Apply before April 1

By Nages Sieslack, ISC Group

According to our website, “Participating as a student volunteer at ISC High Performance is a great opportunity to learn about the most important developments in the High Performance Computing (HPC) field. It is also a great way to make new contacts, particularly with your peers from other schools and countries, possible future employers, and HPC luminaries from around the world.”

All true. But what we didn’t also mention is how highly we value female undergraduate and graduate students’ involvement in the program. We appreciate their conscientiousness and, moreover, they always bring great energy with them.

We hope that after reading this blog, you, as an HPC beginner of the female persuasion, would consider volunteering at our event this year.

When we approached former volunteers for their perspective, three of them gladly shared their experience.

Helena Caminal from the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain, is currently pursuing her second Master’s degree in Research and Innovation in Informatics specialized in HPC. “Being part of the Student Volunteer Program allowed me to expand my professional horizons,” remarked Helena, who volunteered in 2014 and 2015. I was able to get in touch with other students from around the world that have the same interests as me. I learned how an international conference in my field of study is organized.”

Last year we organized the first Women in HPC Workshop which sparked a lot of fascinating discussions, attracting women and men alike. Helena was a big fan of the event, saying, “The Women in HPC Workshop had a great impact on me as I was able to listen to successful female experts share their experiences and advice.”

“In my working environment there are very few women, thus at the ISC High Performance conference I was able to expand my list of female role models, she added. “In conclusion, it was an inspiring experience that motivated me to keep expanding my knowledge and doing research in HPC.”

Apart from offering you the opportunity to meet other female researchers in HPC, our conference offers a fostering and supportive environment for students. Most of the HPC luminaries are more than obliging to engage in face-to-face conversations with enthusiastic students.

Home student, Anja Gerbes, who volunteered in 2015, studied computer science at the Goethe University in Frankfurt. “During my master thesis in computer science, I improved my knowledge in HPC. The topic of performance optimization was very exciting, and I was able to come closer to it. The Student Volunteer Program gave me the chance to get to know the HPC experts in person and the HPC fields better through their technical presentations,” she said. “I could broaden my horizons and my wealth of experience. I have learned which other topics are important in my research field.” Anja recommends the volunteer program, noting “it is a wonderful opportunity for young researchers to find their way in HPC.”

Echoing her sentiments, Efthalia Karydi is a Masters student in Applied Informatics from the University of Macedonia, Greece. Efthalia volunteered along with Helena in 2014 and 2015, was glad that she had the opportunity to participate in the program. “It is an excellent experience that I would suggest to any student,” she said. “Besides having the opportunity to attend the conference, I also had the chance to take part in some aspects of the organization of the conference, which I consider as a valuable experience.”

“Participating in the ISC Student Volunteer Program was a way to get closer to the HPC community by offering something back, and it left me with many new friends from all over the world, and of course lots of unforgettable memories!” recalled Efthalia.

By the way, if you are currently located in a foreign country and have never been to Germany or Europe, please know that Germany is a very safe destination for female travelers. As we provide housing for all our out-of-town volunteers, you’ll be in a safe, welcoming environment, surrounded by your peers from other universities. Maybe you’ll even make some new friends.

The program coordinator Colleen Sheedy is looking forward to greeting her 2016 batch of conference volunteers. If you need any kind of information before applying, she would be happy to help.

We are accepting applications until April 1. To find out about the requirements and application process, please visit: http://www.isc-hpc.com/student-volunteers.html.