"... after the presentation I felt such a relief but also exhilaration because the people present at the conference had genuine interest in my thesis and gave me positive feedback."

– Paulina (MA), presented her MA Thesis

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Me and my friends are still talking about how cool it was to have a space for intellectual exchange with peers as well as our teachers. We are definitely open for a second UnderLinE conference and would recommend it to others. It was a neatly organized conference and the atmosphere was cozy and welcoming. We really liked it.

Regarding my experience as a speaker: I accepted your invitation to present because I never had this opportunity before. I thought I should not let this chance go to waste and if I was recommended to present, then someone might see something in my thesis which was not very evident for me at that time. To be honest my self-esteem was very low at the time of my thesis submission and I just wanted to lock it away and ignore it. But due to this invitation, I had to deal with my thesis again which also helped me to see the strengths in my thesis. And finally after the presentation I felt such a relief but also exhilaration because the people present at the conference had genuine interest in my thesis and gave me positive feedback.

All in all I can definitely say that my perspective on my thesis changed due to UnderLinE and I have a more positive outlook now. I feel very inspired and honored to have listened to the other amazing speakers and I am eager to due more work in linguistics.

"This conference not only broadened our perspectives in linguistics but also provided an excellent platform for meaningful academic dialogue."

– Besa (BA) & Elisavet (MA), presented their own project

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Attending the (Under)graduate Student Conference in Linguistics of English (UnderLinE) was a great pleasure. We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to Dr. Carolin Schneider for organizing such a well-structured and enriching event. This conference not only broadened our perspectives in linguistics but also provided an excellent platform for meaningful academic dialogue.

The presentations were diverse and thought-provoking, showcasing a range of topics from student researchers. Contributions included Girl Math: Reclaiming Language or Reinforcing Patriarchy? A Critical Discourse Analysis of Digital Feminism and Gendered Narratives on TikTok by Paulina Vincente de Paul, The Gruffalo: A Morphosyntactic Analysis of the Book and Comparison with First Language Acquisition of Native Speakers by Lena Boshnjaku, Right-wing Populist Discourse on X: A Linguistic Analysis by Xandra Knappe, and Language Attrition in a Second Language Environment by Stephan Hüttenhoff. Each presentation reflected depth and originality, sparking engaging discussions.

We were particularly excited to welcome two distinguished keynote speakers. Prof. Dr. Christina Samuelsson from Linköping University in Sweden delivered an insightful talk on Digital Communication Support in Interaction Involving People with Dementia. Additionally, Prof. Dr. Shumin Lin from the National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University in Taiwan, who previously visited us during the summer semester, joined us virtually this time to present on the Sociocultural Understanding of Eldercare Communication.

Her continued engagement with us students offered further insights into her remarkable work, which many of us had the opportunity to explore during her workshop and lecture in the summer. These keynote presentations provided a more global perspective, enriching our academic environment.

Our presentation contributed to the discourse on pragmatics and sociolinguistics by introducing a new theoretical framework for Address Inversion in Albanian and Bulgarian. Despite its prevalence across various cultures, this phenomenon remains largely underexplored. By focusing on the underrepresented languages such as Albanian and Bulgarian, our study highlighted the nuanced ways Address Inversion functions as an expression of endearment. This not only deepened the understanding of linguistic practices within Albanian and Bulgarian cultures but also engaged the audience by connecting the phenomenon to universal themes of familial and interpersonal closeness. Our expertise in pragmatics and our cultural backgrounds played a pivotal role in shaping our approach. Being deeply familiar with the socio-cultural contexts of Albania and Bulgaria, we were able to contextualize examples in a way that resonated with the audience.

The inspiration for this topic originated from an Instagram post highlighting countries where Address Inversion—or "Reverse Addressing," as the post called it—occurs. This sparked a discussion that made us realize how commonly we encountered this phenomenon in our languages. Address terms like "Grandpa" or "Mum" could invert their conventional meanings to express closeness. This realization sparked our curiosity about the prevalence of this phenomenon in other languages, ultimately leading to our project.

The engaging discussions and thoughtful questions from the audience after our presentation confirmed the relevance of our research. What surprised us most was on the one hand, the extent to which attendees related the phenomenon to their own linguistic and cultural experiences, and on the other hand, that some had never heard of this practice, underscoring both its universal relevance and the importance of exploring and sharing such unique linguistic phenomena.

We are honored to have participated in this conference. The inviting atmosphere and the openness to intellectual exchange from both peers and professionals made this first (and hopefully many more) student conference a success. The UnderLinE conference provided invaluable opportunities for students to gain hands-on research experience, explore diverse topics in linguistics, and inspire each other by sharing work from term papers and theses.