PhD Training Programs Research Articles

A Comprehensive Approach to Graduate Education in the Biomedical Sciences

There are roughly 130 biomedical sciences-related PhD training programs in the U.S. with about half of the graduates remaining in academia post-graduation. Biomedical sciences PhD programs emphasize rigorous training in research to prepare students to enter academia but may lack training in other areas that contribute to career success. Trainees face many challenges in graduate school, including meeting the basic scientific knowledge and research milestones, developing strong communication skills, and enriching their skillset through professional and career development opportunities to best position themselves for future success. To accomplish all of this while maintaining a healthy sense of self can be daunting. The Graduate School (TGS) at Augusta University (AU) aims to facilitate ground-breaking research alongside outstanding education by providing a holistic and comprehensive graduate experience. TGS is currently undergoing review and revision of three of the four arms of graduate education: academics, research, student well-being, and professional development. We use data collected from an external review and 52 currently enrolled and previously graduated (within 3 years) biomedical sciences PhD students to identify opportunities for improving the first-year core curriculum at AU. In response, TGS developed a first-year core curriculum committee tasked with reviewing, revising, and addressing gaps in the first-year core curriculum. Furthermore, TGS has developed and launched GradWell, a health and wellness initiative, and has also partnered with external collaborators to offer strategic professional development opportunities to biomedical sciences students, prioritizing holistic growth to enhance the student experience. Continuous programmatic evaluation related to curriculum, student well-being, and professional development is critical to ensure programs are meeting the evolving needs of students while incorporating innovative pedagogy to maximize training opportunities and the development of well-rounded research scientists. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

RWJF Future of Nursing Scholars experience and recommendations: Focus group results at final convening

BackgroundThe Robert Wood Johnson Foundation launched the Future of Nursing Scholars program to support nurses to complete PhDs in 3 years in schools across the United States. PurposeTo explore why scholars participated in the program and to articulate challenges and facilitators to successful completion of their doctoral degrees. MethodThirty-one scholars representing 18 different schools participated in focus groups at a convening in January 2022. FindingsScholars identified that funding and planned length of degree completion were important factors in their choosing the accelerated program. Mentorship, networking, and support were identified as facilitators to program completion with the tight timeline of three years noted as a challenge. DiscussionAccelerated students require adequate resources including access to data, mentoring, and financing to overcome challenges presented by accelerated PhD training programs. Cohort models provide support and clarity of expectations for both students and mentors is critical.

A protocol to evaluate the impact of embedding Public and Patient Involvement in a structured PhD program for stroke care.

BackgroundEmbedding Public and Patient Involvement (PPI) in postgraduate research has been recognized as an important component of post-graduate training, providing research scholars with an awareness and a skillset in an area which prepares them for future roles as healthcare researchers. Improving Pathways for Acute STroke And Rehabilitation (iPASTAR) is a structured PhD training program [Collaborative Doctoral Award (CDA)] which aims to design a person-centered stroke pathway throughout the trajectory of stroke care, to optimize post-stroke health and wellbeing. PPI is embedded at all stages.PurposeThe iPASTAR research programme was strongly informed by a round-table PPI consultation process with individuals who experienced stroke and who provided broad representation across ages, gender, geographical locations (urban and rural) and the PhD themed areas of acute care, early supported discharge and lifestyle-based interventions after stroke. Four PhD scholars taking part in the CDA-iPASTAR now work collaboratively with four stroke champions, supported by a wider PPI advisory panel.MethodsThis study will evaluate the process and impact of embedding PPI during a PhD program. We will conduct a longitudinal mixed-methods evaluation, conducting focus groups at 24, 36, and 48 months to explore the experiences of the key stakeholders involved. The participants will include PhD scholars, PPI partners (PPI Advisory Group and PPI Champions), PhD supervisors and a PPI manager. An independent researcher will conduct the evaluation. We will include focus groups, individual interviews and participant reflections. Qualitative data will be analyzed using thematic and content analysis, quantitative data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics.DiscussionPPI and patient voice initiatives bring together researchers, family, and people with health care issues into meaningful dialogue and allow the development of a patient-voice learning network. Embedding PPI training within a PhD program can build meaningful capacity in PPI partnerships in stroke research.

