Welcome to the Resource Hub. This space is designed to support our partners, collaborators, and community leaders as we work together to expand the life sciences ecosystem across New England.
Essential Tools
The platforms listed below are essential tools we use to connect, communicate, and coordinate our efforts. Whether a workforce development partner, a biotechnology , or an educator in the life sciences, these resources can help you amplify impact and streamline operations.
Eventbrite
Use Eventbrite (www.eventbrite.com) to organize and promote events, such as career fairs, workshops, town halls, and networking sessions.
Canva
Use Canva (www.canva.com) to create visually consistent materials to reflect brand. Flyers, social media graphics, and presentation slides can all be built using shared templates and brand assets, including logos, color palettes, typography, and taglines.
Mailchimp and Hubspot
Use Mailchimp (www.mailchimp.com) and Hubspot (www.hubspot.com) to stay connected with your community. Send newsletters, manage contacts, and follow up with event attendees through use of these platforms.
Training Programs and Events
BCNE’s training programs and events offer a gateway to growth, connection, and opportunity.
Our workshops, seminars, and experiential programs are designed to advance workforce development, drive innovation, and foster collaboration across the life sciences ecosystem in New England.
Through specialized training initiatives, expert-led workshops, and regional events, BCNE supports the growth of a diverse and inclusive talent pipeline. Each program reflects our commitment to ensuring that New England remains a global leader in the life sciences.
Microcredentialing
As new advances in biotechnology develop, so too will the need for a trained workforce. In response to this growing need, the Massachusetts Microcredential Coalition was established in 2024 – a statewide initiative that unites colleges, employers, workforce groups, and state agencies with the goal of building a shared framework for skill-based microcredentials.
The mission of the Massachusetts Microcredential Coalition is to expand access to opportunity by validating short, industry-aligned and stackable credentials that help learners, especially those underserved by traditional four-year degree programs, connect to well-paying work in the biotechnology industry – one of the fastest growing industries in this country. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 9% growth in biotechnology employment from 2023 to 2033, outpacing the average for all occupations.
In Massachusetts, that growth is even more dramatic. The Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development foresees an 11.6% growth in the biotechnology/biomanufacturing sector by 2029, adding more than 16,000 new jobs that must be filled for Massachusetts to retain and grow its foothold on the biotechnology sector.
Members of the Massachusetts Microcredential Coalition have a shared mission to create an inclusive, innovative, and scalable framework for recognizing, validating, and credentialing skills that align with the evolving biotechnology industry and workforce.
As a member of the Massachusetts Microcredential Coalition, BioConnects New England is working along like-minded institutions, industry partners, and workforce development organizations to integrate microcredentials into the learn and work ecosystem – with a focus on certifications that validate specific skills, knowledge and/or competencies learned in weeks or months, rather than years.
Dr. Jared Auclair, co-lead of BCNE, has long been a strong advocate for a statewide credentialing system to ensure that skills open doors in biotechnology. Through BCNE he has helped launch initiatives such as the Certified Evaluator Training with the Bioscience Core Skills Institute (BCSI).
As vice provost for research and economic development and director of bioinnovation at Northeastern University, Dr. Auclair emphasizes imbedding microcredentials into Northeastern’s programs to connect classroom learning into real-world skills.
Dr. Auclair is credited as a key architect of Northeastern’s Pathmaker training program, which offers condensed, intensive courses that award microcredentials in biomanufacturing and life sciences.
