|
 The
decision to attend graduate school was a very difficult one and it
changed my life completely.
After finishing my bachelors in Marine Biology at the University of
Puerto Rico-Humacao Campus, I wanted to enter the field of biomedical
sciences, but I was not sure if I wanted to go to graduate school yet.
I decided that a good way to make my decision was to work for a year or
two as a technician and then decide what I wanted to do later.
Recruiters from the National Institute of Health (NIH) came to my
undergraduate University to talk about the fellowships that they offered
for recent collage graduates. NIH was looking in particular for
underrepresented minorities, and being a Puerto Rican qualified me for
such fellowships. I applied and was honored to receive an award under
which I worked for two years in a laboratory at the National Cancer
Institute (NCI) in Maryland. After a year of working in the NCI, I
decided that I liked the laboratory work, the critical thinking, and
problem solving skills that it involved, and decided to apply to attend
graduate school in order to pursue a PhD. It seemed like the right thing
to do and it became another goal of mine that I wanted to pursue. During
my undergraduate studies I was influenced by professors that told me
that if I wanted to stay in the field of biomedical sciences, I needed
to pursue a Ph.D., because doing a Masters was a waste of my time. They
said that if I knew that I wanted to do a Ph.D., I might as well go and
do it. A month before I decided that I wanted to pursue the Ph.D., I
still had doubts. Interestingly, I was approached by a scientist from a
federal agency who offered me a job at that agency starting at around
$45,000 a year. It involved a proteomic project, and no prior experience
in the field was necessary. At this time, I was faced with a difficult
decision; I went back and forth between having a “real” job and doing my
PhD. Luckily, I had a husband that helped me make the decision by saying
that he supported me no matter what and that I should follow my goals
and dreams.
As I
began the process of applying to graduate school, I had to keep in mind
that this decision was not only changing my life, but also my husband’s.
We would have to move to another state and my husband had to find a job.
I decided to look for places were we would both feel comfortable living
and that had potential for him to find a job in his profession.
Additionally we both had agreed that it needed to be a place that had
similar weather to Puerto Rico and that was closer to the ocean. After
living in Maryland for two years, we both wanted warmer weather; this is
one reason why Galveston was on the top of our list.
Initially, when I applied to graduate school I knew that I wanted my PhD
but was not sure in which area specifically. I choose UTMB, because it
gave me the option of different graduate programs within different
departments after exploring and learning known and new areas that I
might had not chosen had I not enter this University.
I initially learn about UTMB because of the Marine Biomedical Institute.
Early in the process, I thought that I could try to go back to my Marine
Biology background via integrating it with biomedical research. When
searching for graduate programs that offer this opportunity I ran across
UTMB and its Marine Biomedical Institute, I then decided not to pursue
this at the moment and that I wanted to stay in the cancer field.
As I
started the application process, I liked that UTMB offered online
application services. The contact personnel (Jessica Linton and Belinda
Vega) were very helpful over the phone and email. They both did a great
job in answering all my questions either over the phone or via email
(their favorite venue, as we all know). When I was invited for an
interview, the faculty was very helpful, and did a great job in
describing the different programs and what UTMB had to offer if I were
to come to UTMB. I loved the relaxed environment around campus at the
time of my visit, the friendliness of the students and faculty, and the
great support for students. It seemed as if UTMB really listened to its
students and did not take them for granted. The students did a great job
in recruiting and “selling” the University. I fell in love with the
campus, especially the Old Red Building. I am still amazed by its
architecture, warm color, as well as its history. The fact that UTMB
offered the highest stipend over ALL the universities that I was
considering affected my decision, although it was the only university
that did not pay tuition, which is something that UTMB might have to
consider. The graduate school should consider at least letting the
mentors pay the students’ tuition if they are willing to do so.
After leaving my interview and returning home, I kept receiving phone
calls and emails, as well as letters from faculty telling me about the
school and how glad they were to have me visit the school.
It was the kindness, helpfulness and signs of collaborative research
environment that set UTMB apart from the other schools that I visited,
as well as its location in close proximity to the beach and the weather.
The interview process was excellent although it felt more like
recruitment when I arrived and met everyone. We met the program
directors from the programs that we had expressed interest in, as well
as some of the students from the different programs. One flaw during my
visit was the fact that I was not allowed much time to see the island
and get acquainted with the place. I wanted to see more but the schedule
did not allow that. Most of the other school interviews I went on flew
me out on Sunday so that I had Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning to
explore. Although visiting the school was good, the graduate school
needs to keep in mind that the transfer to UTMB involves more than just
the research and academics of the school, it involves a new lifestyle in
a new place. All the information that I needed to know about UTMB to
make a conscious decision whether to come or not was supplied during the
interview process. I noticed the students played a mayor role during the
interview process, which told me that the school does take into
consideration students’ input. One thing I liked, and it is a shame it
does not exist anymore, was the room that was setup for the first year
students that do not yet have a lab to work in. In addition, the fact
that some of the principal investigators were active clinicians told me
that UTMB works hard in bridging patient care with bench research. In
conclusion, I loved the quality of the research, the faculty, the
students, the hospitality, and the tranquility of the university
surroundings.
