CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR FOUNDATIONS OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCE

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Training Program: At the heart of the training program is the Core Course, which runs for two semesters and is required of all first-year graduate students. This intensive course has been in place for the past seven years, meets three times a week for 1.5 to 2 hours, and provides a graduate-level introduction to the basic concepts of modern cellular and molecular biology. Every member of the departmental faculty currently teaches in the core course. The format is primary papers; there is currently no textbook. In addition to the core course, students are required to take 3 elective courses at the graduate level within the department. All of these courses are conducted in a seminar format, giving students the opportunity to discuss recent literature and develop scientific speaking skills. The program director hopes to incorporate a unit on immunology and bioinformatics into the core course in the next few years. The department is now forming a new "graduate-exclusive" journal club, which will allow students to present recent papers relevant to their current areas of research. The core course sets this program apart from its counterpart at the Medical Center and provides cohesion between the student population. The first-year course work, teaching experience, and housing gives the students a "home base." It is envisioned that with the evolution of the program more and more of the Medical Center faculty will join in the teaching effort for the core course as well as specialty graduate courses. This will have the advantage of providing the first "real bridge" between the two campuses as well as increasing mentor visibility. There is some concern that without a method to synchronize course times on both campuses, effective cross talk will not take place. Many of the current students are taking courses at the Medical Center. It is the hope of the current program that the students themselves will extend and support effective links between the two campuses, forcing faculty to be more cognizant of classes and teaching. It is hoped that the outcome of the proposed program will be better networking, forcing more competitive/interactive research programs. Currently, students recruited for the graduate program in the department can arrive at Columbia the summer before they enter their first year. This may serve as a rotation and sometimes becomes the thesis research laboratory. Students are strongly encouraged to do 2-3 rotations. Students can meet faculty through a multiplicity of pathways, including one-on-one advising, the recruitment brochure, the interview process, and finally the planned retreat. The retreat will involve, as much as possible, faculty on both campuses. Students are also introduced to faculty and their respective research interests within the department through a pre-research seminar series wherein each faculty member in the department, along with some allied faculty outside of the department, discuss research programs in detail. This appears to be well attended by faculty and students alike. During the previous fall semester, a total of 26 presentations were given, with 19 from within the department and 7 from Medical Center departments. Students generally start teaching in their first year. The department/program is committed to training in the area of teaching. Training in this area is not merely in the form of "on-the-job" but rather is overseen by a specific faculty member who functions a s a department "master teacher." Each student is required to complete 12 credits of teaching, usually by assisting in one course for three semesters. Preparation for the experience is well orchestrated with tutorials, practice teaching sessions, and feedback on classroom performance. The qualifying exam is loosely structured as the successful completion of the first-year coursework and a research proposal written at the end of the second year. The research proposal consists of the student's proposed thesis research and is defended before a committee of two faculty members, neither of whom is the student's mentor. Students effectively prepare for this hurdle throughout the duration of their second year, having chosen a thesis laboratory after finishing rotations. Resources and Environment: The research and training environment are outstanding. The Department of Biological Sciences has a mandate to hire six new faculty members. Over the past five years the department has hired 2 structural biologists, 2 mouse biologists, 2 cell biologists, and 1 neurobiologist. The new hires have been primarily at the senior level, and the department is finished with the initial hiring plan. The new hires will be junior and will be in areas that are targeted as national initiatives. The proposed training program represents a significant paradigm shift in its support of student mobility/training between the two campuses. The Dean lends his strong support for the directional shift not only in philosophy but also financially. Departmental monies will support students during the duration of their rotations until they enter a thesis laboratory. There is considerable support and conviction that the connectivity between the two campuses is critical. Not being without precedent, however, the Neurobiology and Behavior as well as the Biophysics programs are currently highly successful inter-campus programs and therefore good models for the current proposal. Institutional support for the students is over a two-year period and the summer in between and serves as a quid pro quo for the three semesters of that the students are required to teach. This money is not withheld if the students are successful in garnering outside fellowship support. Part of the institutional support comes in the form of subsidized housing.