Talking to students: forums for initiatives, innovations and development
Channel: Recording Archaeology
Date: 2015-01-14

Alex Westra

An archaeology student’s university experience is diverse, though not all students have access to the same opportunities. A well-known and recurring theme of discussion is that many students leave their institutions with a strong feeling of inadequacy in terms of having acquired the necessary skills for their careers. One aspect of it is that they (or we) do not often have the opportunities of taking on independent or semi-independent projects. Such projects can only sustain themselves through the interest and dedication of the student body. However, outreach projects, journals, discussion groups and other independent projects that take place at Edinburgh University, and further afield, demonstrate how these projects foster initiatives and innovations. They provide the impetus for students to generate ideas and independent thought without the onus of excellence in performance usually expected in academia. These can then translate into skills, experience and professional development. By taking control of a portfolio of their own making, students develop specific and general skills which will carry them in their prospective careers. This paper aims to present certain case studies from recent and current University of Edinburgh student projects, some of which I was involved with, in order to provide some points of reference for discussion about the session’s themes.