IBA-PhD seminar and social activities – 26th of October in Oslo

This year, IBA-Phd organized a short seminar for all IBA-Phd members focusing on mental well-being the day before IBA annual meeting (arranged by UiO in Oslo). The seminar covered a lecture about “mindfulness and imposter syndrome” and a YOGA session followed by team-building activity and dinner plan, where IBA-PhD’s interact and get to know each other more. The central theme of the seminar was to learn how to cope with situations where we struggle within academia and battle with imposter syndrome, anxiety, and stress. The speakers were reflecting upon their stories of failure and struggles and a strategy that they used to overcome these issues

We had Helga Eggebø, a researcher at Nordlandsforskning, talk openly about the issues that are recognizable for many of us but are still difficult to articulate. Also another speaker was Stian Grastveit, a professional cross-country skier until this year. He gave lectures on mental health and used his own experiences to show the public how we can create more inclusive and understanding environments that invite better performance. We also had a YOGA workshop and mindfulness session by Glød Yoga. The yoga session taught us how to relax and focus during working time, and all of the sessions were very engaging and inspiring.


During the PhD journey, sooner or later, the stressful phase comes where it’s easy to get a breakdown. Thus, this seminar aims to benefit PhD students concerning their mental health and peacefulness so that they learn how to handle struggling situations and create a friendly working environment. We had 21 physical participants of IBA-PhD members from UiB, UiT, NMBU, UiO, OsloMet and NTNU at the Nationaltheatret Conference centre in Oslo.

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