Sacramento State RISE Program

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Summary/Abstract The goal of the proposed RISE Program at California State University, Sacramento is to provide research training and related activities to increase the number of students from groups underrepresented in the biomedical sciences (“UR students”) who successfully pursue graduate degrees (MS and PhD) in biomedical-related research fields and/or enter careers in biomedical related research. We will identify and cultivate UR students in the Departments of Biological Sciences and Chemistry who have the talent and desire to earn graduate degrees or wish to enter the workforce in biomedical-related research. To achieve this goal, we will expand the number of research experiences available to these students and to integrate the research education programs in our college into a cohesive program. We will invite applications from UR students who earned at least a “B” in their first semester of general chemistry (CHEM 1A) but have not taken upper division major courses, and have GPAs of at least 3.0. We will select 24 students to participate in an “Introduction to Science Research” Summer Program, where the students will work on a “mini-research” project under the guidance of a faculty mentor. The following fall, students with continued interest in research careers will participate in two research-training workshops, present the results of their research project to Biological Sciences and Chemistry faculty, and thus be introduced to potential research mentors. In the spring, we will select six outstanding students from this student pool and others already involved in research to become RISE Trainees. Rise Trainees will be hired as undergraduate researchers with selected faculty from Sacramento State and the University of California, Davis (UCD) for the next 3 to 3.5 years. Participants who are not selected will be directed to other research opportunities at Sacramento State and external summer research experiences. The Sacramento State RISE Program will also provide RISE Trainees and other undergraduate researchers with research training courses (Research Integrity, Introduction to Undergraduate Research, and Senior Research Seminar) and with priority registration. Additionally, students will be guided as they create and adjust a “Career Road Map” that will empower them to steer their own research career. Furthermore, this program will be integrated with other research training programs already in place at Sacramento State and UCD so that it reaches a broader population of students.