When I
first read the email from Jessica telling me that I was accepted to the
program, I got very excited because a new life was about to begin and I
was closer to my new goal. This news also came with fear, because the
idea of moving to a new state just hit me, and I was afraid that my
husband could not find a job. This all changed once we started the
transition process. We where very blessed that my husband found a job on
the island in his profession that he still loves and is glad he found.
We told each other that this was meant to happen and that everything was
going to be fine if we worked hard in our new lifestyles.
My
interactions with faculty, students, and staff have been wonderful ever
since I arrived at UTMB. The professors in our core classes treated us
with respect and were very knowledgeable of the subjects. I had the
opportunity of taking two graduate level advanced courses in
Biochemistry at Johns Hopkins University while I was working in NCI. If
I were to rank those two courses in depth, breath and difficulty and
rank courses taken at UTMB, I would rank them in the same range. UTMB
does not have to envy any other top school because it has the top
faculty working for it and I hope it continues like that for many years.
The first year core curriculum was a great venue for getting everybody
from different backgrounds in the same track. Sometimes students master
certain areas based on their prior experiences, but lack expertise in
others. The curriculum covered all the areas that we needed, to prepare
us for the laboratory work as well as qualifying exams. It also helped
me decide, as well as gave me a better understanding of what I wanted to
work on, and introduced me to most of the techniques that I encountered
and needed in the lab.
In terms of choosing graduate programs, one of the reasons why I decided
to join the Cell Biology Program was because of its multidisciplinary
characteristic. The way the program is designed provides an integrated
education, which exposes students to projects that focus on different
levels of molecular and cellular biology. The curriculum is flexible so
that each student can tailor it to his or her interests.
I am still in the process of applying to candidacy, I have already taken
and successfully completed the first part of the qualifying exam and
still need to complete the second part in which I need to write my
dissertation proposal in a grant style format and do a public oral
defend, which I am working on now. The first part of the qualifying exam
was very good in making sure that we have a good understanding of some
important concepts in the field of Cell Biology.
During
my first semester, I placed out of Biochemistry, which gave me the
opportunity to do a laboratory rotation. I rotated in a laboratory at
The Sealy Center for Cancer Cell Biology (SCCCB) thinking that it would
help me make a decision of whether to stay in the cancer field or
explore new areas. At that time, I was not that familiar with all the
laboratories at UTMB, so I decided to take the recommendations that my
assigned coordinator gave me based on my experiences. During that first
semester, I familiarized myself with other programs and the research
being conducted and decided to stay in the cancer field. I was amazed by
the research done in the Center and the interaction that it has with the
clinicians. In particular, I was looking for a mentor that had the time
to teach me, one on one in the laboratory, and that was not traveling
all the time so that I could meet them constantly to discuss my progress
and where to go. I was fortunate enough to find Dr. Kathleen O’Connor, a
member of the SCCCB, who gave me the wonderful opportunity of working
with her. She has been an excellent mentor and we get along very well. I
was told that getting along with your mentor is an important factor in
one’s graduate studies because the relationship will last for many years
after graduation. As far as the other laboratories in which I rotated,
two of the laboratories left UTMB and the last one did not have enough
money to support me, but during all my rotations I got along very well
with the mentors as well as learned a lot from them.
In
terms of funding, one disadvantage of joining a laboratory that has
recently been setup is that most of them are in the process of applying
for “big” grants to support their laboratories. Even though I was
assured that there would be money to support me in the laboratory I work
now, I decided to apply for external funding to take advantage of my
prior credentials and some of the minority student grants being offered,
as well as start building my CV. I was fortune to receive my own grant
from the National Cancer Institute to support most of my stipend, health
insurance, and part of my tuition.
Outside of class or lab work, I am involved with two student
organizations; the Graduate Student Organization, in which I had served
for a year as the Cell Biology Representative, and the International
Student Organization, in which I have served for two years as a co chair
in planning the
activities as well as executing them. Participating in the International
Student Organization has been very rewarding, because it has given me
the opportunity of meeting students from other UTMB schools and that
have come to UTMB from other countries.
Every
day I come to work thinking that I really love what I do and that it
will be a different day because my work is special in the sense that it
pays me to think, integrate information, as well as be creative with new
and innovative ways of doing things. But on the other hand, when your
ideas and experiments do not work after spending lots of hours in the
laboratory, and in my case, giving up what I love the most, which is
spending quality time with my husband; it does make for a very bad day
at UTMB. A great day at UTMB is a day in which the experiments I perform
provide us with meaningful data that brings us one-step closer to
answering the different questions that we ask in our lab.
