The purpose of the proposed training program is to prepare qualified trainees with an M.D. and/or Ph.D. degree for a research career in hematology and related fields. Because of the metamorphosis of hematology as a clinical discipline, which has recently attracted fewer and fewer pure hematologists, this training program seeks to train candidates with doctoral degrees to embark in a career in biomedical research with a specific emphasis in hematology. The interest in non-malignant hematology has diminished over the years as interest in malignant hematology gained momentum. The training of hematology researchers has also witnessed this trend. Regardless of this trend, the faculty of this training program is abundantly staffed by board certified hematologists who are also established or emerging scientists. With additional expertise added to the faculty, this program is well positioned to train M.D. and/or Ph.D. candidates in a variety of areas to become hematology researchers. To achieve our goal of excellence in training, each trainee engages in a curriculum that provides didactic exposure and laboratory apprenticeship with a full-time faculty member, leading to a career as an independent investigator. The program is well-supported by institutional infrastructures which supports training in scientific writing, methods in clinical investigation, research ethics, and workshops on emerging technologies such as informatics. The training faculty consists of funded senior investigator as well as junior investigators spanning disciplines that are directly linked to hematology research. The expertise of the faculty covers biomedical research broadly, from basic molecular biology and genetics to patient-oriented research and informatics. Competitive trainees will be selected and admitted for at least two years after a review by a selection committee. This program, now approaching its third decade, has contributed to the training of many accomplished biomedical scientists and physician-scientists, some of whom have risen to academic prominence. In the next funding period, the program is poised to expose trainees to emerging technologies that will explore and capture the fruits of the human genome project for the betterment of hematological illnesses.
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