A novel curricular framework to develop grant writing skills among MD-PhD students.

Physician-scientists have long been in high demand owing to their role as key drivers of biomedical innovation, but their dwindling prevalence in research and medical communities threatens ongoing progress. As the principal avenue for physician-scientist development, combined MD-PhD training programs and NIH-funded Medical Scientist Training Programs (MSTPs) must address all aspects of career development, including grant writing skills. The NIH F-series grants - the F30 grant in particular - model the NIH format of federal funding, and are thus ideal opportunities to acquire biomedical research grant preparation experience. Therefore, in this report, we describe a curricular model through which predoctoral MSTP students obtain exposure to - and training for - F-series grant conceptualization, writing, and evaluation. Since the development of these longitudinal courses, we observed trending improvements in student funding success rates, particularly among original submissions, and perceived benefits among participating students.

Motivating Self-Efficacy in Diverse Biomedical Science Post-baccalaureate and Graduate Students Through Scientific Conference Implementation.

Tactics to increase the number of underrepresented (UR) students in biomedical research PhD training programs have not yet translated to UR faculty numbers that reflect the diversity of the United States. Continued interventions are required to build skills beyond those that result in placement into a PhD program. We hypothesize that successful interventions must build skills that give UR students foundations for confident self-efficacy in leadership. We seek interventions that allow UR students to envision themselves as successful faculty. We posit that development of such skills is difficult in the classroom or laboratory alone. Therefore, novel interventions are required. As part of the NIH-funded Post-baccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP) and Initiative for Maximizing Student Development (IMSD) at the Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, we designed and implemented a unique intervention to support development of student leadership skills: a biannual student-organized and student-led national research conference titled "Scientific Innovation Through Diverse Perspectives" (SITDP). This initiative is based on the concept that students who actively live out realistic roles as scientific leaders will be encouraged to persist to scientific leadership as faculty. Here we describe the motivation for, design of, and outcomes from, the first three pilot conferences of this series. We further discuss approaches needed to rigorously evaluate the effectiveness of such interventions in the future.

Building skill-sets, confidence, and interest for diverse scientific careers in the biological and biomedical sciences.

Many biological science PhD graduates are increasingly pursuing careers outside of academia. Subsequently, PhD training programs are increasing their efforts to broaden their awareness of diverse career opportunities, with a firm knowledge of the skills necessary for success. At Yale University, for two semesters we have offered a new course for graduate students in the biological sciences titled “Skills Development for Diverse Scientific Careers” (BBS 550b). This course addressed career‐related topics not covered in any curriculum at Yale such as how to run clinical trials, the business side of biotech, how to convert CVs into resumes, and resilience for early career scientists. We sought to better equip students to think broadly about their career options by exposing them to non‐academic biomedical career avenues. Furthermore, the course fulfilled a gap in current curricular offerings to prepare students for multiple science career trajectories. Results on a pre‐post course survey demonstrated increases in students’ interest for, knowledge of, and confidence in securing a position in multiple nontraditional career sectors. Intentional course design can provide an adequate foundation to broaden awareness of myriad career options available to bioscientists. Broadening student knowledge and interest levels will contribute substantially to developing a robust scientific workforce.

Future Academic Teachers' Digital Skills: Polish Case-Study

Preparing quality academic teachers for modern digital native students is an essential task for higher educational institutions. Professional teachers' digital competencies combine professional, pedagogical, and technological knowledge and skills as well as beliefs regarding integrating technology in teaching practice. This article is an attempt to study the personal level of digital competence of PhD students as future academic teachers. The paper presents statements from an ongoing study (n=120) piloting large scale longitudinal qualitative teachers' surveys between 2017 and 2020. The first part of the research started in 2017 to attempt to recognize the personal level of digital competence of PhD students as future academic teachers. The study was conducted during 2017-2018 at the Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences. To study the levels of digital competence, a special questionnaire based on the European Competency Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators was used. The study results show different levels of digital competence depending on the students' field of study and specialty. The highest technological scores were demonstrated by PhD students of engineering specializations. However, the results also showed that on average PhD students do not feel well prepared for the practical use of digital techniques in teaching activities. The preliminary study results indicate the need to improve PhD training programs including various ways of developing students' skills for making better use of digital technology for teaching and learning.