Since
I joined UTMB I have had the opportunity of attending two scientific
meetings, at one of which I presented a poster (The American Association
for Cancer Research (AACR) and another one, (the AACR Special
Conference, Pancreatic Cancer 2004: Advances and Challenges) for which I
won a travel award. During these two conferences, I felt that I was able
to represent UTMB as a well prepared student, defending my work and my
data.
I had
been married for two years when I started at UTM, and in my case it has
been the best thing. I receive the most support from my husband who
helps me during times of struggle and when an experiment does not go as
planned. He understands the long hours in the lab and has even brought
me food to work in the evenings so that I could work longer hours. We
have even eaten in the car in front of MRB so that I can get back to
work sooner. The fact that he is not in science and does not completely
understand what I do in the lab helps. All this makes our marriage even
stronger and it balances my life.
UTMB
has become my home and I intend to learn from this new home as much as I
can. I will take advantage of all the opportunities given to me as well
as be part of the increased diversity that it has. UTMB’s diversity
comes from its wonderful mix of people that come from all over the world
and join forces in one place with a common goal, to do good science and
take care of the health of patients. UTMB has been doing this for many
years and I know it will continue to do so for many years to come. In
the meantime, I love to contribute to its diversity as a native Puerto
Rican whose Hispanic roots and Spanish language can contribute to the
University in different ways. I think UTMB will provide me with the
necessary tools for me to be a successful scientist in the future.
Since UTMB is a state funded school, the only way
a mentor can pay tuition for a student is to increase the
student stipend. Some mentors choose to do this and some do not.
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 Training
Students for Changing Demands in Biomedical Research
Student Perspectives on Meeting this Challenge
While
obtaining my Master’s of Science degree in 1997, I recognized that the
process of graduate school was a time of life change, learning, and
personal development. However, now at the age of thirty-four, I naively
thought that I had completed most of my personal development and that
real life changes could not be more diverse than having your first
child. I was wrong. I was wonderfully wrong.
My experience as a graduate student at University of Texas Medical
Branch, Galveston (UTMB) has been personally challenging, sometimes
overwhelming, and truly exciting. After completing my first year, I
believe that the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences has provided me
with a solid foundation and confidence to pursue a successful career in
science. I also believe that the unique learning structure in both the
laboratory and classroom at UTMB has helped me to address the changing
demands of research in the biomedical field.
The
changing demands on my personal life:
Two
years ago, I (with the incredible support of my family) decided to
dedicate my future to obtaining a doctoral degree in science.
After working in molecular biology research for over thirteen years and
then working in business as a consultant, I knew how I wanted to sculpt
my future. I knew that I wanted an academic career, for the sake of my
family and for myself. My short time as a consultant made me
realize my love for research and I recognized that obtaining my
doctorate would provide me with the opportunities to direct my life
where I wanted. I reviewed several curricula at various universities and
I applied to only four. During my interview processes, UTMB impressed me
on several levels, but the most impressive was the coordination of the
students and staff. Together, they displayed outstanding involvement,
energy, and professionalism during the interview process. This aspect
was unique to UTMB and gave me confidence in my decision to pursue my
degree in Galveston.
When
people ask me, “How are you doing in graduate school?” I almost always
reply, “I’m not a straight A student, but it’s a blast”. That really
sums up my experiences. I believe the graduate school faculty has
mindfully structured the first year class curriculum and timing of lab
rotations in a way for students to obtain the most from them. The
classes are challenging, but not dreadful. However, most of my personal
challenges do not lie in the classroom or the laboratory. They lie in
balancing my personal life with my son and completing my obligations
that I have made with the school and my mentor.
Three
times a week, my average day begins at about six in the morning. That’s
when I start brewing my half pot of coffee that gets me up and going.
After my first cup, I start my reading. My goal is to read and review
one assigned paper every morning. Once I’ve finished that, I get my son
up to go to his school. At three years old, he can be a bit grumpy at
seven in the morning. His reluctance to get dressed has many times put
me late for class, but I have now designed that into our morning
schedule. Once he’s dressed and fed, we meander into the car and take
off for the thirty minute drive to the daycare. After I drop him off, my
real day begins with the hour drive from Lake Jackson to Galveston. I
use this time to organize my day into class time, lab time, and gym
time. Once on campus, my world is completely different. I’m no longer
surrounded by my three-foot, spider-man imitator. I’m surrounded instead
by intellectual, excited students, many of which are ten years my
junior.
I find
in my classmates a youthful energy that seems to fade too quickly in us
exhausted thirty-something’s. For me, their energy is contagious and has
provided me with a little boost when I need it. The companionship and
support exhibited by these students is what gets many of us through the
rough times of the first year. The graduate school faculty initiates and
fosters this support in many ways by providing tutors for the students
as well as designing class discussion times.
Three
nights a week, my campus time ends at two thirty in the afternoon, when
I leave to pick up my son from daycare. That is my alone time with him
until he goes to bed at eight thirty. Then, again my school work takes
over until I go to bed. The two nights a week that I don’t have him, I’m
usually working in the lab or just trying to catch up/get ahead in my
class work. There is little time for socializing, but one has to do it.
