We invite you to participate in a research survey, which aims to explore the contributions of Early Career Scientist (ECS) networks on career progression, skill development, and well-being of early career scientists across marine science disciplines.

This research is led by the OYSTER (Orienting Young Scientists of EuromaRine) Working Group of the EuroMarine Association.
The results will help to identify the most valuable aspects of Early Careers Networks and provide insights into their associated benefits and challenges within Marine Science.
This research complies with the Ethics Committee of the Polytechnic University of Leiria, therefore the survey is also available in Portuguese version.
If you identify yourself as an Early Career Scientist under any of the definitions presented below, please, continue with the survey, for which you need to agree with this consent form.

Early Career Scientists definition: At the OYSTER group we refer as Early Career Researchers to PhD students or individuals holding a postdoctoral position within 5 years of their PhD degree award. Similarly, other networks refer to Early Career Ocean professionals (ECOPs) as someone within 10 years or less of professional experience in any ocean-related field. This includes post-secondary students and volunteer roles, not limited to paid positions. Other definitions for Early Career Scientist considered a person under 35 years of age and/or someone who has completed a PhD within the past five years.
For the purpose of this survey, we use the term "ECS" as an umbrella term that we consider inclusive of Early Career Researchers (ECR), Early Career Ocean professionals (ECOPs), Young Researchers, and any other terminology used by diverse Networks aiming to include the broader scope.

Information about data handling:
The data received in this survey will be handled and used in accordance with the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). With this declaration, we comply with our information and transparency obligations pursuant to Art. 13 and Art. 14 GDPR regarding the collection and process of your personal data. The data shall not be used for automated decision-making or profiling. The data is processed using electronic means. If the data collected should be processed further for a purpose other than indicated above, we will notify you in advance and ask for your consent. The data will be deleted as soon as it is no longer required to achieve the purposes for which it was collected.

Please, read and agree to the terms of data collection and privacy for this survey:

• Anonymity: No personal data will be collected as part of this survey. Your responses will be assigned a unique code to ensure complete anonymity.
• No Identification: There will be no collection or storage of names, email addresses, or other identifying information.
• Data Security: Responses will be collected through Survey Monkey, a GDPR-compliant platform. Data will be securely stored on GDPR-compliant servers within the European Union.
• Data Use: The collected data will be used solely for research purposes, i.e., the publication of results in formal research articles and conferences led and carried out by the OYSTER Group members. (https://euromarinenetwork.eu/oyster/)
• Data Storage: All collected data will be stored securely for a period of 5 years, after which it will be permanently deleted.

Your participation is entirely voluntary, and you may withdraw at any time.

If you have any question, plese contact:
oyster@euromarinenetwork.eu