Explore, Connect, Lead: Opportunities with the HBHL Trainee Committee

Are you passionate about neuroscience and eager to get involved in the McGill community? The Healthy Brains, Healthy Lives (HBHL) Trainee Committee offers graduate students and postdoctoral fellows the chance to connect with like-minded peers and develop professionally by being part of a team that facilitates monthly networking events, academic talks and helps organize HBHL’s annual Symposium. Since 2017, over 80 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows have participated in the Trainee Committee.

What to expect

Every year, the Trainee Committee organizes initiatives and events that provide its members with invaluable experiences. In particular, the Committee helps to coordinate student activities such as the poster sessions and flash talks at the annual HBHL Symposium—a showcase of work from McGill’s brain health research community. At the 2024 edition of the Symposium, the two-day poster session featured over 90 students presenting their research.

In addition to their contributions to the Symposium, the Committee hosts monthly get-togethers, where students in McGill’s brain health community can meet with their peers in a safe space and share research. Haoyi Qiu, former President of the HBHL Trainee Committee for 2023-2024 and 2022-2023, emphasizes that these events are a great way to network and strike up collaborations. “A future member of the Committee can expect to be part of the planning for all these initiatives (and hopefully more!). They’ll learn how to work together as a team and get access to the expansive HBHL network.”

As Qiu explains, getting involved in event planning offers Committee members an opportunity to gain leadership experience and hone their organizational skills. “Planning and executing events such as get-togethers, socials and the annual HBHL Symposium’s poster session require careful coordination, problem-solving and teamwork. Members learn how to handle logistics, manage time effectively and work collaboratively with others—all crucial skills for academic and professional settings. Participating in the Trainee Committee is an excellent way to engage more deeply with the neuroscience community and grow both personally and professionally.”

One of the 2024 HBHL Trainee Committee’s standout achievements was the development and successful launch of the Undergraduate Summer Research Internship (USRI) with the assistance of HBHL staff. Ethan Draper, former EDI and Communications Officer of the HBHL Trainee Committee for 2023-2024, explains how involved the committee was in this initiative from the outset. "We created an internship program for undergrad students at McGill to pursue a four-month research project in a brain health subject, resulting in 20 students with no previous research experience receiving $10,000 each in funding.” The program is a great example of the level of impact that Committee members can have on the McGill community.

As members come from a wide range of areas in McGill’s brain health community, the Committee is an ideal platform for students to connect with peers who have similar interests and fully immerse themselves in the neuroscience community. As Draper explains, "Everyone told me I would love grad school. Everyone said to me: 'You’re finally part of a group of people who are incredibly passionate about what they do and really want to be there.' I certainly saw lots of that in my program, but I found it in spades on the HBHL Trainee Committee!"

Get Involved

The HBHL Trainee Committee is currently calling for new members for this academic year. If you're interested in getting involved this year, don’t miss your chance to register.