It should be done out of retaining one’s sanity and knowing that
everyone else is going through similar circumstances.
I am
now at the beginning of my second year. I have designated a department,
found a mentor, and have initiated work for my dissertation. I am
excited about the future for several reasons. First is that I feel as
though I am on a good track to accomplish my goals within the time
constraints that I have. Second, I am confident that my experiences
gained from my first year will resolve to pull me through to the end of
my degree. Finally, I know that I have completed steps to an end and
that end will lead to my desired future goals.
The
changing demands of research: Know your business!
For
me, the most dynamic and plastic aspect of biomedical research is its
interrelationship with business. Ten years ago, few mentors had the
forethought for training their students for something other than an
academic career. In fact, when I accepted my first position at a
biotechnology company after receiving my master’s degree, my mentor
scoffed and said, “You’ll hate it Carla. You’ll see”. To my delight, I
loved it. I enjoyed the fast pace, the business aspect, and the fact
that I was surrounded by talented and diverse people. All these people
had different backgrounds that allowed them to perform their specific
task impeccably and efficiently. This was all in an air of confidence
because you knew you were working with the best people. There seemed to
be less competitiveness due to the distinct and focused mindset. That
position gave me a taste of a new aspect of research of which I had
previously never been aware and I flourished in it.
Upon
interviewing with several faculty members at UTMB, I was impressed with
the newly developing perception that research out of academia is an
opportunity for diversification of one’s career. Also, the required
first year curriculum provided us with several opportunities to
understand the research opportunities available. In one way, this was
accomplished by team teaching of the required courses by several faculty
members. Each faculty member lectured over the subject(s) that they were
most familiar. This allowed the student to become familiar with the
faculty member and their work.
The
required lab rotations were an invaluable tool for students to
understand the demands as well as opportunities that accompany graduate
training. The rotations are long enough to accomplish a focused project,
but short enough that the project was not cumbersome. The rotations
provided insight into the workings of an average lab and allowed one the
flexibility to choose a project that truly interested them.
Working in several labs in such a short period of time allowed the
students to compare and contrast the pace, goals, and personality of
each lab and subject area. In addition, changing labs forced the student
to stop focus on one type of research and to move on to a very different
subject matter. I believe this was a wonderful tool to show students how
one may work on an industrial research and development team. Industry is
constantly changing and the demands on researchers are diverse. A
researcher must be flexible in their field of science and aware that
projects could be truncated before all the questions are addressed. The
movement from one lab rotation to next aids students by providing them
with an aspect of this working style.
In
summary, I am confident and pleased with the graduate program at UTMB.
Through providing the students with opportunities for understanding the
responsibilities and challenges facing them in their future projects,
they have established a first year curriculum that is outstanding. I
look forward to developing my academic career for a possible future in
the academic, business field or any other arena that I choose upon the
completion of my degree from University of Texas Medical Branch at
Galveston.
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 Applying
to graduate school(s):
I knew
from high school chemistry, physics and math that I wanted to go into a
science discipline. My first lab rotation in college solidified my
desire to work in molecular biology. After working in a lab for a couple
of weeks, I knew I wanted to attend graduate school and obtain a PhD in
molecular/cellular biology. Basically, in the lab I quickly picked up on
the techniques and direction of the project and this made me excited
about advancing the project. I also met many encouraging graduate
students that prompted me to follow in their foot steps and become a
graduate student. As an undergraduate, I envied the graduate students
day to day experiences and their future careers. This furthered my
desire to attend graduate school and pursue a career in research. The
idea of pursing a masters degree never appealed to me. I was interested
in the study of medicine and research which resulted in enrolling in a
combined MD and PhD program.
At
first glance UTMB was not an attractive choice for me based on my area
of research interest (cancer cell biology). I interviewed at UTMB not
expecting to really come to Galveston but when I left my interviews, I
was impressed with the people and the slower pace of life on the island.
I knew if I chose to come to UTMB my lab selections would be limited but
I knew Galveston and UTMB would offer a good quality of life.
I also was drawn to UTMB by the strong student body interaction provided
by the on campus fraternity system. In addition to life style and
student interactions, I also was strongly pulled in by the innovative
medical school curriculum. UTMB appeared to put great thought and
planning into their medical school curriculum (block system and organ
based learning) and this was very appealing to me because I like to
study a single subject in great depth at one time. The medical
schools block system allowed for this type of studying and was much more
appealing compared to the other institutions traditional 5 lectures on
different subjects from 8am to 5pm.
My
interviews at UTMB were fairly standard in comparison to other
universities. I participated in 3 medical interviews and 3 graduate
interviews. Each interview was approximately 30 minutes long and mostly
focused on my undergraduate research experiences. The interviews did not
prepare me for my first year of medical or graduate school, although all
interviewers asked if I had questions for them and I suppose at this
point in the interview I could have learned more about what to expect
from graduate school. The pre-interview orientations gave the basic plan
and layout of the graduate education requirements and this information
was sufficient to give me a realistic expectation of the activities of
graduate school.
