Graduate Student Development

The Student Development Activity is a component of the Administration Core. In order to better meet the challenges of a fast-changing biomedical world, we established an NIH / RCMI-sponsored student development program at Texas Southern University ( TSU ) as a step toward improving and reinforcing our graduate programs in line with national and international standards. The student development program consists of :

• a graduate research assistantship program

• a student enrichment program and

• a faculty mentoring program.

The student enrichment program is open to all graduate students involved in environmental toxicology or biomedical research at TSU. The program includes seminars and workshops and the opportunity for students to participate in activities outside of the home laboratory.

As part of the faculty mentoring plan, students are expected to have weekly meetings with their mentor, participate in journal club activities, and attend state and/or national scientific meeting. In turn, the mentor will assist the student with development of research projects, proposals, and placement in summer internship programs and/or laboratory experiences. We believe that this student development component is an important step toward enhancing the educational experience of our students, many of whom are from minority ethnic groups, by increasing their involvement in research and education in biomedical sciences.