Join us for an inspiring forum led by the Members Panel of the Microbiology Society. This session is dedicated to showcasing specific actions and initiatives that are building a more inclusive research environment. We invite members to share their impactful activities and successful strategies, providing a platform to exchange practical ideas and solutions. This is an opportunity to learn from each other’s triumphs and challenges, raising awareness of the needs of underrepresented and historically marginalised groups.
Arindam Mitra, Bruno Silvester Lopes, Catherin Lawler, Guerrino Macori
Actinomycetes are an incredibly interesting and diverse group of soil dwelling bacteria that have been the source of an amazing 25% of all bioactive microbial metabolites and so have made a significant contribution to medical care. Advances in 'omics' technologies and novel culture techniques has renewed interest in this remarkable group of bacteria. In this session we welcome abstracts from those working within the actinomycete field. We especially encourage industry participation. This session will run on the afternoon before a morning Mycobacteria session to allow cross-pollination between the two sessions.
Dany Beste, Apoorva Bhatt, Damien Brady, Rebecca McHugh; Josephine Giard (EC Co-Chair)
This session highlights innovative work in education and outreach across professional, academic, and community settings. Speakers will share practical strategies and collaborative approaches for engaging diverse audiences—including learners, clinicians, technicians, and industry partners. The session aims to inspire new ideas, strengthen connections, and support effective, inclusive engagement practices.
Gemma Wattret, Alison Graham, Sean Goodman, Monika Gostic, Laura Cleary-Keogh and Brooklyn Rowlands (EC co-chair)
Eukaryotic microbes encompass a dazzling array of organisms, habitats, and niches that are frequently overlooked. They are of primary relevance to both ecological & environmental health and plant & animal pathogenesis, and increasingly are being exploited by the biotech industry. This symposium will celebrate and bring to focus the large biodiversity of microbial eukaryotes, their roles and relevance, and highlight the unique challenges posed in studying them. We welcome submissions on any microbial eukaryotes (fungi, yeasts, algae, protists, parasites) and their role in health, the environment, and industry
Alison Smith, Fiona Henriquez, Campbell Gourlay, Eoin O'Cinneide, Daniel Larcombe, Nicolas Pionnier, Fabrizio Alberti, Maria Domingo, Jordan Price
Establishing an independent research group is both exciting and challenging. At this stage, new investigators develop innovative scientific directions, build teams, secure funding, navigate the world of higher education teaching and build networks within the community. This session will highlight the groundbreaking work of researchers who have started their independent groups within the past 5 years and will feature newly appointed investigators, researchers who transitioned from industry to academia and those who learned through direct experience. Showcasing diverse topics across microbiology, from bacterial to fungal and viral research, this session provides a platform for emerging leaders to present their latest findings, share insights into their research vision, foster collaborations and establish their presence within the microbiology community. This session will also feature a panel discussion on new investigators experiences in establishing their groups and the varied successful routes to achieve this.
Jack Bryant, Chris Cooper, Kalai Mathee, Jerry Reen, Nicholas Locker
This symposium aims to take an interdisciplinary approach to explore the latest advancements in phage research. This symposium welcomes research encompassing all areas of phage biology, such as medicine, veterinary science, food safety, genetic engineering, evolution, agriculture and the environment. As antimicrobial resistance (AMR) continues to threaten human, animal, and environmental health, phage therapy is emerging as a promising alternative. However, successful implementation requires an in depth understanding of the fundamental biology underlying phage-bacterial interactions including bacterial resistance mechanisms and efficacy in complex environments, and using this knowledge to address the practical and regulatory hurdles of bringing phage into clinical use. Advances in genomics are allowing us to be ‘smarter’ in designing phage cocktails and developing personalised medicine approaches. Understanding both biological and regulatory principles is essential to ensure the safe, effective and sustainable use of phage across One Health domains.
Alison Low, John Kenny, Jai Mehat
Both DNA and RNA viruses introduce novel RNA sequences into an infected cell that must survive and thrive in the cytoplasm. To do this they manipulate the host cell in myriad ways, from rewiring RNA splicing, modification and decay to producing non-coding RNAs that sequester cellular factors, reprogramming the RNA-binding protein (RBP)-ome and creating bespoke sub-cytoplasmic compartments.
