Melbourne Research Bazaar Conference

FAQs

• What is ResBaz and what will I get out of attending?

  The Research Bazaar (ResBaz) aspires to promote digital literacy in modern research. In 2019 it will be a 2 day event running from Wednesday February 20th to Thursday February 21st.

  The aim of the Research Bazaar conference is 2-fold.

  1. You will be introduced to a large ‘repertoire’ of digital tools and services that Research Platform Services offers training and support in, each of which can cater for a different research ‘need’ to help you work smarter, not harder. Often it is difficult to judge which tools will work best for you without immersing yourself in them first, and that’s what we are offering. Throughout the conference you will have the opportunity to immerse yourself in 30 minute Res-Pitches, short intensive introductory sessions to a number of different digital tools. If you think you want to learn more about a particular tool, you will have the opportunity to register for our full training workshops and events held throughout the year.

  2. You will have the opportunity to socialise and network with your fellow researchers and peers, share stories and experiences about your research, and hear inspiring and enlightening presentations from others. We will have games and other social activities too.

  In ResBaz 2018 we had over 450 participants attend our event! This year we hope to attract 500+ participants across the two day conference.

  See the conference in action with our video from last year!

  

• Who is eligible to apply?

  We love diversity and we love community. We love enthusiastic researchers who are keen to connect, learn, grow and make the world (and academy) a greater place! We welcome Researchers from all career stages, faculties and institutions.

• What will a typical day look like? Will there be social activities? Do I need to attend both days?

  Great questions! Whilst we are still busy working away on the specifics of the schedule for this upcoming event, you can get a feel for what activities we will have available.

  In summary, we will be showcasing researcher keystories, interviews and panel discussions, ResPitches (brief digital skill ‘elevator pitch’ sessions), a tech toy library, and yes, social events!

  This event will be jam packed with content and social activities, so we would of course encourage you to attend both days to get the full ‘ResBaz’ experience. However, it is not compulsory to attend both days if you are short on time.

  

• Will I need to bring anything?

  Not specifically. Equipment or devices such as laptops required for demonstrations and challenges will be made available for participant use during the ‘ResPitch’ sessions.

  We do encourage engagement via social media during the event, so a phone or device with access to the internet is recommended.

• Will coding be taught at Melbourne ResBaz 2018?

  Teaching in depth coding is not the focus of the Research Bazaar Conference. Rather, during this event we aim to give you brief 30 minute introductions, or ‘elevator pitches’ (ResPitches) on a variety of popular digital tools and services that we have carved out communities for. These ResPitches will give you a sense of what the tool is and whether it’s a good fit for your research.

  You’ll then have the option to directly sign up for a tool workshop or meet-up in the immediate weeks following the conference.

  

• The EventBrite registration page will mention applying as a ‘ResLead’. How does that work?

  Reslead stands for ‘Research Leaders’, and refers to those members of the research community who go above and beyond their call of duty.

  One of the reasons we are able to offer such a large range of FREE tool training workshops and meetup events throughout the year is with the generous help and support of fellow research community members, whom, after building knowledge and confidence in a particular tool, volunteer their time to assist during our workshops. This involves helping to support the primary workshop trainer in guiding participants through set challenges, and even teaching parts of the material themselves if desired.

  You can be a ResLead at ResBaz 2019 as well! Helpers will help answer questions, set the ‘tone’ of the event and help run challenges during the ResPitches.

  

• Is this conference free?

  Yes, the Research Bazaar is financially free of charge. That being said, we do ask all those who register to submit a poster describing their research and experiences/aspirations with using digital tools.

• What is the poster for?

  The posters help us get a sense of who you are as a researcher. As well as being about your research, what we are particularly interested in is your ‘digital skills toolbox’, i.e the digital tools that you use within your research environment to help you get from drawing board to publication. These are both tools that you are currently and actively using, or tools that you want to learn.

  We use poster data to help build an idea of the in-demand tools within the various research communities around the university (and beyond), which in turn helps us justify the tools we continue to teach and support and any tools which we should consider supporting.

  There will be a prize for best poster, a $500 travel voucher!

  For inspiration, you can see some of the posters in ResBaz 2018’s top 10 list, and others here

  

• How can I talk about this event on Social Media?

  We are on twitter as @ResPlat and @ResBaz , and you can use the hashtag #ResBaz throughout the event.

• Can I be a presenter or a sponsor of the Research Bazaar conference?

  If you are interested in presenting content at the event or being an event sponsor, go here for more details and contact our Product and Marketing Manager sonia.ramza@unimelb.edu.au.