Student Council Elections

Our annual leadership elections will be take place in the first half of the year. We encourage you to participate in the election process whether it be as a candidate or voter.

On this page you will find information on how to nominate a candidate and the election procedure. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact the Student Council Secretary at secretary@iscbsc.org.

The Procedure

• Nomination of Candidates (6 weeks pre-ISMB)
  Candidate nomination takes place through the ISCB website at http://www.iscb.org/nominate. All ISCB members can nominate other ISCB members for Student Council leadership positions. The Student Council leadership positions up for election are Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Board of Directors Representative and Treasurer (a brief description of the duties for each position is posted below). Self-nomination is not possible.
• Review of Candidates (5 weeks pre-ISMB)
  To ensure continuity in the management of ISCB Student Council only members with a good standing in the ISCB Student Council will be considered for the leadership positions. Right after the closing of the nomination period the current Student Council leaders will evaluate the nominations received: candidates nominated for the first time for one of the leadership positions should have been active volunteers in any of the Student Council or Student Council Symposium committees, or have served as President or Secretary of any of the student council RSGs.
• Submission of Candidate Statements (3 weeks pre-ISMB)
  Nominated candidates are automatically notified of their nomination by email. Nominees are requested to accept the nomination by submitting their CV and a candidate statement through the ISCB website.
• Elections (2 week election period; ends on last day of ISMB conf)
  Election takes place through the ISCB website. All ISCB members can vote for the candidates and each ISCB member has one vote per position. The election results will be announced in August via ISCB website.
• Training Period (October - January)
  The newly elected candidates start working with the current Student Council leaders and attending their meetings to become familiar with the general Student Council procedures and the running projects. Elected Student Council leaders will take office on January 21st.

The Positions

The following is a rough description of what is expected of the elected Student Council leaders. Experience shows that all positions require a time commitment of several hours per week. If you want to know more about any of these positions please don't hesitate and contact our current or past leaders.

• Chair
  The Student Council Chair has the overall responsibility for the activities of the Student Council. Together with the other elected leaders, the Chair defines the goals of the organization and outlines a strategy to successfully reach the goals. The Chair is the driving force behind the efforts of the Student Council, which means that s/he will encourage and support other leaders to ensure that projects are successfully completed. It is the responsibility of the Chair to propose new initiatives and projects to ensure that the needs of the member body are addressed. The Chair is involved in all decisions regarding the appointment of new committee chairs and other project leaders. 
• Vice Chair
  The Student Council Vice Chair assists the Chair in fulfilling his or her duties. In the absence of the Chair, the Vice Chair is responsible for all operations of the Student Council. Vice Chair and Chair are expected to collaborate closely. 
• Secretary
  The Student Council Secretary is responsible for the official correspondence of the Student Council and informs other leaders and members about upcoming meetings. The Secretary prepares meeting minutes and distributes them after meetings. The Secretary also acts as the custodian of all important Student Council documents, including committee reports. The Secretary helps the Chair and Vice Chair to develop internal procedures and guidelines. He or she also helps to ensure proper communication between Student Council committees and elected Student Council leaders. 
• Treasurer
  The Student Council Treasurer is responsible for the finances of the Student Council. He or she is responsible for creating and managing the yearly budget. They oversee expenses and, with the assistance of the Fundraising Committee, generate funds to support Student Council general activities as well as specific events, for example through the recruitment of sponsors, application for grants, and guiding RSGs in their fundraising activities.
• ISCB Board of Directors Representative
  The ISCB Board of Directors (BoD) Representative of the Student Council serves as a first point of contact between the BoD and the Student Council. His or her duty is to convey all decisions and requests between the BoD and the Student Council promptly and properly. The BoD of Representative must attend and inform other Student Council leaders about all BoD meetings and teleconferences and update the BoD with the latest developments from the Student Council. The BoD representative is a full member of the ISCB Board of Directors and is expected to make every effort to attend the annual BoD meeting at ISMB. Within the Student Council Executive Team, the BoD rep is also typically someone already experienced in the SC, and so is informally expected to help familiarize the new ET with SC procedures and also help wherever else needed.