Hannah Burgess, Alex Borodavka, Stephen Graham
This session highlights innovative work in education and outreach across professional, academic, and community settings. Speakers will share practical strategies and collaborative approaches for engaging diverse audiences—including learners, clinicians, technicians, and industry partners. The session aims to inspire new ideas, strengthen connections, and support effective, inclusive engagement practices.
Gemma Wattret, Alison Graham, Sean Goodman, Monika Gostic, Laura Cleary-Keogh and Brooklyn Rowlands (EC co-chair)
Eukaryotic microbes encompass a dazzling array of organisms, habitats, and niches that are frequently overlooked. They are of primary relevance to both ecological & environmental health and plant & animal pathogenesis, and increasingly are being exploited by the biotech industry. This symposium will celebrate and bring to focus the large biodiversity of microbial eukaryotes, their roles and relevance, and highlight the unique challenges posed in studying them. We welcome submissions on any microbial eukaryotes (fungi, yeasts, algae, protists, parasites) and their role in health, the environment, and industry
Alison Smith, Fiona Henriquez, Campbell Gourlay, Eoin O'Cinneide, Daniel Larcombe, Nicolas Pionnier, Fabrizio Alberti, Maria Domingo, Jordan Price
Genetics and genomics forum will consider offered papers on all aspects of the genes and genomes of both prokaryotes and eukaryotes and their mobile elements, including their sequencing, transcription, translation, regulation, chromosome dynamics, gene transfer, population genetics and evolution, taxonomy and systematics, comparative genomics, metagenomics, bioinformatics, and synthetic biology
Lead: Bruno Francesco Rodrigues de Oliveira; Kasia Parfitt, David Cleary, Maria Rosa Domingo-Sananes, Jordan Price, Ines Hofer (EC co-chair)
This forum will consider offered papers on all aspects of microbial (prokaryotic and eukaryotic) metabolism, physiology and molecular biology. This will focus on fundamental and translational research in this area. This would include the metabolism and physiology of bacteria, archaea and eukaryotic microbes, including pathogens; biochemistry and structure of cells, cell growth and division; cell architecture and differentiation; synthesis and transport of macromolecules; ions and small molecules; development signalling and communication, sensing and cellular responses and also how this work informs microbial engineering, antimicrobial drug development, and other potential applications. All speakers will be selected from the submitted abstracts.
Lead: Chris Cooper; Reviewers: Stephan Heeb; Rebecca Corrigan; Alison Smith; Nicolas Pionnier; John Clark-Corrigall (EC co-chair)
Mycobacterial research remains massively overlooked and underfunded, whilst the burden of mycobacterial disease continues to rise: tuberculosis is once again the leading cause of infectious death globally; non-tuberculosis mycobacterial infections are on the rise and M. bovis remains a dominant cause of bovine and zoonotic TB worldwide. We welcome abstracts from those working on all aspects of mycobacterial research. The session will be of broad interest as much of mycobacterial research is applicable to wide and diverse areas of microbiological study. This session will run next to the Actinomyces session to facilitate cross-pollination between these two related topics.
Daire Cantillon, Apoorva Bhatt, Dany Beste
Both DNA and RNA viruses introduce novel RNA sequences into an infected cell that must survive and thrive in the cytoplasm. To do this they manipulate the host cell in myriad ways, from rewiring RNA splicing, modification and decay to producing non-coding RNAs that sequester cellular factors, reprogramming the RNA-binding protein (RBP)-ome and creating bespoke sub-cytoplasmic compartments.
Hannah Burgess, Alex Borodavka, Stephen Graham
This session highlights innovative work in education and outreach across professional, academic, and community settings. Speakers will share practical strategies and collaborative approaches for engaging diverse audiences—including learners, clinicians, technicians, and industry partners. The session aims to inspire new ideas, strengthen connections, and support effective, inclusive engagement practices.
