Coping, Thriving, Progressing? What happens after ‘early career’?

A BSA Early Career Forum Event

21 March 2025 (10am–3.30pm)
Newcastle University (Department of Sociology, Henry Daysh Building)

About the Event

What do you do when you’re no longer quite ‘early career’ but are also not yet really in the comfortable mid-place of your tenure? How do we move from ‘early’ to ‘mid’ career? What does this mean in practice, and how can we find the stability, security, and solace to produce our best work in a university system which can feel both broken and politicised? This event provides a space for discussions around navigating the tricky terrain that crosses ‘early’ and ‘mid’: how do we establish ourselves as experts, how do we win competitive funding, how do we root ourselves in academia – especially when, for many, our entry points were through and in precarity?

This event is shaped by three themed sessions: a practical session on strategizing and planning for the next stage of our careers; a session which looks at being ‘not-quite’ where we discuss the emotional, intellectual, and practical problems arising from being neither very junior nor especially senior; and a final session on how we cope in the current university system which feels broken, failing, and often inhumane?

Whilst we’ve structured the event around these sessions, we also want it to be an open forum where all conversations and topics are welcome. Please feel welcome to contact the organisers if there’s a particular topic or issue you’d like to see addressed. We will have plenty of time for informal chatting and socialising; there are also quiet areas for anyone who prefers.

This is a space for any sociologist or academic who feels it would be of use to them (no matter your number of years post-PhD, your job title, or employment status) to access a warm and welcoming forum to ask questions, share fears, make connections, and leave feeling supported and heard.

Speakers

Confirmed speakers include:

Professor Les Back (University of Glasgow)
Prof Anoop Nayak (Newcastle University)
Prof Alison Phipps (Newcastle University)
Emeritus Prof Sue Scott (Newcastle University, former President of the ESA)
Prof Kate Sang (Heriot Watt)

Registration

The event is free, but registration is essential. Lunch, tea & coffee, and snacks will be provided.

We have a limited number of bursaries for attendees; please enquire with the convenors if one would be helpful in supporting your attendance.