Abstract A064: The Meharry Cancer Summer Undergraduate Research Program: Increasing undergraduate exposure to cancer health disparities via summer research experiences

Abstract Few under-represented minorities (URM) pursue careers as physicians and biomedical researchers. This lack of diversity within the scientific and clinical workforce greatly influences our ability to address the public health burden and disparities associated with cancer. To enhance the diversity of the cancer workforce and fully address the problem of cancer health disparities, we must increase the number of URM students who obtain the MD and/or PhD degrees and train in the areas of cancer biology and oncology. To address this issue, we established the Meharry Cancer Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP). The Meharry Cancer SURP is a 10-week intensive, cancer-focused research experience that exposes undergraduate students to the area of cancer health disparities. It is designed to provide participants with a better understanding of how biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research influences cancer outcomes and to inspire participants to pursue careers in cancer research. In the first year of the program, a nationwide search was conducted to identify and select ten undergraduate students who were interested in pursuing careers in medicine and biomedical science. Each student performed a research project with an experienced cancer investigator from either Meharry Medical College or Vanderbilt University Medical Center. The research projects, which included preclinical studies, translational research, and epidemiologic/community-based studies, focused on cancers that disproportionately affect African-Americans and other racial and ethnic minorities. To ensure students understood fundamental concepts common to all cancers and cancer health disparities research, all program participants attended a weeklong cancer biology minicourse. They also attended cancer biology/cancer health disparities research seminars that allowed them to interact with oncologists and cancer researchers from groups traditionally under-represented in biomedical science and to be exposed to career opportunities within the areas of cancer research, oncology, and cancer health disparities. Furthermore, students participated in career development workshops that allowed them to explore cancer-related career options, create individual development plans, and obtain information needed to apply and successfully gain entrance into MD and PhD training programs. Together, these program activities increased student awareness of the fields of cancer biology and cancer health disparities and provided knowledge and tools necessary to successfully pursue cancer-focused careers. Citation Format: Evangeline Motley-Johnson, Katelyn Atkinson, Aliecia Bouligny, Del-vecie Brown, Samuel Delk, Jordan Finch, Kennedi Fitts, Dorian Hill, Faith Mungai, Dalancee Trabue, Kierra Whitelow, LaMonica Stewart. The Meharry Cancer Summer Undergraduate Research Program: Increasing undergraduate exposure to cancer health disparities via summer research experiences [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Eleventh AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2018 Nov 2-5; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2020;29(6 Suppl):Abstract nr A064.

Development of Quantitative Research Skills Competencies to Improve Doctor of Philosophy Nursing Student Training.

Competency-based education is essential to prepare future nurse scientists to compete in the world of data-driven science. Yet, few schools of nursing have developed core competencies that guide quantitative research instruction. We described development of new competency-based curriculum in quantitative research for doctor of philosophy (PhD) nursing students. We assessed quantitative research methods curricula from among top National Institutes of Health-ranked research-intensive Schools of Nursing. At the University of California, San Francisco School of Nursing, we administered a survey to PhD students and alumni, and interviewed program faculty about current quantitative courses and perceived needs. A committee of PhD faculty framed competencies. Core competencies for quantitative methods training were developed. Faculty modified courses to align with core competencies. This allowed an outcome-based approach to design, implement, and evaluate coursework. This effort at generating core quantitative research skills competencies could be useful for other nursing schools interested in redesigning PhD training programs. [J Nurs Educ. 2018;57(8):483-488.].