Gemma Wattret, Alison Graham, Sean Goodman, Monika Gostic, Laura Cleary-Keogh and Brooklyn Rowlands (EC co-chair)
Eukaryotic microbes encompass a dazzling array of organisms, habitats, and niches that are frequently overlooked. They are of primary relevance to both ecological & environmental health and plant & animal pathogenesis, and increasingly are being exploited by the biotech industry. This symposium will celebrate and bring to focus the large biodiversity of microbial eukaryotes, their roles and relevance, and highlight the unique challenges posed in studying them. We welcome submissions on any microbial eukaryotes (fungi, yeasts, algae, protists, parasites) and their role in health, the environment, and industry
Alison Smith, Fiona Henriquez, Campbell Gourlay, Eoin O'Cinneide, Daniel Larcombe, Nicolas Pionnier, Fabrizio Alberti, Maria Domingo, Jordan Price
Genetics and genomics forum will consider offered papers on all aspects of the genes and genomes of both prokaryotes and eukaryotes and their mobile elements, including their sequencing, transcription, translation, regulation, chromosome dynamics, gene transfer, population genetics and evolution, taxonomy and systematics, comparative genomics, metagenomics, bioinformatics, and synthetic biology
Lead: Bruno Francesco Rodrigues de Oliveira; Kasia Parfitt, David Cleary, Maria Rosa Domingo-Sananes, Jordan Price, Ines Hofer (EC co-chair)
This forum will consider offered papers on all aspects of microbial (prokaryotic and eukaryotic) metabolism, physiology and molecular biology. This will focus on fundamental and translational research in this area. This would include the metabolism and physiology of bacteria, archaea and eukaryotic microbes, including pathogens; biochemistry and structure of cells, cell growth and division; cell architecture and differentiation; synthesis and transport of macromolecules; ions and small molecules; development signalling and communication, sensing and cellular responses and also how this work informs microbial engineering, antimicrobial drug development, and other potential applications. All speakers will be selected from the submitted abstracts.
Lead: Chris Cooper; Reviewers: Stephan Heeb; Rebecca Corrigan; Alison Smith; Nicolas Pionnier; John Clark-Corrigall (EC co-chair)
Mycobacterial research remains massively overlooked and underfunded, whilst the burden of mycobacterial disease continues to rise: tuberculosis is once again the leading cause of infectious death globally; non-tuberculosis mycobacterial infections are on the rise and M. bovis remains a dominant cause of bovine and zoonotic TB worldwide. We welcome abstracts from those working on all aspects of mycobacterial research. The session will be of broad interest as much of mycobacterial research is applicable to wide and diverse areas of microbiological study. This session will run next to the Actinomyces session to facilitate cross-pollination between these two related topics.
Daire Cantillon, Apoorva Bhatt, Dany Beste
Eukaryotic microbes encompass a dazzling array of organisms, habitats, and niches that are frequently overlooked. They are of primary relevance to both ecological & environmental health and plant & animal pathogenesis, and increasingly are being exploited by the biotech industry. This symposium will celebrate and bring to focus the large biodiversity of microbial eukaryotes, their roles and relevance, and highlight the unique challenges posed in studying them. We welcome submissions on any microbial eukaryotes (fungi, yeasts, algae, protists, parasites) and their role in health, the environment, and industry
Alison Smith, Fiona Henriquez, Campbell Gourlay, Eoin O'Cinneide, Daniel Larcombe, Nicolas Pionnier, Fabrizio Alberti, Maria Domingo, Jordan Price
Genetics and genomics forum will consider offered papers on all aspects of the genes and genomes of both prokaryotes and eukaryotes and their mobile elements, including their sequencing, transcription, translation, regulation, chromosome dynamics, gene transfer, population genetics and evolution, taxonomy and systematics, comparative genomics, metagenomics, bioinformatics, and synthetic biology
Lead: Bruno Francesco Rodrigues de Oliveira; Kasia Parfitt, David Cleary, Maria Rosa Domingo-Sananes, Jordan Price, Ines Hofer (EC co-chair)
We invite talks on our four themes (surveillance, vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics) that impact AMR. Part one (Tuesday 15 April PM): What do we have that impacts AMR now? Short talks Plenary talk: Baroness Natalie Bennett, House of Lords Panel discussion: Baroness Natalie Bennett (House of Lords, UK) Part two (Wednesday 16 April AM): Tackling Big Challenges: What could we do better to have a greater impact? Horizon scanning workshop
Catrin Moore, Jonathan Cox, Marwa Alawi (EC Co-Chair)
This forum will consider offered papers on all aspects of microbial (prokaryotic and eukaryotic) metabolism, physiology and molecular biology. This will focus on fundamental and translational research in this area. This would include the metabolism and physiology of bacteria, archaea and eukaryotic microbes, including pathogens; biochemistry and structure of cells, cell growth and division; cell architecture and differentiation; synthesis and transport of macromolecules; ions and small molecules; development signalling and communication, sensing and cellular responses and also how this work informs microbial engineering, antimicrobial drug development, and other potential applications. All speakers will be selected from the submitted abstracts.
