This conference is an opportunity for Undergraduates present some of your best work, and to discuss it with leading academics, graduate students, and your undergrad peers from other universities. If you’re considering applying for graduate work in philosophy, this would be an excellent opportunity to get feedback on a potential work sample, or just to develop some of your ideas in conversation with other philosophers interested in the same topics as you (and let’s be honest, a conference talk on your CV won’t look bad!).

You don’t need to be applying for further study (in philosophy, or at all) to apply, of course – you might just fancy the opportunity to discover some new topics, to meet new likeminded people, to hone your presentation skills, or just to discuss, debate, and argue the day away (as it befits a philosopher to do). Philosophy conferences are one of the main ways in which professional philosophy ‘gets done’. So perhaps you’re just curious to see how they work, and to be involved in a conference at undergraduate level.

Topics

The conference is organised by the Warwick Mind and Action Research Centre (WMA). WMA is the centre in the Warwick Philosophy Department for research in the philosophy of mind and action, ‘broadly construed’, and interdisciplinary work with psychology. We take ‘broadly construed’ seriously! You are encouraged to apply to give a talk in any of the following areas of philosophy:

• philosophy of mind
• philosophy of action/moral psychology
• epistemology
• history of philosophy
• philosophy of psychology or psychiatry
• philosophy of language
• interdisciplinary work with all branches of psychology.

The plan for the day:

The undergraduate sessions

There will be 3 undergraduate sessions, each lasting 1 hour – 30 mins for the talk itself, and 30 mins for discussion.

‘Further study in philosophy’ information session

An optional session for delegates interested in further study in philosophy. The session is an opportunity to get a sense of the difference between the various higher degrees (MA, MPhil, PhD), what they each involve, what to think about if you’re keen to apply for any of them, how funding works, and so on. You’ll be able to ask any other questions you might have too.

Keynote lecture

A talk by a WMA academic, followed by discussion.