Summer Workshop 2004

World Congress on Information Technology taps into student talents

This summer, an interdisciplinary group of graduate students had a chance to extend their research and writing skills to a new arena: technology consulting. From June 14-25, 14 students from graduate programs in anthropology, communication studies, computer science, health education, linguistics, public affairs, radio-TV-film, and sociology took part in the first STS summer workshop.

The goal of the workshop was to bring students from a range of perspectives together in a collaborative environment to recevie training on project management and consulting for public and private sector clients. Students consulted for members of the organizing committee of the World Congress on Information Technology (WCIT), a high-level information technology conference to be held in Austin in 2006.

Students worked individually or in teams on a consulting project assigned to them based on their interests and the needs of the WCIT. Each project team was also assigned a UT faculty mentor to help guide them through the intensive two-week project.

During the workshop, students attended lectures by STS faculty and industry leaders, met with clients, and polished their presentation skills. The workshop culminated in an executive presentation held at the law firm of Vinson & Elkins and the delivery of final reports to the WCIT clients.

Student responses to the workshop illustrate the expected and unexpected benefits of participation. Siri Mehus, Communication Studies, said that her main takeaway from the workshop was "the experience with consulting, particularly the task of trying to tailor the presentation of information to a non-academic audience...how to talk to a client, how to find out what they need, and then best meet their needs." Chris Lucas, Radio-TV-Film, agreed that learning to translate his knowledge and skills for the business community was an unexpected benefit. Lucas also noted that "my biggest takeaway from the STS workshop was [making] contacts and some relationships that I will use in my dissertation research." Jason Craft of the IC Institute said, "I think really getting to know the WCIT as an event and understanding what potential it ha[s] for Austin and our work, and for scholarly work throughout the university, was really fascinating to me and something that I'll be...working with for the next couple of years. "...Just to find out about the WCIT was kind of amazing." 

The workshop organizers also pronounced the workshop a success. Co-director Leslie Jarmon said that the projects were overwhelmingly successful, with a much higher degree of group collaboration and cross-seeding that she anticipated. Jarmon also noted that "There was 100 percent concensus by the WCIT clients that the STS projects surpassed their expectations. ...Some of the recommendations from the graduate students have actually already been implemeted. Others have been moved into a "to do" category, and others have prepared the groundwork for on-going projects being conducted other graduate students this fall. This was a true win-win-win experience - for the students, for the WCIT, and for STS."