Editorial: The rise of EDCNS

Abstract

It is a very particular moment for us to see this special edition of JCN containing articles from PhD students who have presented their research projects at the annual European Doctoral Conference in Nursing (EDCNS) Science which will be held this year for the 11th time in Maastricht, the Netherlands. The first EDCNS took place in Berlin, Germany, on the 24 November 2000. What was the birth of this conference which is – internationally – still unique and without equal: a conference for PhD students, which is organised by PhD students, where the presentations and the ensuing discussions with peers are the main focus, where exchange, mutual support and networking are a central aim? When one of us (CL) was at the early stages of her PhD and also during her time as a master student, she was very lucky because of the chance to go abroad several times when she learnt more and had the chance to meet many interesting people. At that time, people said ‘you are so lucky be able to do that. I am very sad that I cannot go somewhere else because I have, e.g., little children or I don’t get the time off from my job or I can not afford it’. Looking for a solution was not easy, support or funding for travelling or studying abroad was rare, especially for students in nursing science which was a relatively new discipline at the end of the last century in Germany, and many funding organisations even refused to recognise this new discipline. Eventually, some ideas came up to improve this situation including the idea to bring about something which should be truly helpful for PhD students: an opportunity for exchange and networking in a relatively relaxed atmosphere, without the character of an examination or a big conference; a place where the research project of the PhD could be discussed and requests for help or for advice were welcome. Thus, the EDCNS was born. From the beginning, the idea was supported by Professor Theo Dassen from the department of Medical-/Nursing Education and Nursing Science. In the same year, the joint PhD programme in Nursing Science between the universities of Berlin, Germany, and Maastricht, the Netherlands, was founded, and Professor Ruud Halfens from Maastricht University welcomed the idea of the conference as well. At the end of 1999, hundreds of invitations were sent out, and at least 46 attended the first conference in 2000 in Berlin. At the beginning of spring 2000, we received the first abstract by the first interested PhD student from Maastricht University, Nynke de Jong, now Dr Nynke de Jong. She was also first to start with her presentation on the first EDCNS. As a joke, she mentioned spontaneously, next year the conference would be in Maastricht. After the first successful EDCNS, we both then, immediately, started to plan the second. We developed a new leaflet, and a website was created (http://www.unimaas.nl/edcns/). Many universities and colleagues around Europe and beyond took increasing note of the EDCNS, and during the following years, more and more PhD students participated. Workshops became part of the conferences, and with the years, the EDCNS was well established. After we had finished our PhD, the organisation of the EDCNS was handed over to our young colleagues of the PhD programme in Berlin and Maastricht. In the following years, all the PhD students who organised the EDCNS did a great job. Hundreds of students from many countries joined the EDCNS in all those years. Many students used the conference for building contacts, even friendships. We feel very happy that the EDCNS is still running and today in rotation with Berlin, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany, Maastricht University, the Netherlands, and Medical University Graz, Austria.