A research training grant from the National Institute for General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) Initiative for Maximizing Student Development has been awarded to the UCSF Graduate Division in support of institutional efforts to build a highly qualified scientific workforce.
For the next five years, the T32 grant, entitled “Cultivating Biomedical Student Success Through Community and Leadership Development,” will provide funding for stipends and programming, supporting professional development, leadership training, and personal growth. Students from the ten basic science PhD programs will be eligible to be supported in the first two years of their graduate studies by IMSD and participate in its programming.
With a community-centric ethos, IMSD fellows build networks with peers and faculty mentors to enhance academic and professional success. These bonds broaden their experiences and perspectives in and beyond scientific research, align their professional and personal identities, and develop affirmative relationships with campus partners, including the Office of Career and Professional Development, mental health and well-being services, and restorative justice.
Students who are selected as IMSD fellows (via graduate program-based nominations or self-nominations) will have a demonstrable track record for community service and leadership. It is envisioned that the philosophies and activities that are integral to the IMSD grant will catalyze broader improvements to graduate education at UCSF more broadly. The IMSD fellows will be expected to be campus leaders in their respective programs. The program has broad support among UCSF faculty with more than 100 members agreeing to mentor students and advise them in research.
“We are grateful and excited to have secured a five-year NIGMS-funded IMSD T32 grant to sustain our programming for leadership development and community building activities for graduate students at UCSF,” said IMSD Co-Directors D’Anne Duncan, PhD, and Jason Sello, PhD. “The support will have a positive impact for trainees in the Graduate Division for years to come.”
