The Mayo Clinic Immunology Ph.D.Training Program seeks to train leaders for the next generation of immunologists. This training grant proposal requests support for 6 Ph.D. students who will be trained in productive biomedical research programs supporting a premier academic not-for-profit medical institution. The highly productive training faculty provides a rich training environment of basic and clinical investigators combining studies of fundamental immunology with the translational potential of the discipline. The training program has an exemplary track record in preparing students to succeed in scientific careers. Of 38 students supported by this training grant, 28 have graduated with the Ph.D. (9 still in the program), and 18 (82%) of the 22 who have now have finished postdoctoral training having advanced to academic appointments. The other 4 are employed in the private sector. Seven (18%) of the 38 trainees are designated URM with 4 out of 5 finished with their training in academic positions and one in industry. There are currently 18 training grant eligible students in the program. Students in the Program receive advanced training in primary literature focused coursework and electives offered in a multidisciplinary setting. Milestones in the Program place emphasis on each trainee's mastering the skills needed to formulate critical questions, devise experimental strategies to provide definitive insights into the questions being addressed. Students learn to communicate ideas and research findings effectively using oral and written formats and practice these skills in classroom settings, in grantsmanship courses, at national and international scientific meetings, and by publishing original research articles in mainline scientific journals. The typical training period is 5.4 years, capped by mentoring on the next phases of their developing careers.
This training grant supports six predoctoral trainees in the Immunology Training Program of Mayo Graduate School, providing students with the requisite research and leadership skills to become heads of research laboratories and leaders in the biomedical sciences. The program has an outstanding track record with 97% of trainees supported by this grant earning the Ph.D. or progressing toward their degrees and of all the graduates who have finished their training having attained faculty positions (82%) or positions in the private sector (18%). Understanding how the immune system functions and its role in disease pathogenesis is critical to developing innovative approaches to patients care. The intersection of the science of immunology with the goals of academia, medical practice, and the private pharmaceutical sector provides opportunity for our graduates and a mandate to train more scientists.
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