The approach to the training of pre-doctoral students who will fulfill the vision of independently contributing to multi- and interdisciplinary clinical and translational (C/T) research is challenging. The fragmentation of research into specialty and then subspecialty perspectives has resulted in breadth requirements for PhD degrees becoming increasingly narrowed, as we ensure adequate specialization knowledge within each rapidly advancing discipline.
In evaluating the quality and breadth of existing training programs at Columbia, we have created two parallel paths to further enhance C/T pre-doctoral training at CUMC and to counter-act the narrowing of PhD specialties. The health profession will require, in the near future, PhD scientists who possess the complex, specialty knowledge of their basic science discipline, but who additionally possess the skill set and know-how to rapidly translate and apply their research into clinically meaningful application. We also need superbly trained clinical researchers who understand the fundamentals of "wet-bench" translational science, and can collaborate with investigators working in those fields. For example, a sophisticated appreciation of the cellular or molecular mechanisms underlying a given clinical research interest enables the formulation of more informed clinical research questions and the implementation of more sophisticated and targeted diagnostic and treatment approaches.
To accomplish these goals, we have established the Clinical or Translational Research Education Certificate programs, in which pre-doctoral students currently enrolled in the GSAS, P&S, MSPH, and SON doctoral programs will be offered a small set of focused, additional courses and practica to provide new, critical C/T educational experiences. This pre-doctoral training opportunity will prepare a new generation of scientists to understand the methods and techniques used across the full range of the pathway from the bench to the bedside and ultimately to the community, and this training will also formally prepare these scientists to participate in, and create, interdisciplinary science.
The Clinical or Translational Research Education Certificate program is a one year program which includes 2 didactic courses and a practicum. It is open to second year or higher students who are enrolled in a Clinical or a Translational (basic sciences) doctoral program at Columbia, and provides up to five awards per year providing a stipend and funds to put towards tuition, travel and fees.
The next Clinical or Translational Research Education Certificates will start on July 1, 2010. Please note that applications for 2009 - 2010 are now available. Please note the link below for an application. Awards will be announced in April, 2010.
TRANSFORM Clinical or Translational Research Education Certificate Director
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Karina W. Davidson, PhD |
You may download an application here, or contact Nkemdilim Ukwu, TRANSFORM Coordinator.
Clinical or Translational Research Education Certificate Participants
Roxanne Dutia, Institute for Human Nutrition
Hypothalamic Melancontin Regulation of Energy Balance and Metabolism
Allan Just, Environmental Health Sciences
A Molecular Epidemiologic Study of Endocrine Disruptors and Pediatric Asthma
Megan Niedzwiecki, Environmental Health Sciences
Title: TBD (Molecular Epidemiology)
Alex Smolak, School of Social Work
Culturally Congruent HIV Risk Reduction with Male Muslim Migrant Workers in Kazakhstan
Hideaki Yano, Pharmacology
Understanding Mechanism of Dopamine Mediated HIV-Entry in NeuroAIDS
Graduates of the Certificate Program
Sarah Canetta, Neurobiology and Behavior
Type III Nrg1-erbB Signaling in Nociception
Julie Choe, Sociomedical Sciences
Bridging the technology divide - Translational science and technological innovation in medicine
Zhi-De Deng, Electrical Engineering
Field Shaping and Coil Design for Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)
Erin Harelton, Pharmacology
TASK-1 in Arrhythmogenesis Downstream of PAF Signaling
Millie Hepburn-Smith, Nursing
Reduction of Stroke Risk in Minority Women
Nowai Keleekai, Nursing
Study of Mental Health Services of an HIV-positive Incarcerated Population
Kristen Klemenhagen, Neurobiology & Behavior
Developmental Role of the 5-HT1A Receptor in Establishing Adult Anxiety Behavior
Ann Madsen, Epidemiology
Common Cause Model for Genetic Epidemiology and Risk-Factor Epidemiology: Laying the Foundation for Integration
David Malito, Neurobiology
Calcium Channel Mutations in Heart Arrythmias and Autism
Russell McBride, Epidemiology
Genetic Similarities in DNA Repair Polymorphisms between BRCA2 and HNPCC syndromic cancer families
James Papizan, Nutrition and Metabolic Biology
Structure-function analysis of the essential islet regulatory factor, Nkx2.2
