Young and old
Young NVBMB and NVBMB collaborate in organizing activities for PhD, MSc and BSc students. Some Board members of NVBMB also occasionally attend the meetings of the study associations, to discuss together how they can improve the initiative and their activities. NVBMB and Young NVBMB are developing their communication channels, to accommodate everybody’s busy schedules.
Young NVBMB uses the network of contacts of NVBMB to get in touch with and promote interesting researchers and those with grants from NVBMB. This is a way to inform the younger generation about the different research groups working in the Netherlands, and about the grants available to them.
Young NVBMB recently wrote a policies document explaining how they would like to shape Young NVBMB within NVBMB. This document addresses many issues and processes, from a schedule of talks and other activities to the communication plan with the study associations and the NVBMB. They want to position themselves so they can provide a service for the younger generation of biochemists and molecular biologists and to invite them to create a broader network in this field, to improve connections and access to information.
Young NVBMB works together with study associations. These are based around a university city, are important in the Netherlands and have at least 500 members each, so they are a good way to contact students. The associations are also eager to collaborate because they want to provide as many events and activities as possible, especially when they do not have to do much to organize the events.
We try to stay in touch with the students as they go on to do a PhD or other careers in the life sciences by, for example, getting PhD students to join the Young NVBMB group.
NVBMB is also supporting this by contacting different research groups and asking them if someone at the group will get in touch with the Young NVBMB, as well as promote the Young NVBMB on the magazine of the parent organization, the Royal Netherlands Chemical Society (KNCV).
