Hands-on flow cytometry: learning by doing!

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Session	Location
08:40	Bus from hotel to EMBL ATC Entrance	ISG Hotel
09:00 – 09:30	Welcome, Introduction and Safety briefing	ATC Flex Lab
09:30 – 10:45	Participants flash talks	ATC Flex Lab
10:45 – 11:15	Coffee Break	ATC Flex Lab
11:15 – 12:00	Lecture: Fluidics and optics Gelo dela Cruz – University of Copenhagen, Denmark	ATC Flex Lab
12:00 – 12:45	Lecture: Fluorescence and PMTs detectors Steffen Schmitt – German Cancer Research Center, Germany	ATC Flex Lab
12:45 – 13:45	Lunch	EMBL Canteen
13:45 – 14:30	Lecture: Data generation and data display Gelo dela Cruz – University of Copenhagen, Denmark	ATC Flex Lab
14:30 – 16:00	Practical Session: Instrument Overview and Assessing performance	Training Lab B
16:00 – 16:30	Coffee Break	Flex Lab A & B
16:30 – 17:30	Lecture: Sample Preparation Alex Cabrera Nuñez – EMBL Heidelberg, Germany	ATC Flex Lab
17:30 – 18:30	Lecture: The Essentials of gating, FMO and gating controls Beata Ramasz – EMBL Heidelberg, Germany
18:30 – 19:30	Dinner	EMBL Canteen
19:30	Departure to Hotel	ATC Entrance

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Session	Location
08:40	Bus from hotel to EMBL ATC Entrance
09:00 – 10:00	Lecture: Fluorescence spillover and compensation Gerald Pfister – EMBL Rome, Italy	ATC Flex Lab
10:00 – 10:30	Coffee Break	ATC Flex Lab
10:30 – 11:15	Lecture: Experimental design for multi-color flow Diana Ordonez – German Cancer Research Center, Germany	ATC Flex Lab
11:15 – 12:30	Workshop: Panel Design Diana Ordonez – German Cancer Research Center, Germany Michael Bonadonna – EMBL Heidelberg, Germany	ATC Flex Lab
12:30 – 13:30	Lunch	EMBL Canteen
13:30 – 15:30	Practical: Multi- color staining (Group 1) Practical: Data analysis with FlowJo (Group 2)	Group 1: Training Lab B Group 2: Computer Training Lab
15:30 – 16:00	Coffee Break	ATC Flex Lab
16:00 – 18:00	Practical: Data analysis with FlowJo (Group 1) Practical: Multi- color staining (Group 2)	Group 1: Computer Training Lab Group 2: Training Lab B
18:30 – 19:30	Social activity and dinner	EMBL Canteen
19:030	Departure to hotel

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Session	Location
08:40	Bus from hotel to EMBL ATC Entrance
09:00 – 09:30	Q&A session	ATC Flex Lab
09:30 – 10:30	Lecture: Spectral Flow Cytometry Jesús Gil Pulido – Cytek Biosciences, Germany	ATC Flex Lab
10:30 – 11:00	Coffee break	ATC Flex Lab
11:00 – 12:00	Lecture: Cell Cycle Analysis Diana Ordonez – German Cancer Research Center, Germany	ATC Flex Lab
12:00 – 13:00	Lunch	EMBL Canteen
13:00 – 15:00	Practical: Cell cycle samples (Group 1) Practical: Data analysis with FlowJo session 2 (Group 2)	Group 1: Training Lab B Group 2: Computer Training Lab
15:00 – 15:30	Coffee break	ATC Flex Lab
15:30 – 17:30	Practical: Data analysis with FlowJo session 2 (Group 1) Practical: Cell cycle samples (Group 2)	Group 1: Computer Training Lab Group 2: Training Lab B
17:30 – 18:30	Dinner	EMBL Canteen
18:30	Departure to hotel and free evening

