|
NEWS FROM THE ISCB STUDENT COUNCIL
By Umesh Nandal (SC Vice Chair),
Margherita Francesco (SC Secretary), Avinash Shanmugam (SC
representative to the ISCB Board of Directors), Cynthia Prudence,
(SC Finance Chair) and Anupama Jigisha (SC Chair)
Nine
years have passed since ISCB Student Council was established with
the goal to promote the next generation of computational biologists.
These nine years have seen the organization and its extended
regional student group network expand across 20 countries, reaching
over 2000 students. The Student Council (SC) supports the student
community by organizing and promoting scientific symposia and
providing networking opportunities, educational resources and career
development activities. Read on to learn about our initiatives and
how we operate! You can also find more information on
www.iscbsc.org.
STUDENT COUNCIL INITIATIVES
The largest yearly event organized by the SC is the Student Council
Symposium, held in conjunction with ISMB. In the past years, the
symposium has regularly attracted over 100 delegates, with high
quality submissions and a number of high-profile keynotes. The 2013
edition will be no exception, with presentations by Dr. Alex
Bateman, Dr. Satoru Miyano, and Dr. Goncalo Abecasis. Find out more
information about the Student Council Symposium program for this
year and the additional activities offered by the SC at ISMB 2013 at
http://symposium.iscbsc.org/.
Since 2009, the SC has been
running the Internship Program, an initiative that aims at offering
to students from developing nations an opportunity to gain
experience in an established lab. Since its foundation, the program
has filled 7 internship positions. We received great feedback, both
from the students and the group leaders involved: a snapshot of the
program structure with PI and student testimonies will be presented
in a poster at ISMB. If you are a PI and you are interested in the
initiative do not hesitate to contact us: we are always looking for
new positions! You can also write to us at
internships@iscbsc.org.
"....what is
definitely sure is that this internship has changed me a
lot. It has encouraged me to more eagerly look for
opportunities and pursue my research interests."
- Kaur Alasoo, Intern at Schneider Lab at EMBL (2010)
selected from the SC Internship Program |
Among the most active and
successful initiatives promoted in the context of the SC there are
the Regional Student Groups (RSGs), the 'regional' associations of
young researchers in the fields of bioinformatics and computational
biology working in close collaboration with the SC. There are almost
20 RSGs spread across the world now and we are looking forward to
the return of RSG Northern Africa and to welcoming *RSG Switzerland*
to the RSG family. Looking for an RSG in your country? Please
visit: www.iscbsc.org/content/regional-student-groups. You might
have the chance to establish one! The RSGs are providing
valuable initiatives to support and promote students in
bioinformatics and computational biology. Their experiences are
worth sharing and perhaps will inspire many more students to join
these groups. An article series documenting the various RSG
initiatives, experiences and concerns was proposed by the SC and
approved by the ISCB publications committee to be published in the
PLOS Computational Biology ISCB Society pages. Two articles have
already been submitted and 10 more will be, over the coming months.
The RSG funding program was conceived and begun by the ISCB-SC in
2010 with the aim of providing funding support for small events and
programs proposed by our Regional Student Groups from around the
world. These events, which are typically targeted towards the local
bioinformatics student community of the RSG, help the SC to directly
deliver value to these communities and also helps motivate the RSGs
in organize more events and be more active. This year, 4 RSGs have
submitted their proposals and we are looking forward to supporting
their activities.
This year will also see the Arts and
Science exhibition at ISMB, organized by Dr. Milana
Frenkel-Morgenstern and supported by the SC. Come and see some
beautiful microscope images and photographs of protein models,
phylogenetic trees, graphs among many other submissions to witness
the true amalgamation of Art and Science.
"As a volunteer organization, the Student Council attracts a
fantastic group of students and young scientists from around
the world. Meeting, interacting and working with these
people through RSGs and the SC has been a rewarding
experience both in terms of skills learnt and the motivating
and positive environment it provides."
- Avinash
Shanmugam, Former RSG India, active SC volunteer (at several
positions) and a PhD student at the University of Michigan
Program |
You can read more about
the ISCB Student Council at the SC website (www.iscbsc.org)
or look us up on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Of course, the
best way to find out about the Student Council is to talk to our
members! At ISMB 2013 if you have a few minutes between sessions or
if you are feeling lost in the crowds, stop by the ISCB Student
Council booth (we are at booth 1). We'll show you how we're making a
difference in the computational biology student community.
|