Top Graduate Research Articles

Professor Liberato J.A. DiDio - A great anatomist of the 20th century and an advocate of medicine without borders

Liberato J. A. DiDio (1920?2004) was one of the most prominent figures of anatomy belonging to the 20th century?s second half and an open-minded man. In 1984, during the era of communism in Yugoslavia, he opened the doors of the Medical College of Ohio (MCO) in Toledo, OH, USA, to a Serbian doctor. During the troubled times for people and anatomists in Serbia in 1994, he saved their association from being expelled from the International Federation of Anatomical Associations. In 1999, only a few months after the bombing of Yugoslavia, he helped them to get the organization of the XVIII International Symposium on Morphological Sciences in 2005, the meeting of the leaders in the field. Serbian anatomists and clinicians proved that he was right when considering them on a par with their peers in the international anatomical and medical community. Professor DiDio first showed talent with Gold Medal ? top graduate at his high school, and La Royale Award (Graduation Golden Ring) ? top graduate MD. He was trained in Brazil, Italy, and the US. He was the Founding Chairman ? Department of Topographical Anatomy, Faculdade de Ciencias Medicas, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Head of Gross and Surgical Anatomy, Northwestern University Medical, Dental, and Graduate Schools; Founding Chairman, Department of Anatomy, MCO; Professor Emeritus at the age of 70 (1990), Assistant to the President of the MCO, Consultant to the President and the Emeritus Dean (1992?2004). He was a member of editorial boards of 34 journals, academic adviser in 92 M.S. and Ph.D. theses.

Building research skills in the Macalester economics major

ABSTRACTEconomics majors at Macalester College have won numerous awards for their research papers, and this success has helped them land jobs in finance, consulting, and the nonprofit sector, as well as gain admission to top graduate programs. This article describes how the Economics Department at Macalester promotes economic research among its students.

Internacionalização da pós-graduação no Brasil: lógica e mecanismos

Resumo Nas últimas duas ou três décadas, a dimensão internacional tornou-se parte integral da educação de nível superior e da pesquisa científica, motivando a emergência da noção de internacionalização. Neste artigo, a lógica e os mecanismos de internacionalização implementados pelos programas de pós-graduação (PPGs) que receberam notas seis e sete na Avaliação Trienal 2010 promovida pela Capes são examinados. Ao todo, 322 coordenadores de programas de pós-graduação foram convidados a responder a um questionário web organizado em três seções que lidavam com diferentes aspectos dos esforços de internacionalização empreendidos pelos programas que coordenavam, quais sejam: concepções e justificativas; estratégias, iniciativas e parceiros; fatores facilitadores e inibidores. Após validação, restaram 66 questionários que forneceram os dados empíricos de base deste estudo. Entre os PPGs brasileiros de excelência, identificou-se a prevalência de uma concepção de internacionalização orientada a atividades: a mobilidade acadêmica para o exterior é vista como o principal mecanismo de acesso à experiência internacional, à formação de redes e ao estabelecimento de colaborações internacionais em pesquisa. Embora incipiente, iniciativas para atrair pesquisadores estrangeiros e outros esforços de internacionalização em casa estão ganhando força. A presença de docentes formados no exterior, capazes de mobilizar suas redes externas para estabelecer intercâmbios e parcerias científicas é considerada condição chave para a internacionalização da pós-graduação e da pesquisa no Brasil. Porém, a falta de uma estratégia nacional e de sistemas administrativos e políticas institucionais adequados na maioria das instituições de ensino superior do país obstaculizam o desenvolvimento desses laços em um processo mais significante e sustentado de cooperação científica internacional.

8-213 2012理数学生育成支援事業:スマート・ドミトリーによるトップ・グラジュエイツ育成プログラムの一事例 : エネルギー社会を支える未来材料・装置の開発:水素循環によるエコ社会の実現に向けて(オーガナイズドセッション:学生の学習活動事例-VI)

8-213 2012理数学生育成支援事業:スマート・ドミトリーによるトップ・グラジュエイツ育成プログラムの一事例 : エネルギー社会を支える未来材料・装置の開発:水素循環によるエコ社会の実現に向けて(オーガナイズドセッション:学生の学習活動事例-VI)

An introduction to mindfulness and sensemaking by highly reliable organizations in Latin America

