ISCT ESP Committee Call for Applications

The ISCT Early Stage Professionals (ESP) Committee is comprised of members from across the globe with a mission to facilitate networking and engagement 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.

ESP Member Commitment and Expectations 

1. Members will be expected to attend monthly committee meetings (~ 1 hr) and regular Working Group meetings as required.  
2. Members will be expected to devote approximately 3+ hrs per month in support of identified Working Group initiatives. 

Below are the Working Groups within the ESP Committee. Please read the descriptions and indicate your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd choices on the application form. ESP leadership will use this information during the review process to help ensure each Working Group has representation and participation of actively engaged committee members.

1. Mentoring Program & Career Development
2. Community Engagement
3. Education

 1. Mentoring & Career Development Working Group

Overview: The ISCT ESP Mentoring & Career Development Working Group takes the lead on running ISCT’s flagship Mentoring Program which connects leaders in the field of cell and gene therapy with Early Stage Professionals within the society. The purpose of Mentoring Program is to provide professional and leadership development support. The Mentoring Program began with a pilot run in 2017 and commenced globally in 2018. Mentors are connected with 1-3 mentees and pairings participate in monthly calls, in addition to quarterly ESP and program-wide events such as Career Panels, Resume Workshops, Clinical Impact Forums, and more. Pairings are determined by CGT focus area (Regulatory, Quality and Operations, Basic Science, Clinical, Commercialization) and geographic location.  

Participation: Working Group participants are expected to assist in program development, which includes coordinating mentor-mentee pairing and supporting routine Program calls (including kick-off, Annual Meeting Mentoring Summit, and closing call). Outside of the Mentoring Program, Mentoring and Career Development Working Group participants will also collaborate to plan and execute the quarterly ESP-wide events such as as Career Panels, Resume Workshops, Clinical Impact Forums, and more. The Mentoring and Career Development Co-Chairs represent this working group on the ESP Leadership, and facilitate the communication between working groups and leadership.

2. Community Engagement Working Group

Overview: The Community Engagement Working Group is  focused  on planning and executing initiatives in support of improving communication and personal development of ESPs within ISCT, as well as to promote cell & gene therapy and engage with the wider scientific and non-scientific communities. The Community Engagement Working Group puts on a series of events throughout the year, which include efforts to increase ESP presence on ISCT social media, opportunities to engage with local communities associate with the Annual Meeting, and developing resources to spread awareness of the cell & gene therapy field and ISCT to a wider audience (such as K-12^th grade initiatives).

Participation: Participants in this Working Group are expected to spearhead and collaborate on outreach initiatives to strengthen the ESP community. In addition, a passion for scientific engagement and giving a voice to Early Stage Professionals and tracking industry hot topics and trends is a must-have, as initiatives focusing on scientific communication and increasing ESP presence on social media outlets are common goals of this Working Group. If interested, participants can focus on ESP involvement in the Telegraft blog, working closely with a liaison to the Telegraft Editorial Board to build a pipeline of articles for the ”ESP corner”.  The Community Engagement Co-Chairs represent this working group on the ESP Leadership, and facilitate the communication between working groups and leadership.

3. Education Working Group

Overview: The Education Working Group is the primary hub for ESPs to develop educational resources for other ESPs, ISCT members and the cell and gene therapy field at large. These resources can be formal, such as training webinars, online modules, training courses, white papers, or dedicated sessions at the ISCT Annual Meetings, or informal, such as an 'Ask Me Anything'-style webinar, panel discussions, or cell & gene therapy resource lists

Participation: Education Working Group participants should be excited about developing education-based initiatives and willing to invest their time and talents to initiate this process. Working Group members are expected to participate in the planning and execution of educational-focused initiatives, which can include the development of sessions for the Annual Meeting or regional meetings, webinars, white papers, or guidance documents, among other ideas, and participate in regular progress meetings.The Education Co-Chairs represent this working group on the ESP Leadership, and facilitate the communication between working groups and leadership.