This application is submitted for support each summer for 5 years for 14 undergraduate students, who are members of minority groups under-represented in the biological sciences, to participate in the 10-week Summer Honors Undergraduate Research Program (SHURP) of the Division of Medical Sciences. To date, this Program has 226 alumni, 97% of whom are continuing or planning to continue post-college training in the biological sciences. The goals of the Program are: 1) to increase students' knowledge of biomedical research and career choices, 2) to improve their research-related skills and confidence that they possess those skills, 3) to stimulate their interest in pursuing careers in biomedical research, 4) to improve the students' ability to select and appropriate program and to prepare a successful application, 5) to provide intra-program and post-program mentoring, and 6) to assist the program alumni in building a professional network. The major focus of the Program is research in the laboratories of Harvard Medical School faculty members who are successful research mentors in the Program and who have ongoing programs in the areas of cardiac and cardiopulmonary function, hematology and thrombosis, and cell biology and molecular biology related to cardiac, vascular, and platelet functions. The laboratory component is supplemented by weekly student-faculty research discussion seminars, a weekly career exploration and development series, participation in the Leadership Alliance Symposium, a graduate and medical students. Students are recruited from a nationwide pool through personal contacts with undergraduate program directors and SHURP alumni, promotion of the program at minority science student research or career conferences, through mailings to science program directors, and in print advertisements. Students are selected on the basis of their interest in research, intellectual competence, and teacher assessment of cognitive and personal skills. The program is evaluated by the participants, by the Harvard faculty research mentors, and by the students' college science advisors. Follow-up activities include contact to provide encouragement, advice, and networking opportunities, a twice-yearly alumni newsletter, a periodically-published alumni directory, campus visits by the program director and faculty, and informal telephone, letter, and E-mail contacts with program alumni.
| Ricchiuti, Vincent; Lian, Christine G; Oestreicher, Eveline M et al. (2009) Estradiol increases angiotensin II type 1 receptor in hearts of ovariectomized rats. J Endocrinol 200:75-84 |