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Session	Location
08:40	Bus from hotel to EMBL ATC Entrance
09:00 – 10:00	Lecture: Assessing Cell Death Jochen Barths – ProSort, France	ATC Flex Lab
10:00 – 10:30	Coffee Break	Flex Lab A & B
10:30 – 12:30	Practical: Measuring apoptosis	Computer Training Lab
12:30 – 13:30	Lunch
13:30 – 14:30	Lecture: Imaging Flow Cytometry Daniel Vocelle – Michigan State University, United States (virtual talk)	ATC Flex Lab
14:30 – 16:30	Practical demonstration: Imaging Flow Cytometry with Cytpix Sophie Kalmbach – Thermo Fisher, Germany	Training Lab B
16:30 – 17:00	Coffee Break	Flex Lab A & B
17:00 – 18:30	Practical 9: Data acquisition/Data Analysis	Training Lab B / Computer Training Lab
18:30 – 19:00	Departure to restaurant	ATC Entrance
19:00 – 22:00	Social Activity and Dinner	Downtown

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Session	Location
08:40	Bus from hotel to EMBL ATC Entrance
09:00 – 10:00	Lecture: Flow Cytometry Data Analysis and Statistics Steffen Schmitt – German Cancer Research Center, Germany	ATC Flex Lab
10:00 – 10:30	Coffee Break	Flex Lab A & B
10:30 – 11:30	Lecture: High-dimensional data analysis with FlowJo Ioannis Panetas – BD, Germany	Training Lab A & B
11:30 – 12:30	Lecture: Publishing your flow cytometry data Marcus Eich – HI-STEM: The Heidelberg Institute for Stem Cell Technology and Experimental Medicine, Germany
12:30 – 13:30	Lunch
13:30 – 14:00	Feedback and Goodbye	ATC Flex Lab
14:00	Departure to Heidelberg Train Station	ATC Entrance

The course is limited to 16 participants. For selection purposes, please note that your application will not be considered without a letter of motivation.

Registration

Registration fees include admission, course materials, meals and coffee breaks. Participants are expected to book and pay their own accommodation and travel expenses. 

Academia	€715
PhD Student	€715
Industry	€1100

A letter to support your visa application will be issued, on request, once payment of the registration fee is confirmed. We recommend that you book your visa appointment as soon as possible, to avoid any delay with your visa application.

Confirmation and payment

The registration fee should be paid only after acceptance to the course. The results will be announced approximately 2-3 weeks after the application deadline.

Motivation letter submission

After you have logged in and successfully registered, you will receive an email asking you to submit your motivation letter. Click on the link provided and enter your motivation letter in the text box provided. Alternatively you can submit your motivation letter by clicking on the link on the confirmation page directly after registering.

Instructions

1. Include your relevant skills, experience and qualifications showing why you would be suitable for the course.
2. Explain why you would like to attend, including what you can contribute and how you think you will benefit from the course.

Please note:

• The limit of 2000 characters refers to manually typed text and excludes spaces. If an error occurs try using a different web browser (preferably Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox).
• If you copy-paste the text into the form, hidden formatting might still be included which may cause the text to exceed the 2,000 character limit resulting in an error message. We recommend you clear all formatting before pasting in the text.
• If you have special symbols in your text, make sure you are using Unicode characters, otherwise these will not be recognised.

For detailed instructions, please watch our video on how to submit a course motivation letter.

Further details

For further information about registration and motivation letter submission please refer to the FAQ page.

Financial assistance

Limited financial assistance is provided by the EMBL Advanced Training Centre Corporate Partnership Programme and EMBO in the form of registration fee waivers, travel grants and childcare grants. 

Your place in the meeting is only confirmed by paying the registration fee, which is mandatory even when receiving a fee waiver.

Registration fee waiver

The fee waiver will cover the registration sum that you have paid to attend the course.

Travel grant

The travel grant will cover the cost of travel (airfare, train, bus, taxi, accommodation, visa, and/or registration fees*) and is provided up to specified caps which are normally as follows:

– up to €400 for participants travelling to an EMBL Course within Europe.

