What’s on for young scientists at the Assembly in 2015?

The YS Lounge at the 2014 General Assembly.

This year, there’s a great line-up of young scientist (YS) sessions at the General Assembly. Not only that, but there are opportunities to meet those that represent you in the Union, get to know other young scientists in your field, and make the most of both the scientific and social sides of the conference…

First up for young scientists is the icebreaker event on the Sunday before the meeting, while this is open to everyone attending the Assembly, there’ll be a spot especially for young scientists – the “Young Scientists Meeting Corner” (Foyer E). So, if you’re coming alone, or if it’s your first time, you’re sure to find a few like-minded fellows! After the success of the young scientists’ lounge – which was introduced for the first time last year- it is back for EGU 2015! The lounge is somewhere that you can take a break, grab a coffee and gather your thoughts away from the buzz of the conference. Located on the Red Level of the conference centre, it is also a great place to catch up with colleagues you haven’t seen in a while, or start up a conversation with someone new, and it provides a great meeting point to launch your evening’s activities. It is also the place you can speak to your Young Scientist Division Representative. The representatives will be making themselves available throughout the conference for informal chats. Just see the boards at the lounge for the times when you can find your Division representative.

It’s not all about the social stuff though, there’s a veritable feast of courses where you can fine-tune your skills and grab those all-important nuggets of information to help you forge a career in academia. From Union-wide sessions to workshops and short courses, there’s a lot to choose from, including division-specific sessions to meet the experts in hydrology and learn how soils are restored after a wildfire. You can learn how to write the perfect paper by speaking to those in the know: a journal editor, enhance your career prospects and why you should bother engaging in outreach activities – but this is just a snapshot! Take a look at our young scientist’s shortlist to see what’s on offer for young scientists this year.

Young Scientists at the 2014 General Assembly.

Like last year, we’ll be hosting a lunchtime session to let young scientists know how they can get involved in the Union and gather feedback to make what we’re doing even better. Since the last General Assembly, young scientist representation in the Union has grown leaps and bounds, with most divisions appointing young scientist officers whose role is to feedback from the young scientist community and make sure we do our best to act on your suggestions. What better way to tell us what you want than over a lovely lunch where you can meet your representatives? You can also let us know what you think via the young scientists’ survey which will become available during the General Assembly.

Keep your eyes peeled for posters that are part of the Outstanding Student Poster (OSP), and stay tuned to the blog next too when there will be a whole post dedicaed to the OSP competition. Don’t forget to you save a space for a few talks from outstanding young scientists too. The winners of the Arne Richter and division awards will be giving talks throughout the week and are well worth a listen. Finally, the finalist films in EGU’s Communicate Your Science Video Competition are being showcased at GeoCinema, the home of geoscience films at EGU 2015. We’ve had some excellent entries – you can take a look and vote for your favourite using the EGU YouTube channel.

See you at the conference!

The EGU General Assembly is taking place in Vienna, Austria from 12 to 17 April. Check out the full session programme on the General Assembly website.