Division Launches New Undergraduate Summer Research Program
GMS extends its congratulations and welcome to our 2010 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship students. BU/XU, a new summer research program created through a partnership with Xavier University, is now up and running. Ten undergraduate students from Xavier University and one student from the Emerging Caribbean Scientist program at the University of the Virgin Islands in st. Thomas were selected to join the GMS community for 10 weeks.
BU/XU provides underrepresented college students with the opportunity to explore research in the field. The BU/XU program involves hands-on experience in biomedical laboratories under the close mentorship of GMS faculty and Ph.D. students. Each student is individually assigned to one or more faculty members whose research topics match his or her interests. BU/XU students have chosen to participate in a wide range of research projects, such as investigating the biological basis of obesity and stress-related disorders, the effects of pollution on asthma, the pharmacological treatments for mental and memory disorders, the management of infection in critically ill patients, the uncovering HIV-infection, and the role of inflammation in development and progression of Type 2 diabetes.
Dr. Linda Hyman, Associate Provost for GMS, developed the program and it was implemented by a number of GMS faculty and staff. This year, seven basic sciences programs (Immunology, Microbiology, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Pharmacology, Physiology and Biophysics, Molecular Medicine, and Genetics and Genomics), are participating in BU/XU. The BU/XU experience is fully funded for students by GMS and participating departments.
Besides the incredible oppo
rtunity to learn from nationally recognized professors at a renowned institution, BU/XU students are introduced to life in a learning community: Boston. The BU/XU students live together in a historic brownstone and collaborate, socially and academically, with their peers on the Charles River Campus. Additional student activities include weekly workshops on career development, seminars on current scientific topics, and cultural outings in Boston. Check out this recent article in the Boston Globe.