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The European Respiratory Society (ERS) has an active and growing community of respiratory professionals who are in the early stages of their career within our Society’s membership. We are committed to supporting early career members to reach their potential by providing opportunities that are tailored to the needs of professionals at the start of their career, which are supported by the important contributions of the ERS Early Career Member Committee.
During the hybrid ERS Congress, we maintain this commitment by offering training, networking opportunities and professional development guidance for early career members, alongside the exciting scientific sessions on offer.
Niki is the early career representative for the ERS Basic and translational sciences assembly. She is a principal investigator within the Division of Pulmonary Medicine at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois in Lausanne, Switzerland. Her research interests include host-microbe interactions in the onset and progression of respiratory diseases and the effects of dietary intake on immune function and consequent development of respiratory diseases.
Q: What makes the ERS Congress unique for early career professionals?
A: The ERS Congress is the ideal platform for early career professionals to share their research findings and interact with fellow respiratory professionals. Attending the ERS Congress provides a unique opportunity to learn from experts in the field about hot topics and the latest new advancements in respiratory medicine. Attendance of the ERS Congress also provides early career professionals with the possibility to enhance their professional skills in different formats (including skills labs, lungs on fire and expert view sessions, and challenging clinical cases). Networking opportunities are very important for early career professionals and these have been quite limited over the past year as we have not been able to meet in person. This year’s ERS congress offers opportunities for early career professionals to network and be actively involved in the ERS congress and provides an interactive platform that will benefit our early career professionals.
Q: What can early career professionals expect to gain from taking part in this year’s Congress?
A: For an up to date overview of the different Assembly activities, make sure to attend the virtual Assembly Meetings, which will take place leading up to the congress. This is a great opportunity for Early Career Members to get to know your Assembly Leadership and to get involved with the assembly activities as an Early Career Member. On Monday September 5th we will organise a session on ‘Steps for a successful career in Respiratory Research’ which is dedicated to all Early Career Members. During this session we will hand out the ECM award after which the awardee will provide the Mina Gaga lecture. At the end of the session, there will be an opportunity to ask any questions related to the ECMC and how to get involved. In addition, this year’s congress allows for networking in person and via the virtual platform, which is extremely important for everyone in the early stages of their career.
Q: In your opinion, what will be the popular topics for early career professionals at this year’s Congress, and what will be a particular highlight for you?
A: Professional development, skills training and the Lungs on Fire sessions will create great learning opportunities for all Early Career Professionals. Since the congress is back in a hybrid format with both in person and virtual interactions, I think that networking and the ability to formally and informally interact with other professionals in the field will be one of the highlights. In the early stages of your career it is important to meet potentially new collaborators and mentors and have the opportunity for spontaneous meetings. For me personally, the ERS NEXT program which will be held on Saturday before the congress will be a highlight. This program provides additional training on presentation, moderation and networking skills for congress sponsorship awardees. In addition, the ECM session is always a personal highlight as we will discuss professional development with renowned speakers. Lastly, I very much enjoy the positive energy coming from in depth discussions during poster and oral communication sessions, and I look forward to meeting ECMs during one of these sessions!
Q: Can you select some sessions that your recommend to early career professionals?
Early Career Members may also wish to attend the following activities, which will take place at the ERS exhibition stand:
