California State University, Los Angeles proposes the following measurable objectives for the coming five-year grant period of its MARC U*STAR project: a). That the rate at which our program graduates win admission immediately after completion of the baccalaureate to good Ph.D. programs in the biomedical and behavioral sciences will increase 25% relative to our current level; b) That the rate at which our Graduates are retained in Ph.D, programs to completion increases by 15% over current levels; c) That we will during the grant period submit for publication in the science education and science evaluation literature at least three manuscripts describing the education/evaluation experiments that are noteworthy. The Institutional objective is that the percentage of MARC-eligible students at the University will increase by 25%. The goal of the proposed MARC U*STAR training program is to increase the number of well prepared minority students who can compete successfully for positions in graduate programs leading to the Ph.D. degree in disciplines useful to biomedical research. We propose a training program for 13 Junior and Senior Trainees that includes a solid science curriculum that is enhanced by strong intramural and extramural research training opportunities; career and academic advisement; exposure to a broad range of biomedical research professionals and institutions through a seminar series; participation in career and academic development workshops; and formal preparation for the Graduate Record Exam (GRE). Finally, we propose that the overall program receive ongoing evaluation. The focus of the evaluation will be shifted to a an experimental mode: we will treat several components of the program as experiments, with the goal here is not only program improvement, but generating a body of information that can be a contribution to the science education or program evaluation literature. Our program has been very successful. In the past five years 31 students have graduated from our MARC program: 88 % of our MARC U*STAR Graduates are on track to develop research careers: 24 (78%) entered Ph.D. Programs immediately after graduation; and 3 (10%) are in Biomed PREP programs and will enter Ph.D. programs within one to two years. Two (6%) have entered or will enter MD programs. Two (6%) are employed in science industry.
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