Do you remember going to your first conference in the field that you were studying? Do you remember the excitement of meeting people who are doing what you want to do? On Saturday, October 6, 2018 over 20 Skyline College students attended what may well be their first scientific conference. For the past 5 years, Skyline College faculty has worked with the Chinese Bioscience Association (CBA) Conference to provide attendance to Skyline College students at a low cost. The conference takes place at the Crown Plaza in Foster City.
The Chinese Bioscience Association (CBA) is a nonprofit organization founded in San Francisco Bay Area in 1997. Its mission is to promote education, networking and community building for life science professionals. This year’s conference focused on building bridges to biotechnology innovation. For our students, being aware of new technologies and innovations is key to transitioning from being a student to being employed in the field.
Students from the biology, microbiology, and biotechnology programs joined their instructors Dr.’s Kevin Davis, Jin Folsom and Nick Kapp to network with Bioscience industry leaders, CBA board members, and CBA board President Mark Chen. Our Skyline College students deftly shared their educational and professional accomplishments and practiced their networking skills in an effort to cultivate relationships and contacts for future internship opportunities and employment.
Skyline College’s Biotechnology Career Advancement Academy BioBridge program hosted a table and showcased their “Skyline Altoids,” a product the biomanufacturing students created as part of their biotechnology class company project. Next month, students from the biology, microbiology and biotechnology programs will be attending the 7th Annual Discovery Day at AT&T Park on Saturday, November 3, 2018.
Skyline College’s Career Advancement Academy Biotechnology program, BioBridge, is supported by grant funding from the National Science Foundation, grant number 1502042. The BioBridge Program provides a broad foundation of scientific education, hands-on instruction, along with contextualized Math and English courses in a highly supportive learning environment. After completion of this two semester program, students receive a Certificate of Achievement in Biotechnology and are prepared for entry-level employment in biomanufacturing. Skyline College also offers an Associate Degree in Biotechnology for students who are looking for a clear transfer pathway to four year colleges and universities. For more information on the Skyline Biotechnology program, please visit http://www.skylinecollege.edu/biotechnology/.
For more information about the BioBridge program, Career Advancement Academies, and upcoming events, please contact, Nick Kapp at kapp@smccd.edu or (650) 738-4415.
Article by Nick Kapp | Photo by Jing Folsom