Future of Bioscience Graduate and Postdoctoral Training (FOBGAPT2)

University Of Colorado Denver, Aurora CO

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

Project Summary For twenty years there has been ongoing discussion of the changing nature of careers for bioscientists, whether we are training too many Ph.D.s, and whether we are preparing our students optimally for future careers. Discussions of these topic have intensified in the last few years, largely dominated by a few strong voices at elite levels of academic science. The purpose of a 2015 meeting at the University of Michigan was to bring together representatives of graduate and postdoctoral training at members of research-intensive universities and medical schools with representatives from federal funding agencies, the private sector, trainees, and foundations to openly discuss many of the proposals that have been made (rather than rehash the problems) and look for the best ways forward. The meeting produced both broader input to existing ideas and new lines of thought that could be further developed by the stakeholders. We now propose a collaborative effort between the University of Colorado and the University of Michigan to host a follow-up meeting in Denver on the Anschutz Medical Campus in June, 2017. The two year intervening period has allowed continuing discussions among the NIH, NSF, private foundations, and selected interested parties, as well as the implementation of innovative training models funded by the stakeholders (e.g. NIH's BEST programs and NSF's NRT programs). The proposed 2017 meeting is intended to catalyze a broad collaboration of stakeholders to create a set of integrated and strategic proposals for the future, and that these will undergo detailed discussion by a broad cross-section educational institutions, trainees, and potential employers at the meeting to create consensus on effective practices and potential policy shifts. The conference organizers and session chairs will collaborate to produce a publication to disseminate these meeting outcomes. It is anticipated that 400-500 people will participate in these discussions and will provide substantial momentum to move forward with adjustments to institutional and national policies. The University of Colorado Denver and the University of Michigan are investing substantial funds, personnel, and space resources. Support from NIH is sought to fund travel grants to allow attendance by graduate students and postdoctoral scholars who engaged in these discussions regionally and nationally, as well as other colleagues who could contribute expertise but would not otherwise have the resources to attend.