Columbia University Graduate Training Program in Microbiology and Immunology

描述(由申请人提供)：在此重新提交中，我们请求为每年挑选的两名研究生提供支持，他们已在哥伦比亚大学微生物学和免疫学博士前培训项目中获得学位论文资格。每名实习生将获得两年的资助。这一由我们的主任David Fidock博士和联席主任Boris Reizis博士领导的博士授予计划为博士前实习生提供了在广泛的微生物学和免疫学研究领域获得个性化培训的独特机会。这项研究集中在免疫细胞和组织发育和动态平衡、病原体生物学、DNA复制和修复机制以及微生物和免疫细胞增殖等主题上。这些跨学科的兴趣正在一个高度协作和互动的框架中进行，该框架将我们的19名培训教师联系在一起，他们都被任命为微生物和免疫学系的成员，由我们的主席Sankar Ghosh博士领导。我们的研究生项目建立在几十年成功的研究生培训基础上，已经证明我们可以招聘和留住一批优秀的合格培训补助金(TGE)申请者。受训人员参加微生物学和免疫学、生物化学、分子细胞生物学、遗传学、定量生物学和负责任的研究行为方面的课程，并参加关于科学写作和授权精神的研讨会。学生还必须通过资格考试，以测试他们制定和辩护一个与他们的论文研究无关的假设驱动的项目的能力。我们的计划框架包括一个指导委员会，它定期评估学生和培训师的表现、课程和新申请者；一个确定最佳实习生并在他们整个研究生学习期间成功指导他们的过程；一个针对初级培训师的指导计划；以及一个由计划主任组成的外部审查委员会，他们定期提供反馈，帮助优化计划的有效性。我们的研究生项目显示出极好的招生和留校率，以及前博士前实习生，包括代表性不足的少数族裔或弱势学生的杰出职业成就。在过去的十年里，95%的以前的实习生继续在科学或医学领域工作，15%的人已经获得了终身教职或非终身教职的职位。我们更加重视招聘人数偏低的少数族裔，包括与波多黎各大学签订了一项新的协议，该大学有一大批TGE申请者，以及广泛的外联举措。我们还受益于医学院院长和研究生事务办公室提供的非常强有力的机构支持，包括财政支持，允许我们的培训补助金在选定的学员成功完成课程和资格考试并从事全职研究后为他们提供支持。我们相信，我们充满活力、严谨和科学创新的培训计划将塑造未来微生物学和免疫学研究的学术领袖，他们将获得能够解决传染病和免疫调节方面的关键课题的技能。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In this resubmission, we request support for two graduate trainees selected each year, who have attained dissertator status in our predoctoral Columbia University Graduate Training Program in Microbiology and Immunology. Each trainee would be funded for two years. This PhD granting Program, led by our Director Dr. David Fidock and Co-Director Dr. Boris Reizis, provides predoctoral trainees with a unique opportunity to obtain individualized training across a broad spectrum of microbiology and immunology research. This research converges on themes of immune cell and tissue development and homeostasis, pathogen biology, mechanisms of DNA replication and repair, and microbial and immune cell proliferation. These cross-disciplinary interests are being pursued in a highly collaborative and interactive framework that links our 19 training faculty, who are all appointed to the Department of Microbiology & Immunology, led by our Chairman Dr. Sankar Ghosh. Our graduate program, built on many decades of successful graduate training, has proven that we can recruit and retain an outstanding cohort of training grant eligible (TGE) applicants. Trainees take courses in microbiology and immunology, biochemistry, molecular cell biology, genetics, quantitative biology, and responsible conduct in research, and are enrolled in workshops on scientific writing and grantsmanship. Students must also pass a qualifying examination that tests their ability to formulate and defend a hypothesis-driven project unrelated to their thesis research. Our programmatic framework includes a Steering Committee that regularly evaluates student and trainer performance, the curriculum, and new applicants; a process to identify the best trainees and mentor them successfully throughout their graduate studies; a mentoring plan for junior trainers, and an External Review Board with Program Directors who provide regular feedback to help optimize program effectiveness. Our Graduate Program has shown excellent recruitment and retention rates, along with an outstanding record of career outcomes for former predoctoral trainees, including underrepresented minorities or disadvantaged students. 95% of our former trainees in the past decade have continued in science or medicine and 15% have already achieved tenure-track or non tenure-track faculty positions. Our increased emphasis on recruitment of underrepresented minorities includes a new agreement with the University of Puerto Rico, which has a large student body of TGE applicants, and extensive outreach initiatives. We also benefit from very strong institutional support provided by the Dean of our medical school and our Office of Graduate Affairs, including financial support that allows our training grant to support selected trainees once they have successfully completed their coursework and qualifying examination and are engaged in full-time research. We are confident that our dynamic, rigorous and scientifically innovative training program will mold future academic leaders in microbiology and immunology research who will have acquired the skills to be able to tackle critical topics in infectious diseases and immune regulation.