Versions Compared

Key

  • This line was added.
  • This line was removed.
  • Formatting was changed.
 

What is the Trust and Identity Mentoring Programme (TIM)?

The Trust and Identity Incubator Mentoring Programme (TIM) is an exciting initiative that brings together ambitious young minds and industry experts to develop new ideas in the area of Trust and Identity.

Funded by the GÉANT GN5.1 project (which is supported by the European Commission and by GEANT's member NRENs), the Trust and Identity (T&I) Mentoring Programme is a paid internship/work placement for students and young professionals who are interested in T&I and are studying (or have recently studied) computer science, engineering or a related field.

Students develop their chosen project (which can be a thesis) under the guidance of the GÉANT T&I Incubator team and a local mentor during the Incubator's 7-month development cycle. The T&I Incubator team pilots new concepts in 7-month "sprints".  Students may propose a project of their own choice, or they can choose to research a topic proposed by the T&I Incubator team.

The TIM programme is produced in collaboration between the GÉANT GN5-1 T&I Incubator, GÉANT's Learning and Development team (GLAD), NRENs and young professionals across Europe. The program aims to develop the next generation of T&I researchers and to explore innovative new T&I concepts, products and services.

Nominated by their local NREN, TIM participants are fully integrated into the work of the T&I incubator from the outset.  They will be mentored by the Incubator experts as well as by a local mentor provided by their NREN. The programme is also open to research institutions if their local NREN supports them. GÉANT Learning and Development team provides training opportunities for participants and NREN mentors. Participants will have the opportunity to present their work at an international event or conference.

The local mentor and young professionals are reimbursed for their time dedicated to the T&I Incubator. The process of reimbursements is defined under the financial rules of the GÉANT GN5.1 project. 

The expected duration of each programme's incubation cycle is 7 months. Dates for the TIM 2024 programme are:


Application opening date

Application deadline
(student CV's, motivation letters, NREN topics)

TIM internship start date

End of Programme

 

 

 

20 December 2024


Benefits for students and young professionals

TIM offers a fantastic opportunity to develop an innovative Trust & Identity project on a European scale, guided by experts in the field. It is a unique learning and professional development opportunity that includes:

  • A paid professional internship (which may be combined with thesis writing)
  • Working in an international team of Trust and Identity Specialists
  • Training and skills development e.g. in public speaking

Participation requirements:

  • Final year Bachelors, Masters or PhD level students in the fields of Computer Science, Engineering or other technology-related fields with an interest in Trust and Identity.
  • Available for 7 months with an approximate workload of 3 days per week on the chosen project
  • Excellent command of the English language, both spoken and written
  • All participants must be nominated by a GÉANT member NREN. 


Benefits for NRENs (National Research & Education Networks)

This programme gives NRENs the opportunity to build local T&I expertise, learn from experienced SMEs, develop new T&I products and services and potentially expand the portfolio of services it can offer. The programme strengthens NRENs' relationships with member institutions and builds connections with the next generation of talent. 

To be eligible to participate, NRENs must:

  • Be a member of the GÉANT GN5.1 project.
  • Be able to facilitate and administer a paid internship in line with local HR/legal requirements.
  • Be able to support the participant during the placement. This may include providing desk space, introducing the student to your NREN and the GEANT community, answering the student's questions, and arranging the student's travel to present their ideas at a conference. Costs will be reimbursed under the GN5-1 Project.
  • Provide a mentor with availability to support the participant during the programme e.g. a university researcher.  The mentor's expected workload will be 0.5 to 1 day per week based on a 7-month cycle. Time will be reimbursed.


What is the role of GÉANT Learning and Development (GLAD)?

GÉANT's Learning and Development team (GLAD) is passionate about building, diversifying and strengthening the capabilities of the European NREN community. Through its Trust & Identity Mentoring programme, GLAD aims to develop T&I competencies and build a pool of talented people who will become the workforce of the future.

During the TIM programme, GLAD provides access to a wide range of professional development opportunities for students. For example, students receive expert presentation training to prepare them to present their ideas powerfully at an industry conference and improve their communication skills.


TIM 2023 TeamImage Modified

TIM application and selection process

Step 1 NRENs promote the programme to their member universities and research institutions and identify candidates. Alternatively students and young professionals can contact glad@geant.org to be connected with their local NREN.

Step 2 The student's local NREN should check it fulfils the requirements above and identify a mentor for the student, for example a researcher in a related field who can supervise the student. 

Step 3 Submit application by email to glad@geant.org. The application should include:

    • The proposed participant's CV
    • The participant's motivation letter explaining in a few paragraphs why they would like to take part in this initiative.
    • A motivation statement from the NREN: a paragraph of why the TIM work is important and how the internship arrangement will work locally.

Step 4 The selection process is managed by the TIM Selection Committee who will announce acceptance into the programme.

    • The Selection Committee will ascertain the participants' expertise and motivation to take part in the TIM challenge. It will also ensure that home NRENs are equipped to support the TIM participants.

Step 5 The NREN formalises the internship/work placement with the TIM participant based on local NREN rules.

Step 6 The TIM participant joins the work of T&I incubator and gains access to Subject Matter Experts and training.


TIM 24 Application deadline
27th March 2024

 Send your application directly before the deadline to glad@geant.org

Technical Areas

Identity and Access Management

Expand

Identity and Access Management (IAM) is about creating and managing digital identity for users, which can be used to represent a person in the digital world. Using state-of-the-art authentication and authorization methods ensures that only the owner can access his identity and only the entitled can access a resource.