This introduction describes exploratory studies about the relevance of Karl Weick's HRO propositions in Latin American contexts. Eleven case studies constitute the core of the special issue. The research questions include the following issues. How do Weick's concepts apply to organizations that operate in this region? What are the lessons learned from these eleven mindful organizations? How can these insights inform the management practices of other business leaders in Latin America? The organizations described in these eleven cases, which have been chosen from a sample of 396 cases produced between 2001 and 2013 at INCAE, the leading producer of cases among the top graduate schools of management in Latin America, exhibit between two and five characteristics of highly mindful organizations: (a) preoccupation with failure, (b) reluctance to simplify, (c) sensitivity to operations, (d) commitment to resilience, and (e) deference to expertise. Despite not being quoted among scholars in Latin America, Weick's concepts of mindfulness and high reliability organizations (HROs) are relevant in a region bound by uncertainty.

Workaholism and Marital Satisfaction Among Female Professionals

Workaholism is a modern construct pertaining to how one relates to work pursuits. It has been commonly operationalized as excessive work involvement, driven by internal compulsions, and accompanied by low professional enjoyment. This study evaluated the effect of Spence and Robbins’ workaholism triad on marital satisfaction among professional women. Self-report measures were collected online from 266 married alumnae from top graduate schools of business currently in the U.S. labor force. Workaholism components were found to explain a significant amount of variance in marital satisfaction with lack of work enjoyment and high work involvement related to low marital satisfaction. Drive did not exert a significant effect. Results demonstrate that workaholic behaviors and attitudes are associated with poorer marital functioning in this population.

Mott Award Honors Top Graduate Students

Mott Award Honors Top Graduate Students

A double dose of advice.

In 2006, I flew across the ocean to study molecular biology at the University of Colorado, Boulder. As the top graduate from my program at Zhejiang University in China, I had no problem learning from a textbook or solving equations. Graduate school, however, was not like studying from a book. In graduate school, every student writes her own book, and sometimes there is no equation to follow. I had another challenge, too, a challenge of my choosing: coordinating two labs and two advisers. Early in graduate school, I did lab rotations in three labs, and I liked two of them. The principal investigators in those labs—Kristi Anseth and Leslie Leinwand—were collaborators, so they agreed to let me take on a collaborative project. My goal was to engineer cardiac valve tissue for patients who need valve replacement surgery. Achieving that could have a big medical payoff, but to make it work, we needed to understand the fundamental interactions between cardiac valve cells and the tissue matrix surrounding them. It was my job to bring together fundamental and applied expertise. ![Figure][1] “Co-advised students get twice as many researchers to interact with.” ILLUSTRATION: ROBERT NEUBECKER To make co-advising work, everyone needs to play an active role. But you—the graduate student—are the main actor in this movie, so you must take the lead. Here are some things I learned from the experience. The result? I found that culturing cardiac valve cells on synthetic hydrogels preserves their normal properties better than the traditional plastic plates do, and I discovered a signaling pathway connecting the stiffness of the supporting scaffold to the cells' cytoskeletal structure. One laboratory taught me diverse molecular and cellular techniques, and the other trained me to engineer biocompatible scaffolds. The interaction of these disciplines shaped my scientific perspective and focused my career on understanding and engineering organs for clinical applications. I earned my Ph.D. with confidence, a deep appreciation of both disciplines, and gratitude toward my advisers—both of them! [1]: pending:yes

Limiting Applications in College Admissions and Evidence from Conflicting Examinations

We present a college admissions model in which schools could gain from limiting students’ application portfolios, and derive conditions that a lower ranked school can attract better students by using such strategy. We then test the model with conflictions of entrance examination dates among top graduate schools in Taiwan. The empirical results suggest that the second best school on average will have lower student quality if it conflicts with the best one. However, for some departments with similar prestige to the best one, their students’ quality is improved by applying such conflicting strategy. Moreover, we identify departments’ optimal choices based on revealed preferences and find that student quality was also improved with such choices. Finally, we measure prestige differences and show that a department with close prestige to the best one tends to adopt the conflicting strategy.

What aspects of letters of recommendation predict performance in medical school? Findings from one institution.