Lead: Chris Cooper; Reviewers: Stephan Heeb; Rebecca Corrigan; Alison Smith; Nicolas Pionnier; John Clark-Corrigall (EC co-chair)
Recent developments in primary cell culture, organoids and bioengineering have resulted in increased understanding of infection biology. These complex models have allowed development of microphysiological systems and organ-on-chip models allowing modelling of microbial mechanisms of infection, immune evasion and host immune signalling.
John Mac Sharry, Anna Cliffe, Lindsay Broadbent, Nicky O'Boyle, Clive McKimmie, Ben Brennan, Stephen Graham, Jack Ferguson, Oya Cingoz, Rania Nassar (EC Co-Chair)
This forum includes offered papers on any area and any organism relevant to environmental, ecological, applied and industrial microbiology, including (non-human) host–microbe communities and interactions, marine and freshwater microbiology, soil and geomicrobiology, air-, cryo- and extremophile microbiology, climate change, biotechnology, bio-processing and bio-engineering, food microbiology, and other applied and industrial microbial processes, including microbe-mediated biodegradation and bioremediation.
Lead: Kalai Mathee; Bruno Francesco Rodrigues de Oliveira; Fabrizio Alberti; Fiona Henriquez-Mui; Anup Kodape; Alison Graham (EC co-chair)
Offered papers (and associated posters) will be presented in areas related to clinical, veterinary and plant infections caused by microbial pathogens. This will include detection and diagnosis, identification, typing and epidemiology, pathogenesis, virulence, host response and immunity, treatment and prevention, antimicrobial agents and resistance, transmission and models of infection. Eligible abstracts can be entered into the Infection Science Award competition, with the awardees invited to the Federation of Infection Societies annual meeting.
Leads: Joey Shepherd; Fadil Bidmos; Reviewers: Ashley Otter; Mathew Diggle; Donal Wall; Ahmed Lafi; Natalie Lamont (EC co-chair)
We invite talks on our four themes (surveillance, vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics) that impact AMR. Tackling Big Challenges: What could we do better to have a greater impact? Horizon scanning workshop"
Catrin Moore, Jonathan Cox, Marwa Alawi (EC Co-Chair)
The advent of high-throughput genome sequencing has revealed that genetic differences among individuals in various species are not solely due to small polymorphisms. Instead, these differences also arise from variations in the presence and absence of genes and non-coding regions. This discovery has given rise to the concept of pangenomes, which encompass the entire set of genes within a species, including core genes that are present in all individuals and accessory genes that vary among individuals. In this session, we will delve into the latest research on the structure and evolution of microbial pangenomes, as well as the challenges involved in their analysis.
Bruno Francesco Rodrigues de Oliveira, Samuel Sheppard, Maria Rosa Domingo-Sananes, Kasia Parfitt, Eva Heinz, Guerrino Macori, Eoin Ó Cinnéide, Elizabeth Cummins, Alan McNally
The Microbiome Forum encourages a broad remit of microbiome research with particular emphasis on early career submissions. It will consider offered papers on all aspects of human, animal and environmental microbiome science. This session will be held adjacent to the half-day Microbiome Symposium. Speakers will be selected exclusively from submitted abstracts.
Lead: Nicky O'Boyle; John Kenny, John MacSharry, Florence Abram, Stephen Kelly, Merve Zeden, Damien Brady, Campbell Gourlay, Eoin O’Cinneide, Conor Feehily; Roop Dhillon (EC co-chair)
This forum includes offered papers on any area and any organism relevant to environmental, ecological, applied and industrial microbiology, including (non-human) host–microbe communities and interactions, marine and freshwater microbiology, soil and geomicrobiology, air-, cryo- and extremophile microbiology, climate change, biotechnology, bio-processing and bio-engineering, food microbiology, and other applied and industrial microbial processes, including microbe-mediated biodegradation and bioremediation.
Offered papers (and associated posters) will be presented in areas related to clinical, veterinary and plant infections caused by microbial pathogens. This will include detection and diagnosis, identification, typing and epidemiology, pathogenesis, virulence, host response and immunity, treatment and prevention, antimicrobial agents and resistance, transmission and models of infection. Eligible abstracts can be entered into the Infection Science Award competition, with the awardees invited to the Federation of Infection Societies annual meeting.