In this area, it is all about Identity Providers, Identity Federation, Service Providers and Discovery Services. Your project may improve existing software solutions or create new applications for a global community.

Standards and Protocols

Expand

Building on top of existing infrastructure and applications, Standards and Protocols is about creating new ways to for applications and users to communicate.
This area is all about protocols and standards used or being developed in the global Trust and Identity community, such as Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) and Open ID Connect (OIDC).  These will be used to integrate new capabilities in an already existing large infrastructure.

Security and Privacy

Expand

Security is an integral part of most applications and infrastructures. Ensuring data protection, privacy and safety by using measures like encryption and cryptography is essential.

In this area, you may investigate, test and integrate new security features in existing Trust & Identity applications or to create new services that help secure our community, i.e working on multi factor authentication or HSM technologies.

 


Section

Schedule  

TIM Programme  

27 March 2024

Application deadline 

April 2024

TIM selection committee reviews the application topic and candidate and notifies NRENs of the outcome of their application.

Once accepted, the NREN sets up an internship agreement with the TIM participant and ensures they are onboarded and ready to participate in the TIM programme. During this time the NREN will arrange a meeting for GLAD to introduce the student to the range of available learning opportunities.

7 - 8 May 2024

Kick-off meeting for the next incubator cycle. TIM participants meet the Incubator team face to face and plan their work for the coming months.

13 May 2024

Start of the Incubator cycle

20 December 2024

End of the incubator cycle and TIM programme.



T&I Infoshare

Find out more about the T&I Incubator, topics etc.  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjTBafPtgMc

Promotion materials  


TIM 2024 Flyer


To help NRENs promote the programme and recruit participants we have available the following materials :

  • TIM logo files
  • Email Banner
  • Boilerplate text targeted to students (from NRENs to students)
  • Presentation slides targeted to NRENs/mentors

Download materials

News Articles

Also, feel free to use words and copy from news items we create in different places to promote the programme:

Trust & Identity Incubator Mentorship Programme is back for 2023!

June, 2023- Connect online

Trust & Identity Incubator Mentorship programme – Deadline for applications extended to 23rd May..
May, 2022- Connect online 

Call for submissions for the Trust and Identity Incubator closes shortly
April, 2022- Connect online

Trust and Identity Mentorship Programme – Call for Applicants closes 5th September
Aug, 2021- Connect online

Students appointed to 3rd TIM Programme
March, 2021- GLAD online

Experiences from the first T&I Incubator Mentorship (TIM) programme  
Nov, 2020- Connect online

GÉANT internships through TIM (Trust and Identity Mentorship) Programme 

April 10, 2020, GLAD website

Let’s talk about the Trust & Identity Mentorship Programme

30th Aug 2019, CONNECT online

Brighten the future of Trust & Identity

21st June 2019, CONNECT online


Section

Frequently Asked Questions

TIM programme is a mentorship programme. It aims to advance participants' careers and professional skills through collaborative, creative work on real-life projects. TIM participants (mentees) join the T&I Incubator team (mentors) and work hand-in-hand with them on the current, live T&I projects. This creative and dynamic context allows participants to develop their expertise in the T&I field and advance their interpersonal skills, such as communication and influencing.

To reinforce and support the participants’ learning, GLAD team will offer Agile/SCRUM and Communication skills training. There will also be a local mentor to assist participants on their learning journey. ‘Learning by doing’ represents the underlying ethos of the programme, therefore a proactive attitude and growth mindset are an absolute must. 


Expand
titleWho can participate in this programme?

Any early career candidate nominated by a GÉANT Project NREN partner registered at a university or college in a GÉANT partner country or working in the NREN community.

Participation is through a paid internship at the hosting NREN.  The host NREN will claim manpower from the GEANT project and pay the trainee.


Expand
titleHow many candidates can NRENs nominate for the programme?

Depending on the number of  candidates in the programme, maximum of 1 candidate per NREN.


Expand
titleWhat kind of candidates should NRENs look for?

Ideal candidates are l BA, Master and PhD level students in their final year of study in Computer Science, Engineering or other Technology fields within computer networks.  They will be willing to commit time and energy to learn and develop themselves beyond their University study programme.



Expand
titleWhich topics can you as an NREN get involved with?

The Trust & Identity Incubator addresses different topics in different work areas that are announced before each new cycle. NRENs can get involved in the topics that interest them. See also TIM Technical Areas.


Expand
titleHow does the recruitment process looks like?

A seven months professional internship requires time and dedication and interest from all parties involved. Motivation is essential both for the student and the NREN.  After a positive review, the T&I selection Committee will invite the hosting NREN together with their candidate for an interview to complete the recruitment.   


Expand
titleWhat do you need to send to GÉANT learning and Development (GLAD) to nominate a candidate?

A complete application includes a motivation letter of the hosting NREN and the candidate's motivation letter and CV. Send this to glad@geant.org.  



Expand
titleWhat will be your role as a host and mentor?

Your role as a mentor is to engage with your protege and provide encouragement and advice during the programme and related events.  You can find more info on the mentor role in the NREN mentorship presentation slides available in TIM Resources Package ( for NRENs)


Have a different question? 
Email: glad@geant.org or leave a comment at the bottom of this page.