To study medical students' letters of recommendation (LORs) from their applications to medical school to determine whether these predicted medical school performance, because many researchers have questioned LORs' predictive validity. A retrospective cohort study of three consecutive graduating classes (2007-2009) at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences was performed. In each class, the 27 students who had been elected into the Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) Honor Medical Society were defined as top graduates, and the 27 students with the lowest cumulative grade point average (GPA) were designated as "bottom of the class" graduates. For each student, the first three LORs (if available) in the application packet were independently coded by two blinded investigators using a comprehensive list of 76 characteristics. Each characteristic was compared with graduation status (top or bottom of the class), and those with statistical significance related to graduation status were inserted into a logistic regression model, with undergraduate GPA and Medical College Admission Test score included as control variables. Four hundred thirty-seven LORs were included. Of 76 LOR characteristics, 7 were associated with graduation status (P ≤ .05), and 3 remained significant in the regression model. Being rated as "the best" among peers and having an employer or supervisor as the LOR author were associated with induction into AOA, whereas having nonpositive comments was associated with bottom of the class students. LORs have limited value to admission committees, as very few LOR characteristics predict how students perform during medical school.

Faculty perception of the effectiveness of EBP courses for graduate nursing students.

Effective teaching is key in preparing students to become successful evidence-based healthcare professionals. The effectiveness of graduate evidence-based practice (EBP) pedagogy is not often a subject of research studies. The purpose of this study was to determine how faculty from the 50 top graduate nursing schools in the United States perceived the effectiveness of EBP courses for graduate nursing students. A descriptive cross-sectional design was used to explore faculty perception of the effectiveness of EBP courses. A web-based survey was used for data collection. A total of 45 questionnaires were subjected to statistical analysis. The mean perception of the effectiveness of EBP courses for the whole sample, on a scale from 1 to 7, was 5.58 (min. 4.29; max. 6.73), a higher score signifying higher perceived effectiveness. The highest rated item concerned a school's access to different databases. The strongest correlations were found between the total score and the scores for items describing students' opportunities to strengthen and apply their EBP skills (rs = .66). The internal consistency of the Perception of Effectiveness of EBP Courses scale, based on standardized Cronbach's alpha, was .84, which signifies strong internal consistency. Faculty perceived themselves as most competent at the following EBP skills: (a) "Asking questions regarding patients' care" (6.56), (b) "Considering patient preferences when implementing EBP" (6.40), and (c) "Critically appraising the relevant body of evidence to address clinical questions" (6.40). To strengthen the effectiveness of EBP courses, students should have more opportunities to implement their EBP knowledge and skills after completing EBP courses. Evaluation of faculty perceptions of the effectiveness of EBP courses can help to guide the development of nursing school curricula that better integrate EBP. Further evaluation of the psychometric properties of the instrument used to measure perception of the effectiveness of EBP courses is required along with objective measures of faculty knowledge and skills in teaching EBP.

Mott Award Honors Top Graduate Students

Mott Award Honors Top Graduate Students

Leading through partnership: enhancing the Teach First Leadership Programme

Teach First works in partnership with government, business organisations, higher education institutions (providers of Initial Teacher Training, ITT) and schools to offer a two-year integrated Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) Leadership Development Programme; the first cohort of students were accepted in 2003. Its delivery of an integrated QTS/leadership programme, recruitment of top graduates who would not otherwise consider teaching, focus on teaching in challenging schools and joint business–Higher Education Institution delivery, set Teach First within a unique position amongst ITT partnerships in England. In 2008, building on its success, Teach First sought to enhance its Leadership Development Programme, relevant to teachers and leaders in all fields, including the development of an optional Masters route. This paper considers the development of the enhanced programme within the Teach First partnership model and explores the merits of the programme in developing teachers. Evidence suggests that the core values, focus on mission and strong ethos have been major contributory factors to its success.

Mott Award Honors Top Graduate Students

CSA NewsVolume 58, Issue 5 p. 30-30 Career & Education Mott Award Honors Top Graduate Students First published: 01 May 2013 https://doi.org/10.2134/csa2013-58-5-19Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume58, Issue5May 2013Pages 30-30 RelatedInformation

Identifying and Nurturing Future Innovators in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics: A Review of Findings From the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth

Calls to strengthen education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are underscored by employment trends and the importance of STEM innovation for the economy. The Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY) has been tracking over 5,000 talented individuals longitudinally for 40 years, throwing light on critical questions in talent identification and development in STEM. SMPY includes individuals identified in 7th/8th grade as in the top 1% or higher in mathematical or verbal ability, and a comparison group identified as top STEM graduate students. SMPY findings cover the educational and occupational attainments of participants, including a large percentage earning a degree or pursuing high powered careers in STEM; gender differences; the extent to which high school experiences, abilities, and interests predict later outcomes; and subsequent creative production. Mathematical reasoning ability as measured by standardized tests is a reliable predictor for later math/science engagement and achievement in adulthood, and spatial ability adds predictive value. Exposure to appropriate educational opportunities do correlate with career achievement and creative production. SMPY researchers have concluded that potential future STEM innovators can be identified early and that educational interventions can increase their chances of success.

Sustainability and Graduate Business Education: An Analysis of the Need, Best Efforts to Date, and Curriculum Recommendations

This paper examines the current state of green education by identifyingthe top graduate business programs that offer high quality education,relevant coursework, and sustainable campus-wide operations. The paperbrings to light a strong need for more comprehensive and integratedcoursework within the core curriculum of our nation's top programs.The paper provides the opportunity for enhanced thought leadership byintroducing a series of four classes that represent a cross-section of themost important concepts of sustainability.

Interview with Singapore Filmmaker Boo Junfeng

BOO JUNFENG is a young Singapore filmmaker (b. 1983) who came into the media spotlight after his first feature, Sandcastle (2010), was invited to premiere in the International Critics' Week (Semaine de la critique) at the Cannes IFF and to compete for the Caméra d'Or award. At this point, the director already had behind him seven successful shorts and an episode in the feature Lucky 7 (2007). A top student at the School of Film and Media Studies at Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore, he was awarded the Shaw Foundation Gold Medal and the Media Development Authority Prize as the top graduate of his class. His short film debut, Un retrato de familia (A Family Portrait, 2004), produced during his stay on an exchange programme at the Escola Superior de Cinema i Audiovisuals de Catalunya won the Silver Screen Awards for Best Film and Special Achievement at the 18th...

Evaluating the Entry Barriers to the Litigation Profession in India

In the summer of 2009 a survey of law students, advocates and judges was carried out by the Research Foundation for Governance in India. The survey brought to light a disturbing statistic that only 12% of lawyers and judges believe that “bright youngsters” are joining the litigation profession. In other words, the most interested, ambitious and talented graduates are avoiding a profession which is the foundation of the justice system, a profession which is in desperate need of the best graduates the country has to offer. Following this, further surveys were carried out focusing on the bridge between legal education and “Junior” level litigation. This article comprises an analysis of the results of these surveys, and considers the reasons why capable graduates are passing up a career as an advocate. It aims to show that, despite the fact that entrance to litigation is formally undemanding, there are certain informal “barriers” preventing and dissuading most of India’s top graduates from becoming advocates in the courts. The article identifies what these “barriers” are, and presents evidence to show that they are discouraging the most qualified graduates, that is to say those who have graduated from India’s National Law Schools, from entering the profession. The article then presents a comparison with the entrance to litigation in the UK and the USA, and finishes by presenting a number of recommendations as to how the system can be improved in India.

Health Journalism Internships: A Social Marketing Strategy to Address Health Disparities

The USA seeks to eliminate health disparities by stimulating the rapid uptake of health-promoting behaviors within disadvantaged communities. A health journalism internship incorporates social marketing strategies to increase communities' access to cancer information, while helping the interns who are recruited from underrepresented communities gain admission to top graduate schools. Interns are taught basic health journalism skills that enable them to create immediate streams of cancer-related press releases for submission to community newspapers. Interns are charged with the social responsibility of continuing this dissemination process throughout their careers. Intermediate outcomes are measured as mediators of distal behavioral change goals.

Graduate Training in Sociological Theory and Theory Construction

Nearly all of sociology's top graduate training programs require their students to complete one or two courses on sociological theory. The instructors for these courses have an extraordinary opportunity to affect the perspectives and practices of future generations of scholars. This study assesses the backgrounds, attitudes, beliefs, and practices of those instructors regarding different approaches to theorizing, with particular attention paid to topics related to science and to theory construction. Sociologists who teach required theory courses in the discipline's top fifty graduate training programs were asked a series of questions pertaining to their own training and to the courses they were teaching: Attitudes toward different kinds of theorizing, perceptions of the role that theory plays in sociology and in science, and views on the nature of science. Results indicate a strong consensus on the most important classical theorists (Marx, Weber, and Durkheim). However, attitudes and practices varied widely in regard to other classical theorists, contemporary sociological theory, and the role of scientific standards in the development of sociological knowledge. The author explores some of the implications of these attitudes and practices.