Broaden your horizons

Sabrina Lenzen, PhD candidate, School of Economics

Research around the globe

From mid May 2019 until beginning of July 2019 I undertook a 6-week UQ PhD placement at the Economics and Social Research Institute in Ireland (ESRI) I had the opportunity to apply my previously developed health economics model, investigating the effect of physical activity on cognition, to Irish data collected by the Trinity College Dublin. I was hence able to compare my results between countries. During my time at the ESRI, I was always invited to join wider professional activities of the ESRI, such as attending seminars, conferences and briefings. I was mentored by a senior professional from industry and academia who has regular conversations with major politicians in Ireland and gained an insight into the daily work of an independent research institute. I learned how to expand my professional network and collected ideas for further research. I was able to connect with other early career researchers, but also senior professionals and I presented my PhD research as part of the weekly internal seminar series. Along with all those opportunities and experiences gained at the ESRI, I also got to explore the beauty of Ireland on the weekends and combined my visit in Europe with presenting at international conferences and participating in workshops. Overall a great opportunity to grow, become more independent, learn about industry and expand my network.