UBM-Institutional: UCI Mathematical and Computational Biology for Undergraduates (MCBU)

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The Mathematical and Computational Biology for Undergraduates Program (MCBU) at the University of California, Irvine will provide a unique, collaborative type interdisciplinary training in knowledge and skills in systems biology for undergraduate students. The MCBU program consists of three key features:1. A new mathematics major specialization in Mathematical Biology witha innovative, flagship course sequence on Mathematical Modeling in Biology. This majorspecialization directs math students to take courses in mathematics, biology, biochemistry,biophysics and computer science which would best support work at the interface of mathematics,computation and biology. The major capstone, cross-disciplinary research component willprepare this group of students for graduate work or careers in high demand mathematical biologyfields.2. A new minor in Applied Mathematics for Biology designed for students in various biology disciplines to supplement their biology training with relevant mathematics courses, including the course sequence on Mathematical Modeling in Biology.3. Significant funded research opportunities for cross-disciplinary teams consisting of math and biology undergraduate students and faculty mentors. Every year there are topics from a range of biology fields available for student researchers, with each topic including significant laboratory, computing and mathematical analysis components. Research areas include: cell signaling, tumor growth modeling, viral dynamics, cell-to-cell feedback mechanisms, and others.The Mathematical and Computational Biology for Undergraduates Program (MCBU) at the University of California, Irvine will provide undergraduate students training and research experience at the interface of biology, mathematics and computational science. Opportunities for the MCBU students include: foundational courses in biology, mathematics and computation, a year-long interdisciplinary course in Mathematical Modeling in Biology with emphasis on ties to current research, summer training boot camp in systems biology, year-long mentored interdisciplinary research led by a team of math and biology faculty, and attendance and participation at interdisciplinary mathematical biology and modeling conferences. The MCBU program includes a new major and minor in computational mathematical biology, which should provide this specialized interdisciplinary training to a broad audience of students, beyond just those funded for research under the UBM project. The MCBU program makes particular efforts to recruit a diverse group of students including underrepresented groups.