When I first received my acceptance into the MD/PhD program at UTMB I
was very excited. After interviewing at all the universities UTMB was
ranked at the top of my list.
Since my first acceptance letter was from UTMB and UTMB was my first
choice, I was very excited. It was also comforting to know months in
advance where I would be relocating. This gave me plenty of time to
research housing opportunities. Subsequent to receiving my UTMB
acceptance, I also received acceptance into several other universities.
Since Galveston was my first choice and I had received the acceptance so
early the other acceptance letters were meaningless.
Precandidacy experiences:
Did
not participate in BBSC (substituted by 2 years of medical school).
I
chose my department, not based on my mentor, but on the requirements of
the department. Luckily my mentor is a faculty member in 3 departments,
and one of them happened to be Cell Biology. Initially, I had selected
BMB as my primary department affiliation. After discovering the Cell
Biology program (later than I would have liked to) I compared the
curriculum, degree requirements and department heads. Following this
review of the two programs, the Cell Biology program looked more
supportive and better tailored to an MD/PhD student. The curriculum of
Cell Biology honored my undergraduate and medical training for some
course work and therefore shortened the total time I needed to spend in
graduate classes. This facilitated speeding up my graduate thesis work
due to the added time I had to spend in the laboratory.
Choosing rotations was relatively easy based on my interest in cancer
cell biology and the limited number of faculty members in the Sealy
Center for Cancer Cell Biology. I basically rotated with each faculty
member in the Sealy Center for Cancer Cell Biology and after completing
my rotations, I had a good idea of the lab I wanted to join. As I
participated in lab rotations, I looked for a mentor that was
understanding and willing to educate. I was not interested in a mentor
that was authoritative and overbearing. I wanted time to explore my own
directions on projects and have some freedom in my projects direction. I
also looked for a well funded mentor, although lack of funding would not
have dissuaded me from joining a lab that met all my other criteria.
Ultimately, I chose a mentor outside of the Sealy Center for Cancer Cell
Biology, which meant I had to slightly compromise my research interests
to find a suitable mentor. My choice to go outside the Sealy Center for
Cancer Cell Biology was based partly on the limited number of mentors in
this center and because most of the faculty in this center were moving
to a different institution within a year after I started graduate
school. I had no interest in moving after one year to graduate school,
therefore I ultimately chose a mentor in a different specialty.
My
relationship with the mentors of labs I did not join was positive. I put
one mentor on my dissertation committee. The other mentors moved to
another institution, so I no longer have correspondence with these
mentors.
Applying for candidacy was mostly a pleasurable experience. As hard as
it is to believe, the process of applying for candidacy was smooth and
enjoyable. The time allotted for taking the qualifying exam was well
within reason (two weeks for part 1 and two weeks for part 2). The
difficulty was average, and did not distract me from my main focus of
generating preliminary results to generate my proposal. The proposal
itself was also only mildly stressful, but altogether a useful learning
experience. I wrote my proposal in NIH (NINDS) format for a pre-doctoral
candidate and submitted it to the NINDS following my proposal defense.
The grant scored well (just out of the funding range) and I took this as
an indication that the process of becoming a candidate was useful. In
other departments/programs I know that students must write up a grant in
a specialty outside of their own, and while this could be useful, it
would have distracted and taken up time that I am sure was better spent
in the lab thinking about thesis experiments.
Plans after graduation:
My
experiences here at UTMB have definitely shaped my outlook on medicine
and research. Having time to experience a research project for 3 to 4
years allows great time for exploration and growth. This time in the lab
has allowed me to grow as a researcher and make the next step to
understanding what it would take to be successful at the next level.
Currently, my experiences have reaffirmed my desire to practice academic
medicine. I feel it is this setting that will allow the best balance of
research and clinical experience. Therefore, my current career
objectives have been strengthened in the time I have attended UTMB.
Miscellaneous:
Relationships with students, faculty, secretaries, ect.; have for the
most part been positive. I have had great discourse with other students
regarding our projects and have enjoyed their company in non-academic
settings. Faculty has for the most part been kind, helpful and
accessible. With secretaries, interactions are highly dependent on the
individual’s personality, but overall my experiences have been positive.
Secretaries are instrumental in helping send grants and get orders
placed so working well with them is extremely beneficial. As for the
program director, Cell Biology’s program director, Dr. Golda Leonard’s
personality constitutes one of the major drawing forces for the Cell
Biology graduate program. It is her enthusiasm and student centered
approach to running the program that makes it a joy to be in graduate
school. As for department chairs, after half of my PhD we have recently
obtained a new department chair. The previous department chair Dr.
Willis was a pleasure to talk to and a great mentor/teacher. Our new
department chair Dr. Epstein has only recently joined the program so
time will tell how his leadership shapes the department.
