On April 16th, the OPEN COST Action annual conference in Aveiro, Portugal, was kicked off with a "peer-to-peer" research colloquium for early career scholars. Held annually, this colloquium supports the opportunity to share works-in-progress and engage in peer-to-peer feedback. Participants share and discuss preliminary research findings with fellow early career scholars from across Europe. This interaction greatly benefits the research processes of both the presenters and those participating in the discussions. Rasmus Harsbo, PhD student from Aarhus University in Denmark comments on his experience presenting at the Colloquium:

“It was really enjoyable to spend a long session together with a group of likeminded peers. It is rare to find a forum where there is a shared sense of strong connection to the same research interests, and for me the session achieved it. Our chairs did a brilliant job of making these connections as clear as possible and moving the academic discussion forward.”

Reina Shehi from Epoka University, who chaired the event together with Benoît Josset from University of Rennes, noted that:

“The Early Career Colloquium has provided young scholars with a valuable platform for in-depth research discussions regarding the changing dynamics of geopolitics and its impact on the accessibility of higher education and research.

Has neo-nationalism made a resurgence, and what specific pressures does it place on the fundamental mission of higher education institutions today, has been the main critical question addressed at the colloquium and that invites for further research.”

During the event six early career scholars presented their work.

This year’s six presentations:

Hans Schildermans, Centre for Foundations of Education, University of Vienna

The future of higher education and the claim of globalization: Revisioning the past, re-imagining the future.

Jaqueline Damasceno, Centro De Estudos Sociais - Coimbra - Portugal

Populism as a Political Style: An evaluation of the brazilian case over the last thirty years using qualitative comparative analysis and process-tracing.

Veronika Michvocíková, University of St. Cyril and Methodius of Trnava, Slovakia

National ideology in the university educational process in Slovak Republic 

Rasmus Harsbo, Danish School of Education, Aarhus University,

“Children of the State: Neo-nationalism and Higher Education in Poland”

Paula Silven, Faculty of Education and Culture; Tampere University

Performance Management in Finnish Higher Education- Neoliberal Academic Subjectivity and Resistance

David Matsaberidze, Department of International Relations, Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University

The Reversive Trends in Georgia: Higher Education Counter-Reformation Narratives of the New Nationalism