ОСОБЛИВОСТІ ПОБУДОВИ ЄВРОПЕЙСЬКОЇ СИСТЕМИ ПІДГОТОВКИ КАДРІВ В УКРАЇНІ

It is shown that the implementation process of the European higher education system in Ukraine lacks a deep understanding of the real consequences and possible perspective of this process. Comparison of European and Ukrainian levels of higher education is performed. It is stated that the degree of junior bachelor can be claimed in the wide labor market. It is proved that the degree of doctor of sciences in Ukraine does not fully correspond to the degree of habilitated doctor of sciences in Germany and other countries, and the requirements to the level of qualification exceed the EQF requirements for these scientists. It is proposed to reform the Ukrainian professional development system to assign graduates a doctorate by profession as analogy with universities and higher professional schools in the United States. . The most detailing of higher education standards should be the subject of the utmost attention from the educational community and state institutions in Ukraine. It is stipulated that the implementation of international academic mobility can contribute to the outflow of Ukrainian prospective skilled personnel abroad. It is stated that the research components of PhD-training programs should be followed by the formation of individual, non-formal, even unique programs. The laws of Ukraine do not provide for educational and research doctors of sciences training programs. It removes from the agenda the issue of doctoral studies programs in Ukraine, leaving, at the same time, high requirements for the qualification of this category of scientists that exceed the EQF requirements. It is proposed by the example of the Baltic states to grant automatically a PhD-degree to all candidates of science who so desire and who are entitled to it but former doctors of sciences to habilitate. It is suggested to continue scientific researches of Ukrainian higher education system in order to ensure effective entry into the European educational community.

Methods of Academic Course Planning for Cancer Biology PhD Students to Enhance Knowledge of Clinical Oncology.

Little is known about how clinical oncology concepts are taught to PhD students or the most effective methods of doing so. In this study, electronic surveys were sent to faculty and students at PhD training programs, assessing their institution's methods of clinical oncology education and their perspective on optimal approaches to clinical oncology education. Only 40.0% of students reported any clinical oncology component to their institution's training, and only 26.5% had a clinician on their graduate advisory committee. Forty-three percent of students believed that they had a good understanding for translating basic science research into clinical practice, and 77.2% of all participants believed dual degree MD/PhD students were superior to PhD students in this regard. Lectures on clinical oncology research topics were the most valuable type of experience for all participants and were also the most common type of experience utilized. Working with a clinician to develop a clinical trial with correlative endpoints was also highly valued, but was only utilized by approximately 10% of programs. Faculty rated the value of nearly all types of clinical oncology exposure significantly lower than did students. Inclusion of the approaches identified in this study is likely to enhance PhD training in oncology-related disciplines. Cancer Res; 77(18); 4741-4. ©2017 AACR.

Improving completion rates of students in biomedical PhD programs: an interventional study

BackgroundAnalysis of graduation success at the University of Split School of Medicine PhD programs conducted in 2011 revealed that only 11% of students who enrolled and completed their graduate coursework between 1999 and 2011 earned a doctoral degree. In this prospective cohort study we evaluated and compared three PhD programs within the same medical school, where the newest program, called Translational Research in Biomedicine (TRIBE), established in the academic year 2010/11, aimed to increase the graduation rate through an innovative approach.MethodsThe intervention in the new program was related to three domains: redefined recruitment strategy, strict study regulations, and changes to the curriculum. We compared performance of PhD students between the new and existing programs and analyzed their current status, time to obtain a degree (from enrolment to doctorate), age at doctorate, number of publications on which the thesis was based and the impact factor of journals in which these were published.ResultsThese improvement strategies were associated with higher thesis completion rate and reduced time to degree for students enrolled in the TRIBE program. There was no change in the impact factor or number of publications that were the basis for the doctoral theses.ConclusionOur study describes good practices which proved useful in the design or reform of the PhD training program.