My
non-educational activities at UTMB have consisted of participating in
the medical fraternity system and working out. The fitness facilities at
UTMB are amazing for the size of the institution and have been a great
feature of being a student. Also the uniqueness of being the only
medical school in Texas with an active fraternity system offers
unprecedented opportunities for social interactions outside of class and
builds strong relationships with future physicians and scientists.
The
satisfying aspect of coming to school/work daily is the chance to
advance the field and to become a better researcher/physician. This
place is a training ground and therefore everyday I look forward to
becoming more astute and better at practicing research/medicine. What
makes for a bad day at UTMB is a research set back day. These research
set back days (experiments fail) are inevitable but depression can be
overcome by having multiple lines of experiments on-going at the same
time, an event that limits the number of experiment set back days. Also
in the face of failed experiments, having friends near that will listen
and share their experiences with failed experiments helps ease the
disappointment and depression.
Funding… Initially my funding was supplied via the MD/PhD program. Upon
entering a lab my funding was assured for only two years of research. At
the two year junction no additional funds have been attained and
therefore I have had to TA medical school classes to support myself in
graduate school. When this route of funding is no longer available, I am
uncertain as to where my funding will be obtained. The department and
the MD/PhD program have shown little interest in funding a student for 1
to 2 years of my remaining graduate research project. I have also
actively applied for national and local funding for my project, but have
not yet secured my own support. Efforts will continue.
Undergraduate Institution: Texas A&M University
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Nationality: American
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Yevgeniya I. Tarasenko
Graduated May 2005
 While
pursuing my undergraduate degree I developed a
strong interest in biomedical science. I
explored this interest by engaging in
undergraduate research and tutoring my peers.
During my junior and senior years in college I
was interested in biology and carried out an
undergraduate research project investigating the
effects of environmental toxins on embryonic
development under the tutelage of Dr. Chopin.
While presenting my research at the UTMB annual
undergraduate research symposium I was awarded
first place and was approached by the graduate
school dean with the question of whether I was
interested in pursuing a career in science by
matriculating in a doctorate program. It was due
to my undergraduate research experience that I
was able to consider bypassing a master's degree
and applying directly to a PhD program. Given
that TAMU-CC, my undergraduate institution, had
strong academic ties with UTMB, I was familiar
with many of the faculty and with the research
conducted at UTMB. Having interacted with many
faculty, staff, and students, and having toured
the campus facilities during the undergraduate
research symposium, I was impressed with the
enthusiasm of UTMB academicians, the variety of
research interests, faculty accessibility and
the availability of resources compared to other
graduate institutions in which I was interested
at the time. Although I was invited for an
interview soon after I submitted my late
application, I had to decline because I was on
my way to the airport to attend a National
Symposium for Undergraduate research in
Maryland, and a National Day of undergraduate
research on Capitol Hill as part of an effort to
lobby Congress to continue appropriation of
funds for undergraduate research programs.
Immediately following my return, I was
organizing a meeting for the Southwestern
Division of the Society for Developmental
Biology as part of my directed independent
study, followed by final exams. Having given all
these reasons over the phone to Dr. Childs, the
program director, I apologized that I simply
could not make it before the admissions deadline
and perhaps the faculty who served as judges at
the undergraduate symposium could testify to my
ability and potential as a graduate student. To
my great surprise, Dr. Childs commended me on my
early achievements as a fledging scientist, and
reassured me that my application would still be
considered. While presenting my talk in
Maryland, I was approached by UTMB recruitment
committee chair Dr. Golda Leonard with
unofficial good news that the admissions
committee had met that afternoon and I should
have a decision letter in my mailbox upon my
return. I was elated to see the letter of
acceptance to my first choice graduate school,
with an offer of a generous stipend.
Once in graduate school the reality of the
demanding curriculum set in. The “overnight
cramming” mastered in undergraduate school was
no longer applicable. Although the breadth and
depth of the curriculum was soon a welcome
challenge, it took some time to acclimate to the
team teaching style. The obvious advantage of
having experts in their respective fields
presenting the material was stimulating, even
though these experts had mastered the art of
pedagogy with various degrees of success.
Courses that were well structured and organized,
with an apparent leadership of a course
director, were particularly well received and
appreciated by the students. Required core
curriculum was a solid foundation of basic
knowledge needed to build a career as a
scientist. Having a broad choice of required
electives [the term which still brings a chuckle
to many] allowed exposure to various fields and
contributed in part to my selection of a field
of research.
I chose to join the Cell Biology Graduate
program for two reasons: (1) interdisciplinary
composition of faculty, and (2) greater freedom
in selecting elective courses. Since the Cell
Biology graduate program is housed within the
Neuroscience and Cell Biology department, I
enjoyed the interaction with neuroscientists,
and developed a strong interest in the nervous
system. My choice of rotations was a cumulative
effect of fields of interest and interactions
with senior students. Hands on experience and
daily exposure to inner workings in a lab were
an integral part of being acquainted with the
project, mentor, staff and students. The main
criteria that I used to select a mentor were
enthusiasm for the project, mentoring
experience, secured funding, availability to the
students, and insightful supervision without
micromanagement. In retrospect, I appreciate the
fact that students have to make the most
important decision of their graduate career -
choosing a mentor - when they are armed with the
least amount of knowledge. Ultimately I chose my
mentor, Dr. Ping Wu, based on the project and
her zeal for it.
