Programme features

Keynote Lectures

Lectures will cover both the biophysical background of specific methods and discuss the integration with other methods to solve particularly difficult problems in biology. In this way the lectures will stimulate informed, expertise-based discussions on how to distinguish and prioritize individual methods addressing specific biophysical, biochemical and cell biological questions, and how to integrate several methods to address and validate models of more general biological questions.

Group Discussions

During the group dicussion session on Wednesday 13/05, we will discuss particular topics drawing on the experience and perspective of the  participants. Participants are encouraged to include their own project experiences and questions, which at that time have all been presented through posters.

Journal Club

Prior to the course, students will meet in small groups on zoom where they will introduce themselves and select an innovative paper that successfully integrates 2-4 structural biology methods to solve a high-impact biological question. Each student must prepare a presentation of that paper. On Thursday 14/05, students will be assigned to a new group of 4-5 students. During the first hour of the journal club session, each student in the group will then have 15 min to present their selected paper for the other students. Students will then discuss the 4-5 papers and will be asked to address 4 predefined questions and to extract highlights, strengths and pitfalls of different methods, complications to integrating them, relevance to different domains, etc. These notes will be used to stimulate the panel discussion on Friday.

Mentoring session

The mentoring sessin on Thursday 14/05 will allow students to discuss and learn about potential career paths both inside and outside of academia in a safe non-competitive environment. This is essential as there is no ‘one size fits all’ scientific career and ‘non-standard’ options are often presented as less prestigious and valuable – but this is demonstrable untrue. In the mentoring session, we will help participants understand how to build a c.v. and their own brand that demonstrates the transferrable skills they possess and to do so based on an assessment of what is important to them in a future career. The workshop will include a plenary discussion on all of these topics as well as small workshops and group sessions which will allow early career researchers to explore areas of particular interest and relevance to themselves. The session will be led by Professor Emeritus Jane Clarke. 

Panel session

The panel session on Friday 15/05 will reflect on the whole week and the discussions from Thursday’s journal club. Each group will be represented during the panel discussion by 1-2 students who will sit on the panel for maximum 20 min each.

Poster prize

The poster prizes will be selected by a poster committee of keynote speakers. The students prize will be selected by the organizing committee and honour a participant, who has engaged really well in the workshop.

Course dinners

There will be two paid dinners on arrival and departure. The final evening will include a celebration and awarding of prizes. The intervening dinners will be in town and will be organised in smaller groups where students can self-select which speakers they would like to sit with – excepting Wednesday night after the excursion which will be a free evening for everybody.