Taking Conceptual Analyses Seriously

We do not take the conceptual component of our science as seriously as we take the empirical component. The reason for this failure to take conceptual analyses seriously is partially historical. Beginning with 19th-century positivism, followed by early 20th-century neo-positivism, and later conventionalism or instrumentalism the Cartesian paradigm dictated the avoidance of any deep conceptual analyses. The reason is also partially due to inertia. Beginning in the 1950s the rules concerning “good science” underwent transformational changes, and these new rules brought conceptual analyses into science as constitutive such that the conceptual and the empirical form a relational indissociable complementarity. However, the structure of our PhD training programs generally continues to hold on to the outmoded anchors of neo-positivists and conventionalists doctrines. The author argues for the redesign of graduate training with the aim of moving toward a parity between training in conceptual components and training in methods/statistical components of science.

The faculty costs to educate a biomedical sciences graduate student.

Academic medical centers nationwide face numerous fiscal challenges resulting from implementation of restructured healthcare delivery models, contracting state support for higher education, and increased competition for federal and other sources of biomedical research funding. In pursuing greater accountability and transparency in its fiscal operations, the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) has implemented a responsibility centers management budgetary model, which requires all MUSC colleges to be eventually self-sustaining financially. Graduate schools in the biomedical sciences are particularly vulnerable in the face of these challenges, depending traditionally as they do on financial support from training grant tuition, occasional medical school tuition and medical practice plan revenues, graduate college-based revenue-generating programs, and faculty payment of PhD tuition. The revenue streams are often insufficient to support PhD training programs, and supplemental financial support is required from the institution. In the context of a college of graduate studies, estimates of the cost of educating a graduate student become a significant necessity. This study presents a readily applicable model of empirically estimating the faculty salary costs that may provide a basis for budgetary planning that will help to sustain a biomedical sciences graduate school's commitment to its teaching, research, and service mission goals.

Applying DEA sensitivity analysis to efficiency measurement of Vietnamese universities

The primary purpose of this study is to measure the technical efficiency of 30 doctorategranting universities, the universities or the higher education institutes with PhD training programs, in Vietnam, applying the sensitivity analysis of data envelopment analysis (DEA). The study uses eight sets of input-output specifications using the replacement as well as aggregation/disaggregation of variables. The measurement results allow us to examine the sensitivity of the efficiency of these universities with the sets of variables. The findings also show the impact of variables on their efficiency and its “sustainability”.

Training for health services and systems research in Sub-Saharan Africa - a case study at four East and Southern African Universities

BackgroundThe need to develop capacity for health services and systems research (HSSR) in low and middle income countries has been highlighted in a number of international forums. However, little is known about the level of HSSR training in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We conducted an assessment at four major East and Southern African universities to describe: a) the numbers of HSSR PhD trainees at these institutions, b) existing HSSR curricula and mode of delivery, and c) motivating and challenging factors for PhD training, from the trainees’ experience.MethodsPhD training program managers completed a pre-designed form about trainees enrolled since 2006. A desk review of existing health curricula was also conducted to identify HSSR modules being offered; and PhD trainees completed a self-administered questionnaire on motivating and challenging factors they may have experienced during their PhD training.ResultsOf the 640 PhD trainees enrolled in the health sciences since 2006, only 24 (3.8%) were in an HSSR field. None of the universities had a PhD training program focusing on HSSR. The 24 HSSR PhD trainees had trained in partnership with a university outside Africa. Top motivating factors for PhD training were: commitment of supervisors (67%), availability of scholarships (63%), and training attached to a research grant (25%). Top challenging factors were: procurement delays (44%), family commitments (38%), and poor Internet connection (35%).ConclusionThe number of HSSR PhD trainees is at the moment too small to enable a rapid accumulation of the required critical mass of locally trained HSSR professionals to drive the much needed health systems strengthening and innovations in this region. Curricula for advanced HSSR training are absent, exposing a serious training gap for HSSR in this region.