Dr. Wu was a new faculty member in the process
of establishing her laboratory but she had
something that sparked my interest – human
neural stem cells. At a time when the federal
moratorium was in place on this controversial
new area, I saw an opportunity I could not
resist. With the generous support of the
Department Chair (at the time, Dr. Willis) I was
able to pursue my dream research project.
Although breaking the news of my lab choice to
other potential mentors, Dr. Hulsebosch and Dr.
Perez-Polo, was intimidating, those established
contacts have proven to be extremely beneficial
during my graduate training. We established
collaboration with Dr. Hulsebosch in applying
neural stem cells in the spinal cord injury
model, and she offered her expertise while
serving on my dissertation supervisory
committee. Dr.Perez-Polo played a vital role in
advising me in my lab selection, and
subsequently wrote a letter of recommendation
and assisted me in securing a postdoctoral
position. I feel extremely fortunate in having
rotated through their labs and gained from their
mentorship.
The qualifying exam served as a right of
passage. The core curriculum provided an
adequate base of knowledge, yet it did not
provide the basic skills to write a grant
proposal. While the written portion of the take
home questions was a breeze, since literature
reviews and the search for connections between
some seemingly unrelated and unfamiliar subjects
was welcome, writing a proposal with minimal
preliminary data and scarce experience in
granstmanship was a daunting task. The oral
defense of the project was a walk in the park in
comparison. When the Dean’s letter congratulated
me on arriving to candidacy, it was a major
milestone that was an extremely satisfying
reward for all the challenges of the first
years.
After the confetti and fanfares, the research
began. Having some research experience eased the
transition; however, I cannot emphasize enough
the importance of good mentoring. Given that my
chosen lab was still in its establishment phase,
at times I questioned my decision while
performing some maintenance, basic lab
administration and training chores. There was a
period when it was just me and my mentor working
side by side. It provided for a unique,
extensive hands-on training that not every
student may enjoy from their mentor. It also
empowered me to solve any supply or equipment
problem that may arise. At times I questioned
the fairness of performing experiments unrelated
to my project, and being responsible for daily
operations; nevertheless, now I appreciate the
unfair advantage that I possess over other young
investigators, for I have the basic survival
skills in establishing and running a laboratory.
All the extra work was also amply rewarded with
my co-authored paper in the prestigious Nature
Neuroscience. [In fact the video segment
covering our work that aired on ABC was how my
future in-laws met me. Not a bad introduction,
may I add]. Once the lab was adequately staffed,
my dissertation project was my sole
preoccupation, even if it did postpone my
graduation date. In retrospect, those were
compromises I chose to make in order to work in
the area of my interest with an enthusiastic
investigator, and on the cutting edge of the
field.
My grandmother, an elementary school teacher of
forty-five years, always quieted children by
telling them that noise is harmful and the brain
cells are irreplaceable. Being a rebellious
child by nature, I found a keen interest in
challenging dogma. It was only natural, then,
for me to be fascinated by the field of neural
stem cells and nervous system regeneration. In
implementing cutting-edge technology of
recombinant viral vectors for neural stem cell
and gene therapy, we have taken small but firm
steps toward treatment of neurological diseases.
When our results were published in Nature
Neuroscience it brought an overwhelming response
from both physicians and their patients. This
response has encouraged me to further pursue our
findings in order to bring these therapies
closer to the clinical trials. I was reminded
yet again of the great promise and the cutting
edge work that I do when attending a meeting of
the international society for stem cell
research. This conference brought together world
class experts in the stem cell field and
provided an invaluable opportunity to share and
learn the latest research, discuss current
issues pertaining to science, ethics, clinical
application and biotechnological development in
the field.
One of the great resources for my scientific
growth was my committee. While some meetings
were more productive than others, it taught me
to value the importance of good mentors who take
deep satisfaction in challenging and guiding
young minds. It also taught me that the more
Ph.Ds there are in the room, the greater chance
of discourse. Even though it was temping to
alter the initial committee composition, I, as
many other graduate students, felt comfortable
only in adding members and not eliminating.
Perhaps this is an area where the dean’s office
can play a role in moderating the politics in
graduate education.
As my tenure as a graduate student is nearing
its completion this year, I am reevaluating my
experiences and setting new goals. I entered the
world of science with an open mind and the
desire to expand my knowledge, yet the final
destination was and still is unclear. I enjoyed
the endless creative possibilities of the
academic setting, yet my limited grant writing
is a great cause for concern for it is a
fundamental part of academia. My fellow students
gave the grant writing workshop rave reviews,
yet due to conflicts with scheduled conferences,
I was unable to attend. I hope that this
learning opportunity will be continued.