Leads: Joey Shepherd; Fadil Bidmos; Reviewers: Ashley Otter; Mathew Diggle; Donal Wall; Ahmed Lafi; Natalie Lamont (EC co-chair)
The advent of high-throughput genome sequencing has revealed that genetic differences among individuals in various species are not solely due to small polymorphisms. Instead, these differences also arise from variations in the presence and absence of genes and non-coding regions. This discovery has given rise to the concept of pangenomes, which encompass the entire set of genes within a species, including core genes that are present in all individuals and accessory genes that vary among individuals. In this session, we will delve into the latest research on the structure and evolution of microbial pangenomes, as well as the challenges involved in their analysis.
Bruno Francesco Rodrigues de Oliveira, Samuel Sheppard, Maria Rosa Domingo-Sananes, Kasia Parfitt, Eva Heinz, Guerrino Macori, Eoin Ó Cinnéide, Elizabeth Cummins, Alan McNally
The Microbiome Forum encourages a broad remit of microbiome research with particular emphasis on early career submissions. It will consider offered papers on all aspects of human, animal and environmental microbiome science. This session will be held adjacent to the half-day Microbiome Symposium. Speakers will be selected exclusively from submitted abstracts.
Lead: Nicky O'Boyle; John Kenny, John MacSharry, Florence Abram, Stephen Kelly, Merve Zeden, Damien Brady, Campbell Gourlay, Eoin O’Cinneide, Conor Feehily; Roop Dhillon (EC co-chair)
From the fundamentals of molecular biology through the development of synthetic biology approaches and the design-build-test cycle, our ability to design or redesign living microorganisms or products from them for novel purposes, is rapidly increasing. This reprogramming offers the potential to address a multitude of challenges facing humanity, including sustainability, climate change, food security, biomaterials development, biosecurity and human health. In this Symposium, we will hear from world leaders in Engineering Biology developing tools to introduce non-canonical amino acids into proteins, designing completely new chromosomes and reprogramming metabolism. These tool are being used to advance drug discovery, our fundamental understanding of the building blocks of life, and our capacity to harness microorganisms for production of industrially relevant products.
Fabrizio Alberti, Chris Cooper, Alison Smith, Jack Bryant, David Mark, James Croxford (EC co-chair)
The "Exploring Microbiome Function" symposium will focus on the role of microbiomes in ecosystem function for health and global sustainability. Areas of interest will include, but not be limited to, the unexplored microbiota, non-culturable and non-viable microbiota, and cryptic gene clusters. Microbiome is intended here to cover prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbiota, as well as viruses. Abstracts demonstrating novel functional insights into the role of the microbiome in health and ecosystem sustainability will be particularly welcome.
John Kenny, Nicky O'Boyle, John MacSharry, Florence Abram, Stephen Kelly, Merve Zeden, Damien Brady, Campbell Gourlay, Eoin O’Cinneide, Conor Feehily, Megan Smith-Cerdán (EC Co-Chair)
In this session we will explore a diverse range of novel techniques as well as innovative applications of existing methods that improve our understanding of biological complexity relating to all aspects of microbiology. Methodological approaches can include spatial biology, microscopy, microfluidics and any ‘omics, or other transformative tools, with those with widest accessibility especially welcomed.
Ethan Morgan, Gemma Langridge, Guerrino Macori
Viruses are ever-present, but many viruses such as Influenza, RSV, and COVID, fluctuate with the changing seasons, often surging each winter. In some cases, this leads to ‘quademics,’ where multiple viruses co-circulate at high prevalence, as seen during the 2025/26 winter season, leading to significant strains on health infrastructure and public health resources. This session will explore both the fundamental biology of these viruses, but also the complex interplay between climate (temperature, humidity), host factors (age, immune waning, boosting, vaccination), and epidemiology (travel, indoor crowding) that drives the seasonality of these viruses.
Ashley Otter; Edward Emmott
Microbiology generates vast amounts of data, yet drawing meaningful insights from this information remains a significant challenge. Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can be leveraged to enhance data analysis and address complex scientific questions pertaining to microorganisms and their environments. ML is commonly integrated into omics workflows and has also been deployed, for example, to discover novel antimicrobial compounds, for protein and RNA structure resolution, to predict zoonosis, or to guide high throughput culturomics. This session will highlight some current AI and ML applications from across the field of microbiology and explore how these technologies have the potential to expand our understanding of microbial systems.
