KNOF UW - The Student Association of Optics and Photonics

SPIE Student Chapter

University of Warsaw SPIE Student Chapter

SPIE – The International Society for Optics and Photonics is a scientific and technical organisation focused on development of optics, optoelectronics and photonics and increasing impact of those fields on the society.

SPIE achieves those goals by organising conferences, exhibitions, trade fairs and educational courses as well as publishing journals concerning applications of photonics in biology, medicine, energetics, litographics, astronomy and many more. SPIE maintains also numerous portals for field professionals.

There are over 18,000 SPIE members from 166 countries, and its library counts over 460,000 scientific papers, a number increasing by roughly 18,000 each year.

The society awards many prizes for outstanding research, technical applications, projects in education of optics and photonics, and service for the community of members, as well as a number of scholarships for students interested in optics. In 2017 KNOF members have been awarded 4 scholarships among 6 awarded in Poland in total (and 88 worldwide).

KNOF-SPIE cooperation gives us numerous advantages:

  • easier participation in conferences
  • funding of KNOF projects
  • invitation for foreign speakers
  • access to selected journals
  • supplies of outreach materials

Being a KNOF member does not imply being a SPIE member, however it’s worth it! To become a SPIE student member, you have to register at their website and pay a yearly fee of 20 USD. You may be interested in talking to your supervisor/tutor about the fees – they may just agree to fund your membership.

Being a SPIE Student Member you are eligible for many incentives:

  • reduced fees for SPIE-organised conferences
  • opportunity to apply for Travel Grants for SPIE-organised events
  • limited number of free downloads from SPIE Digital Library of scientific papers
  • subscription of a SPIE journal of choice
  • access to career-enhancing online workshops
  • grant and scholarhips programme