CTSA Graduate Program

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The success of the biomedical research enterprise depends upon a robust pipeline of scientists with diverse expertise, well-trained in the core competencies of clinical and translational science (CTS). Major threats to this pipeline include the mismatch between the needs of the modern research workforce and the narrow training received in most biomedical PhD programs. Additionally, clinicians face an increasingly difficult transition to stable career development funding without rigorous research training. For almost two decades, the Tufts Sackler CTS Graduate Program, the training core of Tufts CTSI, has successfully trained clinician-scientists across the spectrum of translational research, emphasizing later stages of translation (T2-T4) with a broad impact on health. With this CTSA renewal, we will substantially expand and enhance our TL1 Program commensurate to the growth of Tufts CTSI to meet the larger training needs, building on the history of excellence in our MS/PhD CTS Program, by the following aims: AIM 1) we will provide rigorous training in the core competencies of CTS to a diverse set of scholars, including more PhD-trained biomedical scientists. We will leverage the broadened partnerships of the Tufts CTSI, including the Tufts University Sackler School, the Jackson Laboratory, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Northeastern University, and a strengthened connection to the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. AIM 2) we will expand the mentoring and research experiences to enhance the individual development plans of TL1 fellows and all CTS Graduate Program students. This will include offering four specialized TL1 tracks, emphasizing institutional strengths: Comparative Effectiveness Research; One Health; Drug and Device Development; Health Policy. We will also establish innovative research externships – based at partner institutions and around Boston’s rich biotech hub – and new seminars and studios on topics critical for success in the modern translational workforce, including stakeholder/community engagement, team science, rigor and transparency, academic-industry partnerships, and clinical trial innovations. We will equip clinician-scientists and biomedical PhD scientists with the skills and experience necessary to succeed in an environment that has shifted to broadly-engaged, team-based translational research.