Attracting and Retaining Minorities in the Biomedical Sciences Including Genomics: a Community-based Approach

Abstract Text:

Our doctoral minority research education program, the Virginia Tech Initiative for Maximizing Student Development (VT-IMSD), can serve as a model for facilitating the development and success of graduate students from diverse backgrounds, including international students from developing countries. The primary goal of VT-IMSD, a National Institutes of Health (NIH) competitively-funded training program, is the recruitment, training, and mentoring of minorities so they can succeed in  the biomedical sciences. The training grant has enabled us to build both a critical mass of scholars and a supportive community that enhances students’ opportunities. Seven scholars have completed PhDs and are pursuing postdocs or faculty positions. Our success suggests that a community-based approach to graduate education (it "takes a village") may be a viable option to recruit, retain, and successfully train diverse doctoral students including those who pursue science disciplines important to agriculture like genetics and genomics.

Keywords:

education

minorities

sciences