We hope all Young Investigators who attended OARSI in Brussels found it an interesting, educational and enjoyable experience. Thank you to everyone who attended the reception and social event, it was great to see so many young investigators. I'd like to thank Svetlana Krasnokutsky for organizing the inaugural "Meet the Mentor" session, which was a huge success; 15 people signed up at registration but we were delighted when 150 young investigators attended the session. Both mentors and mentees alike enjoyed this event and we hope to hold a similar event next year in San Diego. Look out for more information when you register for OARSI 2011.
The OARSI website has a dedicated Young Investigator section where you can learn more about the Young Investigator committee members, find information about sources of funding, and read our "Article of the Month" commentary. The commentary provides a synopsis of a research paper of interest to OARSI members and includes an interview with the first author of the paper. The interview provides a good opportunity to learn about the background of the work as well as a view of OA research from other researchers.
Funding opportunities and scholarship information is available on the website too. The OARSI scholarships allow young investigators to spend a period of 2-3 months in a lab of their choice, enhancing their basic, clinical, translational and/or experimental research. Applications for 2011 will open in February and it's a brilliant opportunity to gain new skills and experiences within another lab carrying out OA-relevant research.
Another site with a dedicated area for Young Investigators is the OARSI community site. Come on in and take a look at http://community.oarsi.org. It's a great way to interact with all other members of OARSI. You can locate individuals who may be of help to your work and people you've met at previous OARSI events. There are also discussion forums based upon the areas of interest of OARSI members for your research-related questions. You can upload papers of interest to you, ask for feedback on work and look for job opportunities.
Finally, if you have any suggestions of how OARSI can help you, please get in touch with the Young Investigator committee. I can be contacted at s.snelling@uea.ac.uk and contact details of other members can be found on the website.
Sarah Snelling
YI Chair 2010-2011