Fresno State students to earn doctoral degrees at UC Merced
The National Institutes of Health awarded a grant that will help under-represented minority students from Fresno State earn doctoral degrees in biomedical and behavioral sciences at UC Merced.
UC Merced Professor Andy LiWang and Fresno State Professor Krish Krishnan were awarded a nearly $1.4 million Bridges to the Doctorate grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.
The program will recruit four to eight Fresno State students each year who demonstrate the commitment and potential to complete a doctorate program at UC Merced. The grant is the first of its kind at UC Merced and will support and train 36 students over five years.
“The Bridges program will strengthen the research collaborations and catalyze future interactions between students and faculty at Fresno State and UC Merced,” Krishnan said.
Beginning this fall, selected students will complete their master’s degree training with Krishnan and affiliated faculty members at Fresno State. Professors include: Jason Bush, Alam Hasson, Lorin Lachs, Alejandro Calderon-Urrea and Joy Goto.
Students who are in the masters program during their first semester or seniors finishing their B.A. or B.S. degrees and plan to start a masters program after they graduate are eligible to apply, Krishnan said.
At Fresno State, the students will receive financial support and academic guidance as they develop their scientific and research skills. To further their training, they’ll also complete summer internships at UC Merced.
In addition to the tuition, students will be paid a stipend of $12,000 per year. Students will receive research money, GRE training, interact with other under-represented minority scholars and travel to national meetings, Krishnan said.
Upon completion of their master’s degrees, students will transition to more intensive research and study in a doctoral program at UC Merced.
“I feel strongly about UC Merced’s mission to have a transformative effect on the San Joaquin Valley,” LiWang said. “In addition to helping students secure a well-paying job and career, advanced degrees in science boost our nation’s lead in creativity and innovation, producing knowledge and products that are in global demand.”
Krishnan said this program will also benefit the Valley because it will catalyze the concept of higher education in the Valley and will help to retain the talent locally, in turn supporting socio and economic growth.
“We have the infrastructure here to do high quality research on par with other places in the country,” Krishnan said.
This is not the first partnership between Fresno State and UC Merced. Last September at UCSF Fresno, an inaugural Reaching Out to Aspiring Doctors premedical and public health conference was held for undergraduate students who attend UC Merced, Fresno State and Fresno Pacific University.
Brandy Nikaido, director of external relations and special projects at the UC Merced’s Fresno Center, said the conference is biennial, with the next one in September 2016. It will include students from additional schools.
The conference was open to all pre-health students at the three universities, particularly students who were under-represented in health and medicine. It allowed students to network, meet doctors, learn how to apply to medical and graduate schools, find out about financial aid opportunities and offered panels addressing cultural competency in medicine and caring for underserved communities.
Nicole Santos: 559-441-6247, @Iam_NicoleS
This story was originally published July 16, 2015 at 10:44 AM with the headline "Fresno State students to earn doctoral degrees at UC Merced."