Get Involved FAQ

The Biophysical Society’s committees are essential to the implementation of the Society's stated purpose to lead the development and dissemination of knowledge in biophysics. All of the Society’s professional development and outreach activities are organized by committees. For more specific information about each committee’s focus and activities, visit https://www.biophysics.org/about-bps/governance/committees.

Committee members must be current Biophysical Society members. If you are interested in joining a committee, submit a volunteer form and select the committees that interest you from among the following: early careers, education, inclusion and diversity, membership, professional opportunities for women, public affairs, or publications. Volunteer forms submitted by October 1 of each year will be considered for appointment in the following year.

The following Biophysical Society committees welcome volunteers: early careers, education, inclusion and diversity, membership, professional opportunities for women, public affairs, or publications.

Committee members are the driving force behind the Society’s outreach and professional development activities. Serving on a committee is a great way to get involved with and give back to the larger biophysics community, at the same time giving you an opportunity to get to know and network with people outside of your area.

All new and continuing committee appointments are approved by Council when it meets each year at the Annual Meeting.

Appointments are made during the Annual Meeting each year, so you can expect to hear whether your appointment was approved following the Annual Meeting, by mid-March.

The Biophysical Society maintains several advocacy programs that seek to promote sound science policies to federal lawmakers, members of the media, and communities around the world. Current programs include the Opinion Piece Program, Congressional District Visits, and Capitol Hill visit days. To learn more, please visit our action center. If you have an advocacy idea to share with BPS, please contact us.

BPS maintains a database of contact information for Members of Congress and their staff. All you need is your zip code to access information about your Member of Congress. https://www.biophysics.org/policy-advocacy/take-action.

US Congressional Representatives and Senators want to hear from their constituents. What you think and share with them can influence their stance on a policy matter for which they have not yet taken a position. And, in today’s digital world, there are more ways than ever to communicate with Congress. The Society maintains a step-by-step guide on contacting your Member of Congress here (https://www.biophysics.org/policy-advocacy/advocacy-toolkit/communicating-with-congress).

BPS in the Beltway is a monthly email newsletter that provides updates on science policy and funding issues from around the world. If you are interested in signing up or viewing the latest edition, please visit https://www.biophysics.org/policy-advocacy/stay-informed/bps-in-the-beltway.

The Biophysical Society sponsors science fairs all over the world. To find a fair close to you, please visit https://www.biophysics.org/science-fairs.

Let us know which fair you’d like to judge, or if we don’t have that fair listed already, let us know about it. We will reach out to that fair and see if it is possible for us to give our award there, and you can judge for it. Once we have confirmed with the fair that they can present our award, we will make the arrangements for you to judge there. This may entail sending them more information about you, like your cell phone number or a meal preference if lunch is provided. The fair organizer or Society staff will send you the necessary information for getting to the fair and starting the day. You’ll follow the specific fair’s instructions when it comes to the judging process. The criteria for the Biophysics Award are that it goes to the best biophysics-related project. If there aren’t any projects that could be considered to be related to biophysics, it can go to your choice in any of the categories that intersect with biophysics, such as: biology, chemistry, physics, microbiology, computer science/modeling, medicine, etc. Use your best judgment!

You can check our list of Biophysical Society members who have indicated that they are interested in judging at a science fair by visiting our FaB (Find a Biophysicist) Network. Once there, you can filter by area and by interest in volunteering to judge a science fair. If you are unable to find a judge, you can contact us at [email protected]. If we are already working with you to provide the Biophysics Award, we can reach out to a list of members that may include more people than those who opt in to the FaB Network. If we aren’t already giving the Biophysics Award at your fair, we can see if that is a possibility. Unfortunately, if we aren’t giving our award at your fair, we cannot reach out to our members on your fair’s behalf. The FaB Network is constantly growing!

Congratulations! You can contact [email protected] and we will be happy to check on your award materials and make sure that you receive both your check and certificate.