Emerging Leader in the Advancement of Scientific Knowledge Award

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ELAA Recipients

2025 WCBP Recipients

2024 HOS Recipients

2024 WCBP Recipients

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Emerging Leader in the Advancement of Scientific Knowledge Award (ELAA)

The ELAA Award aims to provide early career professionals, PhD students, or post-docs with the opportunity to work side-by-side with industry, regulatory, and academic leaders to create content that is integral to the success of a Symposium. This recognition is an opportunity for awardees to be part of the conversation when creating scientific content while cultivating opportunities for knowledge sharing.

Meet the 2025 WCBP Symposium Award Winners:

HOS Symposium 2024 Award Winners Olubukola Abiona, NIH-Oxford, Geoffrey Hutchinson, University of Washington, Cynthia Ziwawo, Indiana University

Qualifications

Why Apply

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All applicants must be currently enrolled in full (or near full)-time study for a formal academic qualification (e.g. degree, PhD), or be no more than 5 years from the commencement of their first postdoctoral or industrial position. Underrepresented minorities are highly encouraged to apply for this prestigious opportunity.

To be considered, applicants will submit the following:

Detailed proposal which includes your topic, abstract (300 words or less), session objectives (questions that you aim to address during the duration of the session), as well as any supplemental materials or case studies that will guide the session. Please include a description of the proposed session format, and any additional contributors that can enhance the content.
Statement of interest (300 words or less) which discusses your interest in the attending WCBP 2025, working with the Scientific Organizing Committee, and how this award will enhance your academic and/or professional path.
Brief biography
Letter of recommendation from an academic advisor or supervisor
Detailed CV or résumé, to include any previous experience presenting at a scientific conference

Developing your proposal:

The theme of WCBP 2025 is “Transformative Solutions”, which is a concept rooted in the idea of “alchemy” where ordinary things are transformed into something extraordinary. When developing your proposal, consider focusing on content that seek to address the following questions:

ID and Dissolve Barriers: What are our critical barriers to overcome?
Creative Solutions: What are the most inventive and diverse solutions to sustainably meet the needs of patients
Community Legacy & Impact: How do we maximize the use of our community to amplify our global impact?

Suggested topics can include, but are not limited to, any of the following:

Global implementation of new technologies and changes, different perspectives
Patient-centric specifications
Analytical platform methods/ICHQ2R2 implementation
Device/combination product challenges
Microbiological considerations: LER, refiltration for biologics, inspections, IRs
Breakthrough technologies for comparability and characterization
Cutting edge science: feature novel creative analytical solutions
Prior knowledge to support clinical and marketing authorization submissions and case studies
Digital solutions (data management, modeling, submissions, etc)
Conjugated Products - beyond ADCs
Raw materials, supply chain, and sustainability
Scaling to a rapidly expanding drug demand forecast with the current global manufacturing capacity constraints
Mutual recognition agreement
Small startup/virtual company problems: challenges that are unique to small companies/academic

Awardees will be given the opportunity to work side-by-side with industry, regulatory and academic leaders to craft the content that is integral to the success of the 2025 WCBP Symposium.

In addition, the award recipients will receive the following:

An opportunity to present your work in either a virtual poster format with an accompanying video presentation, or as part of a 60-minute session featured during the WCBP Symposium.
Waived full-conference registration for the CMC Strategy Forum North America (CMC) and WCBP 2025.
Complimentary airfare (up to $700.00) to Washington D.C. for the CMC Fora and WCBP Symposium.
Complimentary hotel accommodations (5 nights) at the Mayflower Hotel.
The ability to join the WCBP Scientific Organizing Committee for the 2025 planning cycle, and the option to remain on the committee for the WCBP 2026 planning cycle.
While on-site at CMC and WCBP:
- Full conference experience, including the opportunity to attend the leadership and planning meetings that occur throughout the week.
- Special recognition during the Symposium closing remarks.
- Registration includes breakfast, coffee breaks, Welcome and Exhibitor Receptions.

Applicants will be selected based on the strength of the proposal's scientific content, alignment with the overall goals of the Symposium, as well as creativity when outlining the proposed session format.