Training students to enter the biomedical/behavioral sciences research workforce continues to be a critical endeavor. Although advances in scientific knowledge and information technology are increasing at an incredible rate, the lack of ethnic, racial and socioeconomic diversity among our research workforce remains problematic. Inequities in student exposure and access to quality science education programs have been touted as one possible cause. To address these problems and to instill in students a desire to explore, experiment, and learn, UNCP RISE will support 16 undergraduate RISE Fellows at UNCP annually as part of a comprehensive training program which aims to give these students the skills and experience needed to gain admission to and to thrive within biomedical graduate training programs. The goals of the UNCP RISE Program are to: 1) Increase the number of successful graduate school applications and matriculations by under-represented minority (UR) UNCP graduates in Biology and Chemistry & Physics or related fields, 2) Increase the number of minority students engaged in meaningful, rigorous undergraduate research, and 3) Provide Fellows with the tools they need to be BRAVE graduate students. These goals are to be achieved by providing academic support and training with workshops (e.g., critical thinking, metacognition, test taking, graduate school application), by programs such as supplemental instruction (SI) and structured learning assistance (SLA), by providing additional training to help them gain admission to biomedical research programs, by helping them clearly define their goals using an Individual Development Plan (IDP), and by educating both the RISE Fellows and the community at large about careers in biomedical research through outreach service-learning activities with local schools. RISE also aims to support and expand the existing undergraduate research environment at UNCP by financially supporting intramural and extramural research experiences with faculty mentors and allowing RISE Fellows to attend and present their research at local, regional and national conferences. Finally, we aspire to prepare the RISE Fellows for the challenges they will encounter in graduate school and in their future careers as biomedical researchers by helping them build skills related to reading and writing scientific literature in journal clubs and other activities, growing their potential as team members and leaders in a peer mentoring program and providing workshops aimed at helping them build their professional networks and learning to give and receive constructive criticism in a professional setting. As a result of these activities we expect that least 90% of the RISE Fellows will graduate with a BS degree in biology, chemistry or physics and at least 75% of RISE Fellows will have entered a biomedical research graduate program within 3 years after graduation. We expect to provide all of the RISE Fellows with the opportunity to conduct outreach activities with local schools, participate in career options workshops, experience conducting intramural research with a faculty mentor during the academic year, attend a national conference, and participate in a scientific journal club and workshops aimed at building their interpersonal skills. In addition, we aim to provide the opportunity for at least 80% of the RISE Fellows to present at a national conference and at least 75% of the RISE Fellows to conduct extramural research. UNCP-RISE will utilize its existing physical and intellectual resources to effectively prepare UNCP graduates to be confident, competent and experienced candidates to enter and succeed in biomedical research careers.
? Relevance The targeted audience of the RISE program is underrepresented minority undergraduate students matriculating at UNCP. The stated goals are to promote undergraduate research; to support excellence in academics; and to promote a campus wide atmosphere conducive to research in the biomedical or behavioral sciences. The organization of this project and the programmatic activities therein will help train these promising students to enter and succeed in graduate programs and to become active, productive scientists in biomedical research careers.
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