Establishing and Managing a Global Student Network

The Regional Student Groups (RSGs) program is a network of student groups affiliated with the International Society of Computational Biology Student Council. While each RSG is encouraged to act independently and address the local needs of its regional student membership, a significant amount of effort is also invested in coordinating affiliation of these groups with the international student body, which provides long-term direction and facilitates communication between groups. Participating in a global student network provides students with an opportunity to network and connect with others around the globe. By sharing experiences within the network, students gain cultural insights and awareness of regional differences in scientific research and industry. In this article, we provide an overview of the tasks involved in setting-up and managing this global student network for bioinformatics. We also highlight the benefits a global student network offers, in the hope that other fields can use this to create their own global student network.