Predoctoral Training in the Pharmacological Sciences

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Project Summary / Abstract This is the third competing renewal application for a training program whose main goal is to promote the interdisciplinary training of graduate students in Pharmacological Sciences. Its secondary goal is to foster broader scientific and social interactions among faculty and students in the Pharmacological Sciences. As evidence of the interdisciplinary nature of this program, our trainees come from six departments and four interdepartmental graduate programs in three colleges. The recruitment of 37 trainees with strong-to- outstanding credentials from outside the Department of Pharmacology (of a total of 50) is tangible evidence that this TG functions as a highly effective mechanism to attract the interest and promote the interdisciplinary training of graduate students in the Pharmacological Sciences regardless of departmental affiliation. The TG curriculum provides both basic and advanced instruction in Pharmacological Sciences, and is undergoing continual review and revision to ensure that it fulfills the needs of the program and the students. Its core course sequence, Principles of Pharmacology and Pharmacogenetics & Pharmacogenomics, exposes trainees to the fundamental principles of drug action, and molecular and cellular mechanisms of action of major drug classes. The flagship course of this program, Advanced Problem Solving in Pharmacological Sciences provides trainees multiple opportunities to work as a team to design collaborative research plans, thereby honing their ability to communicate scientific ideas and generate workable solutions to contemporary problems in the Pharmacological Sciences. Two modules are new to the curriculum. Basic Biostatistics and Experimental Design is the program's response to NIH's call for enhanced rigor and reproducibility in science. Science Communication in the Digital Age and the associated workshop Careers outside the Academy: Science Communication broaden the delivery of career skills to better prepare our trainees for the job market. Symposia, a bi-annual retreat, a series of summer-time brown bag discussion luncheons, as well as semi- weekly interactions during Pharmacology Seminar further promote program identity and collaborations. This TG has led to a documented increase in the teaching, mentoring and research interactions among program faculty and their students. With the continued expansion of our research infrastructure, an adaptive curriculum that includes skill building for non-academic careers, and a strong institutional and programmatic commitment to STEM education for minorities, the program is strongly positioned to qualify for an additional five years of funding. Because we typically have more than twice the number of highly qualified applicants than available slots and because our institution is underserved with training grant support, we are requesting an increase in the number of positions from 6 to 7. This modest expansion of our TG is justified by 1) the quality and size of our applicant pool, 2) the diversity of our trainee pool (24% URMs, 48% women), and most importantly, 3) the productivity and success of our graduates.