UTMB fostered a nurturing environment for
exploring various aspects of biomedical
sciences. I seized every opportunity: exploring
bioethics by taking a course offered through the
Institute of Medical Humanities; completing an
advanced business management certification;
negotiating the skills workshop offered through
the joint effort of the GSBS and UH-Clear Lake;
and becoming actively involved in the Committee
for Career Development. All of this leads
me to the conclusion that my training in stem
cell technology will find broad application
across the various aspects of the field.
Biotechnology seems a very enticing choice for
my career, after my postdoctoral training. The
dual rewards of developing quality science with
ample resources and direct application for
clinical uses that benefit human health are very
appealing.
During my graduate tenure, I had the opportunity
to assist in teaching various courses to
medical, undergraduate, graduate and allied
health science students. Being involved in
teaching taught me that one truly masters the
subject matter only when one can explain it in
various ways to the students. When the students
are armed with knowledge and intrigued by the
material, they inevitably flex their inquisitive
minds and challenge with questions that makes
one evolve as a teacher. I found it to be very
rewarding. Teaching anatomy has also prompted me
to reflect on the fact that the human body is a
mere temple where one’s soul is allowed to
dwell, and from which knowledge is bestowed upon
those who dare to study upon its mystery. We can
dissect, research, and study the human body’s
structural composition down to cells, molecules
and atoms. We can explore the nervous system and
can observe how it empowers human emotion,
cognition, and expression. We can witness
neurotransmission between communicating cells
and the cracking of the genetic code. However,
what remains a mystery is the quintessence of
life. The entity which embodies mankind that
cannot be measured in a spectrophotometer,
analyzed with gel shift assays, or diagrammed on
a PowerPoint slide presentation.
As part of my graduate education I had an
extraordinary opportunity to represent UTMB at
the Joint Steering Committee for Public Policy
Graduate Students/Post-doctoral Fellows on
Capitol Hill Day. Our mission was to meet with
US congressmen to promote continuous funding
increases for the NIH and NSF budget, including
funding for somatic cell nuclear transplantation
[a topic that is intimately close to my area of
research]. During that visit I had the honor of
being acquainted with Senator John Glenn. To
shake hands with “history” was a very humbling
and inspiring experience; especially since we
shared a common goal of lobbying Congress for
increased funding appropriations for the benefit
of the advancement of science and technology.
The diversity of UTMB is one of its greatest
assets. A multicultural campus environment is an
exciting place to be and learn. Being a
foreigner myself, I noticed that students from
different corners of the globe were forming
cultural communities and clubs to maintain their
heritage and to support each other. I firmly
believe in the “citizen of the world” concept
and see the value in harnessing this diversity
for the benefit of all, so when I proposed to
establish an international student organization
that would foster cultural savvy and support
international students merging into American
culture, the idea was embraced by the Office for
International Affairs, and thus the ISO was
born.
All my extracurricular activities, ranging from
leading a graduate student organization,
chairing the student recruitment, teaching,
business and bioethics courses were essential to
complementing my graduate education and
providing a fulfilling, well-rounded graduate
experience. It gave me the opportunity to
interact with faculty, coordinators, chairmen
and students from other departments and schools.
While serving on the honor code committee, I
presented the honor pledge to the faculty senate
and solicited their support in disseminating and
perpetuating our initiative across all four
schools. Representing students on the financial
aid committee gave me an opportunity to
formulate and voice student concerns as well as
to learn the inner workings of institutional
financing. In the spirit of institutional unity
and camaraderie, I was able to secure funds for
the GSBS Bench to Bedside Student essay contest
through the Dean of Medicine, the GSBS alumni
association and the local chapter of Sigma Xi.
Student recruiting was the most challenging and
satisfying activity. With the support of the
Dean, students brainstormed and designed the
“dream interview” template for prospective
students, based on our ideas of how to improve
the experiences we had. By increasing student
involvement and interaction, we facilitated an
increase in quality enrollment and improved the
image of the UTMB graduate school.
It is immensely satisfying to have a diversity
of quality research and extracurricular
interaction all in a day’s work. The continuing
support and new initiatives that are provided by
the GSBS Deans for the benefit of complete
graduate education should be supported by all
faculty. I hope that all faculty members who are
mentoring students can appreciate that the fine
balance of bench work, activities outside of
class, and lab work only enriches student
experience.
I am now writing and preparing to defend my
dissertation. As I reflect on my academic and
non-academic achievements, it gives me
undeniable confidence to know that my overall
educational experience in theory,
experimentation, and public work will help me to
succeed on any path I choose along my career. My
graduate education refined me as a person and
gave me the tools to succeed as a scientist.
Cell Biology Graduate Program
Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology
Undergraduate institution: Texas A&M University
- Corpus Christi
Age: 27
Gender: Female
Nationality: Russian
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