A. Mission Statement
The BMS doctoral program aims to recruit outstanding
graduate students for training in a unique interdisciplinary environment
that prepares them for successful careers in the biomedical sciences.
The program will engender diversity, foster collaborative interactions
among students and faculty, and facilitate development of research
programs that are of the highest quality and are supported by external
research funding. The program will provide students with rigorous
academic programs and unique opportunities for interdisciplinary
research to help them develop the skills necessary to succeed as
independent and productive investigators in the biomedical sciences.
Understanding, and resolving, the complex health
problems that face society at this time can best be addressed by
research strategies that incorporate interdisciplinary approaches.
In almost all biomedical fields, the cutting edge research advances
come from laboratories or teams of collaborating scientists that
bring multiple perspectives and techniques to bear on selected problems.
Recognizing this, the BMS PhD program was established 20 years ago
as a truly interdisciplinary training program, with faculty from
many departments and disciplines. Doctoral students in the program
are trained through a core of academic courses that provide broad,
and in-depth, understanding of the fundamentals of biochemistry,
cell and molecular biology, physiology, neuroscience, immunology,
pharmacology, and research ethics. Laboratory rotations help to
focus student interests in particular subjects so that they may
then embark on dissertation research in any of the areas of research
excellence in the program. Each of these areas is, in itself, multidisciplinary
in nature – for example, neuroscience, signal transduction mechanisms,
molecular genetics, mechanisms of DNA repair, retrovirology, membrane
transport mechanisms, cell differentiation, immunotoxicology, immunoparasitology,
control of cardiovascular function, and other sub fields. The faculty
who mentor these unique training and research opportunities include
many nationally and internationally recognized scientists with strong
and productive extramurally-funded research projects and well-equipped
laboratories. With a faculty:student ratio of about 1:1, students
have ample opportunity to select highly qualified faculty mentors
and committee members.
Research projects in the program range from studies
of molecular mechanisms and cell structure and function in normal
and disease conditions (including, autoimmune diseases during pregnancy,
retinal degeneration, hypertension, blood disorders), through examination
of the effects of high (or low) pressure on nerve cell function,
to toxicological field work in the great lakes region. Although
apparently diverse, the ongoing projects in our selected areas of
concentration have common themes or employ similar techniques, and
students benefit from supervisory committees that include experts
from different departments and disciplines. For example, a theme
common to areas of neuroscience, to study of membrane and nuclear
transport, and to study of intracellular signaling pathways, is
the need to carry out detailed cellular and subcellular localization
of specific proteins or other important molecules using immunohistochemistry,
confocal, and electron microscopy. Similarly, the cloning and characterization
of genes for novel neurotransmitter receptors or for novel regulatory
proteins employ overlapping strategies. In these, and the other
areas of research in the program, the expertise and resources for
performance and supervision of the work are readily available to
students.
B. Admission Standards
Students admitted to the program will have demonstrated
strong academic performance in the life and physical sciences, at
the undergraduate and/or graduate level. Generally, students will
have undergraduate and/or graduate GPAs >3.5, and will have taken
the GRE test. Research experience is desirable, but is not a prerequisite;
it is essential, however, that students have a strong commitment
to furthering knowledge through research. The program is committed
to enhancing diversity in its applicant pool and in its matriculated
student body. The program also admits exceptional students from
the MD program who desire to pursue the MD/PhD degrees, and students
who have career experience in industry or research and who wish
to pursue the terminal degree in their field. The admissions process
involves on-campus interviews with all highly qualified candidates.
All information concerning program requirements and curriculum,
as well as faculty and research information, is available on the
program's web page.
C. Meeting the Needs of the State
The BMS program is uniquely designed to provide
interdisciplinary training that gives students the skills and perspectives
with which to attack the complex biomedical research problems facing
society. Success in this objective is reflected in very high student
satisfaction with the program, and in the placement of students
in quality positions upon graduation (see D). A significant proportion
of the program's graduates enter biomedical research positions and
careers that directly strengthen the local and state economy. Several
of the research projects involving program faculty and students
directly impact on specific public health issues in the local region
and in the great lakes, while others involve technology transfer,
such as the development of novel cell lines, and consequent economic
benefits. Just as important, the program serves the state by enhancing
its reputation for quality graduate education and research. A strong
doctoral program attracts outstanding new faculty, thus catalyzing
growth in the level of external funding to the university and the
state. The program is ideally suited to serving its geographic region
well, by fostering links with neighboring institutions, including
the research laboratories at Wright Paterson Air Force Base, and
by actively promoting diversity in the student body. The latter
emphasis has benefits for local public institutions that do not
have their own doctoral programs.
D. Placement Objectives for Graduates
The program has a track record of placing students
in postdoctoral positions in major research universities throughout
the nation, as well as in industry and government career positions,
primarily in Ohio. During the last ten years, we have had more than
75 graduates. Of these, 59% have placed in postdoctoral positions
in Medical Schools and Research Universities I, 17% have placed
in government or NIH postdoctoral or career positions, 16% have
placed in industry postdoctoral or career positions, 5.3% have taken
postdoctoral positions at WSU, and 2.7% have gone on to take the
MD degree. Our objectives are to continue this successful balance
of placement and to expand in one area – the training of clinical
investigators. To this end we have established an innovative program
leading to the MD/PhD degrees; a unique feature of this program
is the incorporation of clinical experiences throughout the duration
of the research phase of the program
