NIH MBRS IMSD Program at the University of Colorado

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The University of Colorado at Boulder (CU-Boulder) proposes the continuation of a comprehensive effort to offer academic and enrichment activities to prepare underrepresented students for graduate school, and to recruit and graduate underrepresented Ph.D. students in biomedical science fields. CU-Boulder will continue its successful NIH/HHMI Scholars program, which was begun in 2003 with initial IMSD funding. This multi-year program allows undergraduate students to engage in research under the guidance of a faculty mentor, learn laboratory techniques and explore scientific ethics, develop the skills required to critically read and integrate research articles, and acquire competence in presenting research results through papers and scientific presentations. The program also provides GRE preparation and workshops on both the application process for graduate school and writing personal statements. CU-Boulder recruits and prepares students for the program by exposing incoming engineering freshmen to bioengineering research through a summer bridge program offered by the Multicultural Engineering Program, and by offering lab experience to early career undergraduates through an IMSD-funded Exploring Research program. CU-Boulder's IMSD effort at the undergraduate level is designed to identify talented students early in their academic careers and keep them in the pipeline for graduate school. The proposed IMSD program will also support 6 doctoral students each year for one to two years each. CU-Boulder targets funding to attract first year doctoral students to CU-Boulder, to move advanced students from teaching to research assistantships, and to provide bridge funding between other external sources when necessary. CU-Boulder's efforts to date have been highly successul. Of the eleven NIH/HHMI Scholars that have graduated with baccalaureate degrees, one is in a Ph.D. program, two are in M.D. programs, and three are in post-baccalaureate programs with plans to apply to Ph.D. or M.D. programs. The one Ph.D. graduate is a postdoctoral fellow at Columbia University. Our graduate and undergraduate participants have produced 15 peer-reviewed publications.