The National Institutes of Health has awarded more than $2.2 million in support for a project linking CSUN Master’s students to PhD programs at Stanford University, and the UC Berkeley, Davis, Riverside, and Santa Barbara campuses.
The “Bridges to the Doctorate” training program, helmed by CSUN Biology faculty Cheryl Courtney Hogue, Ray Hong, and MariaElena Zavala, aims to help prepare CSUN Master’s students working in biology, psychology, chemistry/biochemistry, physics, and dietetics and nutrition for bio-medical PhD programs at the partner institutions. Over five years of funded activities, the program will provide up to 42 students with tuition and fee assistance, research support, and funds to attend and present research at scientific conferences, in addition to specialized training in research practices. The goal is to enhance support and retention for scientists from underrepresented minorities at a critical early stage of their research careers.
Six students in Biology, Chemistry, and Psychology are this year’s inaugural Bridges Trainees, and recruiting for the second cohort is anticipated in the second half of the Spring 2021 semester.