Florence Abram, Maria Domingo Sananes, David Cleary, Jordan Price, Kalai Mathee; Tania Dottorini; Sam Sheppard, Muhammed Salih Keskin (EC Co-Chair)
From the fundamentals of molecular biology through the development of synthetic biology approaches and the design-build-test cycle, our ability to design or redesign living microorganisms or products from them for novel purposes, is rapidly increasing. This reprogramming offers the potential to address a multitude of challenges facing humanity, including sustainability, climate change, food security, biomaterials development, biosecurity and human health. In this Symposium, we will hear from world leaders in Engineering Biology developing tools to introduce non-canonical amino acids into proteins, designing completely new chromosomes and reprogramming metabolism. These tool are being used to advance drug discovery, our fundamental understanding of the building blocks of life, and our capacity to harness microorganisms for production of industrially relevant products.
Fabrizio Alberti, Chris Cooper, Alison Smith, Jack Bryant, David Mark, James Croxford (EC co-chair)
Bacteria, viruses, and eukaryotic microbes such as protozoa, helminths and fungi exhibit a spectrum of adaptations that enable them to colonise or infect a variety of host species. Such adaptations can give rise to either host-restricted pathogen strains that are specialized for particular organisms, or strains with a multi-host lifestyle, capable of thriving in varied niches. Moreover, one pathogen may infect multiple host species, but lead to differing clinical outcomes. Understanding the determinants that govern host specificity, and disease outcome is critical to One-health approaches aimed at mitigating potential zoonoses, and improving animal health, welfare, and productivity. This session will aim to bring together an interdisciplinary community of bacteriologists, virologists, parasitologists, and mycologists working at the intersection of veterinary microbiology. We welcome abstracts on any aspect of veterinary microbiology, including transmission, co-infections, and pathogenicity, with a particular emphasis on the determinants of host-specificity and/or generalism in animal reservoirs, and on understanding factors influencing varying disease outcomes across species infected by the same pathogen."
Prerna Vohra, Jai Mehat, Helena Maier, Andrew James Broadbent, Fiona Henriquez, Nicolas Pionnier, Daire Cantillon
This session will explore the diverse world of plant pathogens, focussing on eukaryotic, prokaryotic, and viral species that are leading causes of plant disease worldwide. With an emphasis on the pathogens rather than their plant hosts, the session will highlight the latest research on the molecular mechanisms underlying plant-pathogen interactions. Topics will include pathogen infection structures, effector biology, manipulation of host cellular processes, and evolution of virulence mechanisms. By bringing together established and early career researchers, this session aims to foster discussions on recent discoveries and emerging technologies, encouraging interdisciplinary collaboration to better understand and combat plant diseases.
Jordan Price, Arnab Majumdar (EC co-chair)
In this session we will explore a diverse range of novel techniques as well as innovative applications of existing methods that improve our understanding of biological complexity relating to all aspects of microbiology. Methodological approaches can include spatial biology, microscopy, microfluidics and any ‘omics, or other transformative tools, with those with widest accessibility especially welcomed.
Ethan Morgan, Gemma Langridge, Guerrino Macori
Viruses are ever-present, but many viruses such as Influenza, RSV, and COVID, fluctuate with the changing seasons, often surging each winter. In some cases, this leads to ‘quademics,’ where multiple viruses co-circulate at high prevalence, as seen during the 2025/26 winter season, leading to significant strains on health infrastructure and public health resources. This session will explore both the fundamental biology of these viruses, but also the complex interplay between climate (temperature, humidity), host factors (age, immune waning, boosting, vaccination), and epidemiology (travel, indoor crowding) that drives the seasonality of these viruses.
Ashley Otter; Edward Emmott
The Careers Session presents an exciting chance for delegates to discover and explore career paths outside those that have been traditionally available to microbiologists. Delegates in attendance will have the opportunity to interact with speakers from industry, clinical, academic and government settings who will share their varying career experiences and trajectories as well as nuggets of wisdom such as their achievements and regrets. At the end of each talk, there will be a brief Q&A session, allowing delegates to ask key questions pertaining to their career stages and fields. A speed networking round will follow the session allowing delegates in attendance to further interface with speakers. Early career researchers wanting to explore their next career options, and mid-career microbiologists considering a career change are invited to attend.