Basic science educators play a significant role in medical and health professions curricula, particularly in the biomedical science components. Although the shift from basic scientists to educators seems promising, no study has yet explored the transition process from the perspective of basic scientists themselves, especially in the early stages…

There is a critical need for more effective comprehensive programs to increase the number of underrepresented minority students pursuing scientific careers. Science education often is fragmented, delivered with single-focused approaches - traditional classroom lectures, or hands-on-activities, or conducting research. The current paper examines a…

The postdoctoral period is generally one of low pay, long hours, and uncertainty about future career options. To better understand how postdocs conceive of their present and future goals, we asked researchers about their scientific identities while they were in their postdoctoral appointments. We used discourse analysis to analyze interviews with…

As literature indicates, historic racism and implicit bias throughout academia have been profound metrics leading to a lack of diversity, as related to people from underrepresented groups according to race and ethnicity, among biomedical sciences graduate students in U.S. universities. Recognizing such challenges, a team of biomedical scientists…

The number of biomedical PhD scientists being trained and graduated far exceeds the number of academic faculty positions and academic research jobs. If this trend is compelling biomedical PhD scientists to increasingly seek career paths outside of academia, then more should be known about their intentions, desires, training experiences, and career…

A three-year, National Institutes of Health-funded residential project at a southeastern research university immersed 83 secondary science teachers in a summer institute called "Bench to Bedside." Teachers were provided with knowledge, skills, experiences, and incentives to improve their science teaching skills and increase their…

Qualitative studies that examine the experiences of underrepresented minority students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields are comparatively few. This study explores the self-reported experiences of underrepresented graduate students in the biomedical sciences of a large, midwestern, urban university. Document analysis of…

BRAINS: Broadening the Representation of Academic Investigators in NeuroScience is a National Institutes of Health-funded, national program that addresses challenges to the persistence of diverse early-career neuroscientists. In doing so, BRAINS aims to advance diversity in neuroscience by increasing career advancement and retention of post-PhD,…

We examined the relationship between sense of professional identity and academic success among under-represented minority graduate students in a biomedical doctoral program. We found that a sense of professional identity is related to science success among under-represented minority students, but not for non-underrepresented minority students.…

Over the last decade, Sub-Saharan Africa has experienced an increased volume of funding and training activities to support research capacity development. However, there are persistent deficits in the number of active investigators conducting independent research with their own grants. To address this deficit, research institutions need to find an…

This study used semistructured interviews and grounded theory to look for characteristics among college undergraduates that predicted persistence into Ph.D. and M.D./Ph.D. training. Participants in the summer undergraduate and postbaccalaureate research programs at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine were interviewed at the start, near the end,…