, Sarah Sharples, Natasha Merat, Chris Vincent, Rebecca Charles, Mark Young, Sue Hull