A Study of PhD Students’ Perspectives Concerning Pedagogic Training in Doctoral Program

Introduction: Many PhD students will continue their academic career as university lecturers; therefore they should be familiar with presentation skills. Most universities around the world offer postgraduate courses in their PhD curriculums, while such courses are not included in most Iranian PhD programs. Thus at the Education Development Office of Mashhad Medical School, we offered the courses for PhD students and thereafter the viewpoints of these students about such courses in the PhD training programs were assessed. Methods: Thirty two PhD students attended the pedagogic skills course held at School of Medicine of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences in 2012. The students were divided in three smaller groups for workshops presented by experts in educational development office. At the end of each workshop, students’ points of view were evaluated using a questionnaire prepared based on Likert rating scale. Results: The majority of respondents (96.87%) have evaluated the importance of workshops as high to very high levels. The relationship of the training and their future career was assessed as high to very high by 93.75% (p < 0.01). Also, according to most PhD students (93.75%), the addition of such courses to PhD program was highly beneficial (p < 0.01). Students (68.75%) stated that the topics discussed in this training were new to them and they agreed to participate in further trainings in future (87.5%). Conclusion: The courses should be considered of high importance, and accordingly should be included in PhD training curriculums of the universities. This strategy will result in training more successful lecturers and will help to promote education at the universities which is an ultimate goal of the educational systems.

Interview

Isaac Kohane speaks to Sarah Miller, Assistant Commissioning Editor Isaac Kohane, MD, PhD, is the Lawerence J Henderson Professor of Pediatrics and Health Sciences Technology at Harvard Medical School (MA, USA), where he is also Director of the Countway Library of Medicine, the Children’s Hospital Informatics Program and Co-Director of the Harvard Medical School Center for Biomedical Informatics. In addition, he is Director of the Informatics for Integrating Biology to the Bedside (i2b2) center (MA, USA), one of seven NIH-funded National Centers for Biomedical Computing. Dr Kohane is also the Co-Director of the Bioinformatics and Integrative Genomics PhD Training Program at the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology. He earned his Sc.B in Biology from Brown University (RI, USA), and his MD and PhD in computer science from Boston University (MA, USA). Dr Kohane leads multiple collaborations employing genomics and bioinformatics to study cancer and brain development, and he practices pediatric endocrinology at the Children’s Hospital Boston (MA, USA). He is involved in the development of multiple hospital computer systems which can be used as ‘living laboratories’, linking genetic information with clinical data to study the genetics of disease, whilst respecting patient privacy. Dr Kohane has developed cryptographic health identification systems, automated personal health records and peer-to-peer pathology information networks. He also leads NIH-funded initiatives for translating genomic research into the clinical environment, such the i2b2 initiative.

Core Competencies for Research Training in the Clinical Pharmaceutical Sciences

To identify and apply core competencies for training students enrolled in the clinical pharmaceutical scientist PhD training program at the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy. Faculty members reached consensus on the required core competencies for the program and mapped them to curricular and experiential requirements. A rubric was created based on core competencies spanning 8 major categories of proficiency, and competencies of clinical versus traditional PhD training were delineated. A retrospective evaluation of the written comprehensive examinations of 12 former students was conducted using the rubric. Students scored above satisfactory in 11 out of 14 comprehensive examination metrics, with a mean score greater than 3.8 on a 5-point scale. The core competencies identified will provide an essential foundation for informed decision-making and assessment of PhD training in the clinical pharmaceutical sciences.

What Matters for Excellence in PhD Programs?: Latent Constructs of Doctoral Program Quality Used by Early Career Social Scientists

This paper unpacks how social science doctorate-holders come to evaluate overall excellence in their PhD training programs based on their domain-specific assessments of aspects of their programs. Latent class analysis reveals that social scientists 6-10 years beyond their PhD evaluate the quality of their doctoral program with one of two approaches. Graduates of elite programs rely heavily on perceptions of the program's academic rigor; others use perceptions of diverse factors including support in meeting program requirements and efforts to foster a sense of belonging. Those currently employed as faculty tend to use the latter approach. Early career social scientists' assessments of the overall quality of their doctoral program are unrelated to standard measures of program faculty scholarly reputation indicating that alumni assess different dimensions in constructing their conceptions of quality. Characteristics such as gender, age at PhD, career goals at PhD, and social science discipline are also unrelated to which approach to assessing quality respondents employed suggesting that norms about PhD quality are remarkably universal across these types of contextual variables.