A key aim of the ECS Research Symposium has always been developing the skills of early career scientists. Throughout our week-long event this year, we will be running a series of five separate workshops on a variety of themes. Click the tabs below to find out more:
Welfare Community Corner Sessions
Monday 22 March 15:00-16:00GMT
Featuring MP Chi Onwurah and Programme Lead of EDiS Dr Lilian Hunt
All participants are required to read SfAM’s Safe Space policy before attending the community corner conversations.
2020, with all its challenges, has also shined a light on the importance of welfare in our careers and professional lives. Taking care of our career prospects and our welfare as Early Career Scientists is essential for our success. During this ECS symposium we have incorporated the Community Corners from the FEMS Congress in 2019 in the hope we that we can all engage and use these environments to come together to discuss important topics around ECS welfare:
- Awareness to Action - Dr Lilian Hunt
- Minorities in STEM - Chi Onwurah MP
This year we will be delivering Community Corners in order to join different perspectives and knowledge. The Community Corners will be safe environments in which we can all share different resources, opinions, allyship and solutions that will enable the ECS community make educated opinions, use reliable references and hopefully thrive if dealing with any of these topics. Join us in this journey and help us create more environments in which we can continue to discuss similar topics.
You will be able to pose questions ahead of the event using SfAM's Quorum Forum - logged in members will see the link below!
Dr Lilian Hunt
Chi Onwurah MP
Policy workshop
Tuesday 23 March 15:00-16:00GMT
Dr Rowena Bermingham
The SfAM ECS Committee would like to invite you to join our Policy Workshop session.
Ever wondered how you might present your research to an interested MP or government adviser?
We will be discussing how scientific evidence is turned into actionable policy in the real world. Specifically, we will look at how to write detailed yet concise policy briefings and why they are important.
This workshop will encourage you to think of how your day-to-day lab work might one day shape future policy on key topics such as antimicrobial resistance, climate change, health and agriculture. It will also be a useful starting point for those ECS members looking to enter SfAM's Andrew Miller policy competition.
Undergraduate Workshop
Wednesday 24 March 15:00-16:00GMT
Do you want to make the most out of your life at university, but are not quite sure how? There are so many opportunities on offer, but which would open the right doors when it comes to it? Making the right call is a very individual process, but there are ways to help you narrow down your choice and help you focus on what is important for you. To get you to the answers you need, The ECS Undergrad team have put together several tips that we had to learn on our own – but you won’t have to!
This workshop will also incorporate a course on how to use JoVE - the Journal of Video Experiments - to accelerate your learning with JoVE videos!
JoVE is the world-leading producer and provider of science videos that increase the productivity and efficacy of STEM research and education. Our library includes more than 12,000 science videos across multiple disciplines and provides the breadth and depth needed to meet the needs of science students and researchers at all levels.
Find out:
- General Information About JoVE
- Off-Campus Access to JoVE Videos and setting up an account
- How to create a JoVE Playlists of your favourite videos
- How to publish with JoVE Journal
Industry workshop
Thursday 25 March 12:00-13:00GMT
Enjoy research but not sure whether to do a PhD or Postdoc? Wondering if there is life beyond academic research?
A role in industry may be for you!
At this point…you may be wondering…what exactly is ‘industry’?
This mysterious realm of research outside of academia is incredibly diverse, but how does the industry experience compare to PhD and postdoctoral research?
In this session, our special guest panel members will be sharing their industry experiences and addressing key questions designed to de-mystify research life beyond the academic setting.
So, if you are pondering your next move towards a successful research career, please do come and join us! We look forward to seeing you and sharing our collective tales of life in industry.
Career workshop
Friday 26 March 15:00-16:00GMT
The SfAM ECS Committee would like to invite you to join our Careers Workshop.
This workshop aims to engage you in an open-minded exploration of the potential career routes linked to microbiology as a discipline. We are offering you a lighthearted pre-workshop activity to inspire you to look beyond the sometimes vague idea of what a scientist do (beyond pipetting clear liquids from one tiny tube into the other)!
You will then get a chance to discuss the career journey as well the specifics of everyday life with a range of professionals that engage with microbiology, and believe it or not have been in your shoes some years ago. Together we will have a look at how the microbiology could further open doors to playing a role in a variety of contexts from the lab setting to writing books or solving crimes.