– up to €1000 for participants travelling to an EMBL Course from outside Europe.

– up to €500 for any participant travelling to an EMBO Practical Course.

– up to €1000 for any participant working in Chile, India, Singapore or Taiwan travelling to an EMBO Practical Course.

*Registration fees are only covered for EMBO Practical Courses

The organisers may reduce the grant cap to accommodate more participants. Recipients will be notified of their travel cap amount when they are informed of the outcome of their application. Original receipts must be provided with your signature for all costs incurred within two months of completion of travel. Scanned copies cannot be accepted.

Childcare grants

There is the possibility to apply for a childcare grant to offset child care costs incurred by participants, speakers, trainers and organisers when attending a course. Eligible costs include (but are not limited to) fees for a babysitter or child-care facility and travel costs for a caregiver. Please note that priority will be given to early-stage researchers. There is a limited amount of funding available for the childcare grants and funds will be distributed amongst eligible applicants.

Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds travel grant

Applies to selected courses only. Availability will be indicated during the abstract or motivation letter submission process.

This grant covers costs related to your attendance to the course (registration, travel and accommodation costs). The grant is restricted to PhD students and postdocs who conduct basic biomedical research.
Whether you are eligible to apply for a travel grant, depends on when you received your university entrance qualification (e.g. Abitur, A-Levels, High School Diploma, Final State Examination):

– for PhD and MD students, as well as graduates, the university entrance qualification must not have been obtained more than 11 years ago at the time of the envisaged course
– for postdocs, the university entrance qualification must not have been obtained more than 13 years ago at the time of the envisaged course

Application

If you are attending virtually, you can apply for financial assistance in the submission portal by the abstract deadline. Read the instructions on how to apply for financial assistance. Only submissions for financial assistance will be accepted. Presentation abstracts cannot be submitted here and will be declined. 

In your application you will be asked to summarise your current work,  answer questions regarding why your lab cannot fund your attendance, and how your attendance will make a difference to your career. Application for financial support will not affect the outcome of your registration application.

*For some events, applications for Childcare Grants will still be done by email. Information about the grant will be sent out shortly after the abstract/motivation letter deadline. Please contact the event Conference Officer if you have any questions.

Selection

The scientific organisers will select the recipients of registration fee waivers during the participant selection process for courses. Results will be announced approximately 6 – 8 weeks before the event start date, however for some events this may be delayed. Selection results do not impact your admission to the meeting. Selection for registration fee waivers and travel grants is based on scientific merit, your current work or study location, the reasons for needing financial support, and the impact this event will have on your career.

Childcare grants will be allocated in the same timeframe (6-8 weeks before the event start date). Please note that priority will be given to early-stage researchers.

Further details

Check out this list of external funding opportunities. 

For further information about financial assistance please refer to the FAQ page.

Hotel

Accommodation is not included in the registration fee. Participants are expected to book and pay for their own accommodation.

Single rooms have been reserved for 5 nights from Sunday 9 November to Friday 14 November at the ISG Hotel. Single rooms are limited and will be available on a first come, first served basis.

After the selection process, selected participants should contact the hotel directly to make a booking with a booking code (code of your course, CYT25-01) by the deadline of Thursday 9 October 2025.

We recommend that all course participants stay at the dedicated hotel for the course.

Travel information

For travel information, please see here.

If you are travelling to the conference within Germany then you are eligible for the Deutsche Bahn ‘Event Ticket’ (called the ‘Veranstaltungsticket’ in German). This will result in a lower ticket price if your travel distance to Heidelberg is more than 100 km. You need to provide proof of your event attendance when purchasing the ticket.

For more information in English see here or in German see here.

You can book your ticket here.

Local transport

Shuttle buses will go from the ISG Hotel to EMBL and back, mornings and evenings. A bus schedule and location of the bus stops will be made available prior to the meeting.

Further details

Address: EMBL Heidelberg, Meyerhofstraße 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany

For more information about accommodation and travel, please refer to the FAQ page.

