IMSD at the University of Utah (IMSD@U2)

PROJECT SUMMARY / ABSTRACT The mission of the IMSD@U2 program is to build a diverse biomedical workforce reflective of our general population. In the past four years (2017-2020), the University of Utah’s commitment to diversity and inclusion has resulted in successful recruitment of Underrepresented (UR) students to the Biosciences PhD programs, so that UR students comprise 32% (49 UR/153 total) of the matriculated students. However, we recognize that these substantial gains in the diversity of our incoming PhD classes over the last four years might fail to produce the longer-term objectives of expanding diversity in the biomedical workforce, without effective, sustained and comprehensive inclusion efforts that fortify scientific career development for UR students. The aims of the IMSD@U2 are to train and launch the careers of diverse, creative, and talented underrepresented (UR) students by 1) continuing to build our successful recruitment program for UR students to our University of Utah Bioscience PhD programs; 2) developing and utilizing innovative programs to retain UR students through our ExCEEDS (Excellence in Career Enhancement, Education, Development and Diversity in Science) framework, thereby launching our UR trainees into successful careers; 3) preparing IMSD@U2 trainees to become confident leaders in biomedical research; and 4) mentoring faculty mentors, thus developing and fostering a research-intensive and inclusive environment in which UR trainees and scientists can flourish. In order to accomplish these goals, key proposed activities that augment the current program include: personalized and cohort mentoring, peer outreach efforts and community building, a dynamic onboarding experience to support a successful start to graduate school, leadership development, faculty mentoring and development to better meet the needs of the UR community. Ultimately, we intend for our trainees to complete their qualifying exams, publish original research, apply for and obtain fellowships, complete their PhDs (70% success rate) with a mean time to degree of 6 years, and advance to high-quality postdoctoral and career positions in science-intensive and science-related careers in academia, industry, and government.