The objective of the grant is to provide rigorous and critical training in neuroscience to a diverse cohort of students by providing support for 8 funded positions, or 40 student-years, in the Washington University Neuroscience Program. Specifically, this proposal will support eight early-stage trainees annually for up to three years. Our Program holds long-standing commitments to cutting-edge research, to interdisciplinary education, and to providing modern career development. The Program currently has 90 students, with an average time to the Ph.D. of 5.7 years and an attrition rate of 7.5%. Of the students who have graduated from our Program since 1999, over 70% have remained in academic biomedical research. We seek to be a Program that responds to changes in the research environment by helping our students to pursue important and innovative problems and concepts, to adopt new techniques and to communicate effectively with their peers and the general public. The curriculum and research environments remain broad and deep, combining expertise in molecular, cellular and systems-level approaches to the study of neural function and dysfunction. The Program will continue to recruit and retain talented, diverse students through innovative and dedicated coordination with the University and partner schools. Major new initiatives aimed at accomplishing these goals include: 1) the introduction of a series of grant-writing workshops for students throughout their graduate career, 2) improved training in statistics for students at different levels of preparation, 3) increases in the number of participating Departments and faculty, 4) the introduction of new journal clubs and courses, 5) the introduction of a new second-year Pathway that provides advanced training in human genetics and behavior for neuroscientists, 6) enhanced interactions among students and faculty with regular individual and group advising and new group discussions with the Directors, 7) expanded assessment tools for evaluation of all program elements, 8) new partnerships for trainee recruitment with particular focus on mechanisms to attract and retain a diverse neuroscience community, 9) a novel student-run career development group dedicated to providing intensive yet short-term experiences in biotechnology business, and 10) an organization dedicated to neuroscience outreach and communication of science to the general public. These initiatives will ensure our students remain at the forefront of developments in neuroscience research, teaching and out-reach.
This proposal would continue the tradition of innovative training for top-notch neuroscientists at Washington University. The Program is noted for its depth and breadth of molecular, cellular and systems research on the nervous system and its diseases, its advanced teaching and its dedicated community outreach. The proposal would support early stage graduate students from diverse backgrounds pursuing cutting-edge questions in the brain sciences.
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