Catering

All meals and coffee breaks are included in the registration fee. Our catering staff will prepare a wide variety of vegetarian meals, meat and fish dishes, soups, pasta, fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as a variety of desserts.

Please wear your badge at all times when serving yourself.

No food or drinks are allowed in the laboratories.

Electricity and charging station

In most places the electricity is 220 volts AC (50 cycles). An adaptor and a plug that fits the German socket may be needed for your appliances/laptop (i.e. American, Japanese, etc.). A USB charging station for electronic devices is available at the registration desk..

EMBL Merchandise

If you are interested in purchasing EMBL merchandise (products presented in the glass display in the registration area), please email the EMBL shop to place an order or get in contact with your Course Organiser.

Kindly note the EMBL shop is only open upon request and all purchases must be made in cash (Euros only).

Health and safety notes

Please read EMBL’s COVID-19 safety policy for on-site events.
Do not smoke in any EMBL building.
Eating and drinking is prohibited in all laboratories.
Do not enter any restricted areas or the laboratories unless instructed to do so.

If first aid is required …

• The first aid room is located next to the ATC Registration Desk (room 10- 205).
• Dial the Emergency number 222 from any EMBL internal phone only.
• Where is the accident? What happened? How many injured?
• Emergency number 06221-387 7821 from mobile phones.
• Please report all accidents to the conference officer at the registration desk.

In case of fire …

• Press the nearest fire alarm button or the Emergency number 222 from any internal phone.
• A loud fire alarm will go off if an evacuation is required. On hearing the alarm leave the building immediately following the escape route and fire wardens and head to one of the meeting points
• Do not use the lifts.

Beyond first aid…

Please remember to bring your own medication, if needed, to the conference. Note that the next pharmacy is a 4-minute drive from the EMBL, but for many medications you will be required to see a doctor to get a prescription.

Ensure in advance that your medical insurance will cover you during your visit in the event that you do need to see a doctor while in Heidelberg. In any case, the EMBL Course and Conference Office will assist you to get to the pharmacy and a doctor of your choice if necessary.

Internet

Wi-Fi is available on campus. Log in using the EMBL-Events network and the event specific password, which will be provided on site. The eduroam network (secure, worldwide roaming access service developed for the international research and education community) is also available.

Lost and found

‘’Lost and Found’’ items are kept at the registration desk until the end of the conference.

Luggage

There are lockers available on-site to store your luggage, which require a 2 EURO coin to operate. There is another luggage room on level E0, which is free to use but remains unlocked during the conference.

Nursing room

There is a nursing room available in the ATC Rooftop Lounge on level A29.

Photography

During the conference, an EMBL Photographer may be taking photos. If you would not like to appear in these, please inform the photographer or a member of the Course and Conference Office.

Printing

We can help to print your boarding pass/train ticket. Please send it to events@embl.de and collect your print-outs at the registration desk.

Room for prayer, yoga, and meditation

There is a room for prayer, meditation, and yoga located on level E0 behind the Auditorium. Please be respectful of others using the room.

Sightseeing

A variety of activities in Heidelberg can be found on the website of Heidelberg Marketing.

Travel to and from the venue

During the event, we provide conference shuttle buses to and from EMBL. In addition, there is the public bus 39A that serves the EMBL campus and taxis can be easily booked at any time. Information on the shuttle buses can be found on the individual event website and more detailed information on travelling to EMBL can be found on our Travel Information page.

• Map to walk from ISG Hotel to EMBL

Additional software

The EMBL eCampus learning platform will be used to collaborate, communicate and network with all of the course participants. All participants will receive information on how to join shortly before the course. We recommend using Chrome, Safari or Mozilla Firefox browsers for eCampus. 

Zoom will be used for the live talks and Q&A sessions. More information will be provided closer to the start of the course.

Other information

While using the software during the course, please make sure you have nothing else using your bandwidth. We recommend using a wired connection.

Please find additional information including FAQs and terms and conditions on our Information for Participants page.