Closed for Applications
The ISCT Early Stage Professionals (ESP) Committee is comprised of members from across the globe with a mission to facilitate networking and educational opportunities for individuals within 10 years of their terminal degree or entry to the field of cell & gene therapy. Founded in 2015, the goal of the ESP Committee is to develop future leaders for ISCT and the cell and gene therapy field at large.
The ESP Committee is looking for dedicated and enthusiastic new members interested in supporting our current and future initiatives. Early Stage Professionals interested in applying to the ESP Committee should submit a CV and statement of interest indicating how they can contribute to committees@isctglobal.org by Tuesday, August 15, 2023. To be eligible for consideration, all applicants must be ESPs (within 10 years of terminal degree or entry to the field of CGT) AND hold a current ISCT membership.
ESP Member Commitment and Expectations
- Members will be expected to attend monthly/bimonthly committee meetings (~ 1 hr) and other meetings as required.
- Members will be expected to devote approximately 3 - 4 hrs per month towards specific projects as assigned.
The following are focus areas of the ESP Committee. Please review the descriptions below and then rank your interest in each area from 1 – 5, with 1 being highest interest and 5 being lowest interest as part of your statement of interest. ESP leadership will use this to ensure each area has adequate support and participation.
- Mentoring Program
- Training & Development Data Collection & Analysis
- Community Engagement
- Telegraft ESP Corner
- Education
1. MENTORING PROGRAM
Overview: The ISCT ESP Mentoring Program connects leaders in the field of cell and gene therapy with Early Stage Professionals. The purpose of this program is to provide professional and leadership development support. Technical mentoring is outside the scope of this program. The Mentoring Program began with a pilot run in 2017 and commenced globally in 2018. Mentors are connected with 2-3 mentees and asked to participate as a group in six monthly calls at a minimum. Groupings are determined by interest (Regulatory, Quality and Operations, Basic Science, Clinical, Commercialization) and geographic location.
How Committee members would help: Participants in this subcommittee are expected to assist in program development and optimization, mentoring group determinations, and mentoring group facilitation. Project leads will be required to act as a point of contact for mentoring groups. This includes ensuring meetings are held regularly, ensuring both mentees and mentors understand expectations of the program, and providing resources and guidance for mentors to assist mentees. Mentoring Working Group calls will be held as required and are more frequent leading up to program kick-off and program wrap-up. Project leads will be required to report progress to the larger ESP Committee during monthly calls.
2. TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT DATA COLLECTION & ANALYSIS
Overview: The ISCT ESP surveys initiative was born out of the need to determine how ISCT can better serve the growing field of cell and gene therapy. The initial survey inception in 2017 was a job market survey which touched on several topics, including training and salary. The two priorities for this ongoing project are to analyze findings from the initial job market survey and begin construction of a wages and salaries survey for technical and management staff in the field of cell and gene therapy.
How committee members would help: Participants in this initiative should be able to develop, implement, and analyze data for focused surveys that address relevant questions for ESPs and ISCT. The goal for this project is to set the focus of future surveys and see them through. The ESP Committee strives to develop and implement at least one survey per year. Project leads will be required to report progress to the larger ESP Committee during monthly calls.
3. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Overview: Community Engagement is a focus of the ESP Committee with a goal to improve interaction, communication, and personal development of ESPs within ISCT, as well as to promote and encourage ISCT membership. Following great success of the ambassador initiative at ISCT 2019 Melbourne and ISCT 2021 New Orleans Virtual, the ESP Committee aims to expand the ambassador platform.
How committee members would help: Participants in this initiative would generate regular content on ISCT ESP social media platforms, spearhead outreach initiatives to strengthen the ESP community, and continue to provide oversight for guest blogging initiatives at ISCT conferences. Participants should have experience in using social media or a keen interest in learning how to use Twitter, LinkedIn Groups, and produce new content that engages the ESP community. Project leads will be required to report progress to the larger ESP Committee during monthly calls.
4. TELEGRAFT 'ESP CORNER'
Overview: The ESP Corner article series in the ISCT Telegraft member e-newsletter started shortly after the inception of the Committee in 2015. It was deemed important to have a regular home for ESP outreach, with article features from both ESP Committee members and ESP members at large of ISCT to share issues of prominence to ESPs. This outlet provides ESP members with a platform to voice their opinions on various subjects including the importance e of workforce training for cell and gene therapy, career advice in conversation with seasoned professionals, conference recaps, and more. In addition, the ESP committee seeks to expand the ESP corner platform to highlight the activities of early stage professionals across cell and gene therapy.
How committee members would help: Participants in this initiative would be responsible for managing the articles featured in the ESP Corner of the Telegraft, working closely with a liaison to the Telegraft Editorial Board to build a pipeline of articles for the bi-monthly newsletter. Participants will conduct outreach to the broader ESP community to solicit and feature articles representing the diverse interests of ESPs in cell and gene therapy. Participants should be interested in giving a voice to Early Stage Professionals and tracking industry hot topics and trends. Project leads will be required to report progress to the larger ESP Committee during monthly calls and the Telegraft Editorial Board, as required.
5. EDUCATION
Overview: The ISCT ESP Education initiative works to develop educational resources for ESPs, ISCT members and the cell and gene therapy field at large. These resources can be formal, such as training webinars, online modules or training courses, white papers, and supporting session development for the ISCT Annual Meetings or informal, such as an 'Ask Me Anything' Webinar.
How committee members would help: Participants should be excited about education and willing to invest their time and talents to initiate this process. Current educational offerings include the AMA webinars, white papers or guidance documents, and session development for the ISCT Annual Meeting. These webinars and materials need a champion to find leaders in the field who are willing to participate. Project leads will be required to report progress to the larger ESP Committee during monthly calls.
How to apply
Submit a CV and statement of interest indicating how they can contribute to committees@isctglobal.org by Tuesday, August 15, 2023. In your statement of interest, please rank your interest in each ESP committee focus area outlined above from 1 – 5, with 1 being highest interest and 5 being lowest.
To be eligible for consideration, all applicants must be ESPs (within 10 years of terminal degree or entry to the field of CGT) AND hold a current ISCT membership.
For more information please contact Elizabeth Lam (elizabeth@isctglobal.org).