UNM Initiative to Maximize Student Diversity (IMSD)

描述（由申请人提供）：新墨西哥大学申请256.9万美元，将我们的少数民族学生发展计划（IMSD）再延长四年。我们IMSD为至少40名学生准备研究生院，并支持至少10名研究生完成他们在生物医学，行为和生物工程领域的学位。我们预计他们中的大多数人将从事有助于减少健康差距（糖尿病、癌症、肥胖、婴儿死亡率、艾滋病毒/艾滋病和酗酒）的研究事业，这些健康差距折磨着少数民族和贫困人口。我们在当前项目中成功实施的目标是：目标1：为了增加准备从事研究工作的本科生数量，我们正在扩大招聘/保留工作。所有IMSD本科生参加：(1)教师指导的研究经验，以发展技术和智力技能；(2) 1学分的会议课程，包括准备研究计划、研究海报展示、生物伦理学、研讨会和职业发展活动；（三）参加研究专题讨论会；(4)参加研究生申请和GRE研讨会；5)撰写研究生申请并参加GRE考试；6)参加发现与创新课程，接触多学科/跨学科研究；7)参与负责任的研究行为系列。通过这些努力，我们将把毕业后进入研究生院的人数增加到60%。目标2：为所有新墨大学生在NIH资助的领域扩大多/跨学科的研究机会，我们将：1)增加更多科学和工程领域的导师；2)开发由模式生物数据库（如哈佛大学的FlyBase）的教师讲授的课程和研讨会；3)与华盛顿大学Genomics和MCB T32等开展新的合作；4)通过在其他院系开设新的发现与创新课程，增加学生对跨学科研究的理解。目标3：为了增加新墨西哥大学未被充分代表的研究生的成功，我们将：1)在研究生的头两年为他们提供支持/指导；2)通过会议课程（他们将帮助教授）和同伴指导提供领导机会；3)在毕业前的最后两个学期，尽可能提供学术和经济支持；4)与研究生办公室（OGS）、有色人种研究生同伴指导组织和其他组织合作，增加新墨西哥大学研究生项目中少数民族学生的数量。通过这些努力，90%的IMSD博士生将在6年内完成博士学位。将对IMSD学生和一个控制组进行评估，以确定每个项目元素的成功，确定需要改进的领域，并提供有关招生，成功和挑战的信息。这些目标中的每一个都与IMSD项目的目标一致，旨在使少数民族研究生院的入学率和成功率持续增长。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The University of New Mexico is requesting $2.569 million to renew for four more years our Initiative for Minority Student Development (IMSD). Our IMSD prepares at least 40 students for graduate school, and supports at least 10 graduate students to complete their degrees in biomedical, behavioral and bioengineering fields. We expect most of them will pursue research careers that will help reduce health disparities (diabetes, cancer, obesity, infant mortality, HIV/AIDS, and alcoholism) that afflict minorities and those in poverty. The aims and objectives we have used successfully in the current program and propose for the next four years are: Aim 1: To increase numbers of undergraduates prepared for research careers, we are expanding our recruitment/retention efforts. All IMSD undergraduates participate in: (1) a faculty-mentored research experience to develop technical and intellectual skills; (2) a 1-credit conference course involving preparing a research proposal, research poster presentations, bioethics, seminars, and career development activities; (3) participating in research symposia; (4) attending workshops on graduate school applications and the GRE; 5) writing graduate school applications and taking the GRE; 6) attending a Discovery and Innovation course to be exposed to multi/interdisciplinary research; and 7) participating in a Responsible Conduct of Research series. Through these efforts, we will increase to 60% the number entering graduate school upon graduation. Aim 2: To broaden multi/interdisciplinary research opportunities for all students at UNM in areas funded by NIH, we will: 1) add mentors in more science and engineering fields; 2) develop courses and workshops taught by faculty from Model Organism Databases, e.g. FlyBase at Harvard; 3) develop new collaborations with the Genomics and MCB T32, etc., at the University of Washington; and 4) increase student understanding of interdisciplinary research by creating new Discovery and Innovation courses in other departments. Aim 3: To increase the success of underrepresented graduate students at UNM, we will: 1) support/mentor 5 graduate students during their first two years; 2) provide leadership opportunities through the conference class (which they will help to teach) and peer mentoring; 3) provide academic and financial support, as available, in their last 2 semesters prior to graduation; and 4) work with the Office of Graduate Studies (OGS), the Peer Mentoring for Graduate Students of Color organization, and others to increase the number of minority students in UNM graduate programs. Through these efforts, 90% of the IMSD Ph.D. students will complete their doctoral degrees within 6 years. Evaluations of IMSD students and a control group will be carried out to determine the success of each program element, to identify areas for improvement, and to provide information about enrollments, success, and challenges to the program and departments. Each of these objectives is aligned with the goals for IMSD programs and aimed at making sustainable increases in minority graduate school enrollment and success. Public health relevance: The UNM Initiative for Minority Student Development (IMSD) plans during the next four-year program of activities to prepare at least 40 underrepresented minority and other students for graduate school degree programs in the biomedical, behavioral and bioengineering fields, and to assist at least 10 underrepresented minority graduate students in these fields to complete their degree programs. The significance of these accomplishments is that we expect most of these students will pursue research careers that will help reduce health disparities (diabetes, cancer, obesity, infant mortality, HIV/AIDS, and alcoholism) that afflict minorities and those in poverty. To whatever extent their research will contribute toward this overall goal, to that extent will all ethnic groups and people benefit from the results of these efforts.