ISPRS STEP Student Chapters

An ISPRS STEP Student Chapter is a group of registered Consortium members that supports the ISPRS STEP in pursuing its mission and vision at the local level. Student Chapters may come from universities or local scientific communities in the fields of photogrammetry, remote sensing, and spatial information science. These Student Chapters are envisioned to strengthen local professional networks and connect these networks to the Consortium and ISPRS, to provide a platform for members coming from the same region or university to meet and share knowledge and to further promote the activities of the ISPRS STEP by organizing and leading events for the youth.

Requirements:

1. The proposed chapter must comprise a minimum of 12 ISPRS STEP registered members (including Lead and Co-Lead), who will be considered as the founding members of the chapter. An official document containing the full names and signatures of all chapter members. A duly accomplished form must be submitted to the ISPRS STEP board. Registered members are individuals who already signed up and verified their accounts on the ISPRS STEP website. The Board of Directors will confirm the names listed in the application form in the ISPRS STEP Members Database, so please make sure that the information listed in the application form corresponds to the details provided during the registration.
2. An official name is required for the chapter and valid contact information. Please follow the naming rule as:

    

   ISPRS STEP [‘Country Name - ‘] AND [‘University Name or Organization’s Name (if representing young professionals)’] OR [‘additional name after your university name’] AND [‘Student Chapter’]. 

   For Examples: 

    - ISPRS STEP Nepal - Everest University (ISPRS STEP NEU) Student Chapter 

   - ISPRS STEP Nepal - Everest University Institute of Geomatics Engineering (ISPRS STEP NEUIGE) Student Chapter   

    Note: Please note that these examples are illustrative and do not refer to actual institutions. 

3. The proposed chapter must have an Advisor, who is an individual member of ISPRS or one of their country’s organizations on remote sensing, photogrammetry and spatial information science. 
4. The proposed chapter must have a board composed of the Student Chapter Lead and Co-Lead.
5. The proposed Student Chapter must submit a work plan indicating proposed activities and engagement in the ISPRS STEP.
6. Approval of the ISPRS STEP board and Advisory Committee.

Benefits:

1. Priority for ISPRS STEP Funding

Opportunity to receive funding from the ISPRS STEP for summer schools and other activities that are relevant and timely. These activities must also be supported by local organizers and other external sponsors. 

Kindly take note that the request for funding must be made by October 31 of the current year for activities to be hosted the following year and sent to the President of the ISPRS STEP. The selection for funding will be based on 3 main criteria: (1) geographic location – priority will be given to areas where ISPRS STEP has not yet hosted any events, (2) objectives of the activity to be hosted, and (3) available support, in terms of both finances and logistics.

For events other than summer schools, kindly initiate a discussion with the ISPRS STEP Board of Directors regarding the proposed event for an initial screening. If the Board of Directors decide that the event proposed qualifies for financial support, the document to be accomplished will be sent to the Student Chapter for the formal application process.

2. Virtual Meetups

The ISPRS STEP envisions to connect members of the Consortium to experts and professors in ISPRS and to further promote the student organization. The virtual meetups, inspired by the conservation community of WILDLABS.NET (https://www.wildlabs.net/), aim to provide a platform of communication and sharing of knowledge and experiences among the members of the ISPRS STEP, the scientific community of ISPRS and the ISPRS STEP Board of Directors. See Appendix A for the details of the virtual meetup.

3. Promotion in the ISPRS STEP Website

Approved Student Chapters will be listed in the official website of the ISPRS STEP and will have a dedicated webpage(s), which will contain relevant information about the Student Chapter and its activities.

Documents to be Submitted:

1. Application for ISPRS STEP Student Chapter

Please see Appendix B. The document version of the application is available on the website. Prior to submitting the application, kindly familiarize your members with the ISPRS STEP Statutes (https://sc.isprs.org/about/statutes/).

     2. Student Chapter Work Plan

The required work plan to be submitted to the ISPRS STEP must include the following and must be limited to a maximum of 2-3 pages:

• The general and specific objectives of the Student Chapter and its proposed activities must be indicated and clearly stated. The objectives must be aligned with the mission and vision of the ISPRS STEP and must be achievable. 

A list of proposed activities and their brief descriptions must be included in the work plan. These activities may include, but are not limited to:

• Promoting ISPRS and the profession to students and the youth, to effectively familiarize and integrate them to the structure and activities of ISPRS
• Organizing scientific activities and social events to provide opportunities for students and the youth to establish their professional networks
• Organizing and/or supporting ISPRS STEP summer schools, if organized in the Student Chapter’s locality
• Contributions to the SpeCtrum – the official Newsletter of the ISPRS STEP. Student Chapters may also propose themes that they would like to host in the SpeCtrum (see the special issues published here: sc.isprs.org/newsletters)
• Hosting of virtual meetups (exclusive to Student Chapters), virtual rooms and/or one of the webinars under the ISPRS STEP Webinar Series 

The ISPRS STEP encourages the Student Chapter to find local partners and sponsors to support these proposed activities, particularly if financial support is necessary. Student Chapters can apply for funding through ISPRS STEP (e.g. summer school) but please take note that the submitted application will go through the evaluation process implemented by the ISPRS Treasury and the ISPRS Foundation and must adhere to the deadline. 

• In order to integrate the Student Chapter activities into the activities of the ISPRS STEP, the Student Chapter is required to submit the projected timeline for the proposed activities.

3. Timeline:

• Acknowledgment of application – within one week of submission
• Review of proposed chapter and work plan – within 4 weeks after submission
• Results of the application – within 3 weeks after the reviewed submission is received by us

Renewal as a Student Chapter of the ISPRS STEP

Once approved, Student Chapters are required to submit an updated list of members every year to the ISPRS STEP Board of Directors. An official letter of intent to continue as a Student Chapter, signed by the Student Lead and Co-Lead as well as the Advisor, must be submitted every 2 years together with an updated work plan. The submission date for these documents is on October 31 of every year. 

Communication

The primary mode of communication between the Student Chapter and the Board of Directors will be through the official email address of the ISPRS STEP, sc@isprs.org, or alternatively (in cases issues are encountered with the official email), the Gmail email address, sc.isprs@gmail.com. Follow-up emails are encouraged if inquiries or important messages are not acknowledged or answered in the span of two weeks.

Appendices.

Appendix A. Details of the Virtual Meetup

Appendix B. Application Form