Prospective Students

Professional Development

Your success is our success. Therefore, we provide training and resources to assist in the
development of the "survival skills" needed for success in biomedical research and related
careers. These abilities include being able to publish research articles, to obtain funding, to
make effective oral presentations, and to teach and mentor the next generation. Throughout
each year, graduate students and postdocs are offered a series of intensive workshops
involving a combination of lectures, discussions, readings, written exercises, and practical
experiences to enhance their professional development. These events include:

IBS 620 Scientific Writing I - This course will help students to strengthen their scientific writing skills. We will review the standards and expectations of scientific discourse, focusing on the scientific paper as a refined tool for conveying research findings in a clear, objective fashion and positioning the author/s within a specific research community. Sequenced writing assignments will address the functions and conventions of the various forms of scientific communication, from short correspondences to full research reports to review articles. The proper use and presentation of graphs and illustrations will also be covered.

IBS 683 Professional Skills and Ethics I- Two-day intensive workshop involves a combination of lectures, discussions, readings and writing exercises to enhance the professional development of beginning graduate students. Topics include strategies for selecting mentors, professional writing, giving oral presentations and research ethics.

IBS 684 Professional Skills and Ethics II - Two-day intensive workshop involves a combination of lectures, discussions, readings and writing exercises, and practical experiences to enhance the professional development of advanced graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty. Topics include career choices, job search strategies and skills, fellowship/grant applications and research ethics.  

Grant Writing Workshop – This is an opportunity for Predoctoral students and Postdoctoral Fellows to develop their grant writing skills. A one-half day workshop entitled, “Write Winning Grants,” focuses on research proposals in the biomedical sciences, specifically as it pertains to NIH funding. Topics include:

• How to Develop an Irresistible, Fundable Idea
• Fundamentals and Principals of Successful Grant Writing
• The Review Process and Its Psychology
• Before You Begin To Write
• Tips on Writing for Reviewers
• Specific Aims: The Master Plan for Your Application
• Practical Exercise Evaluating Model Specific Aims Sections for Strengths and Weaknesses

Dr. Stephen Russell of Grant Writers’ Seminars and Workshops conducts the seminar. Dr. Russell has held grant support from the National Institutes of Health as a principal investigator since the early 1970s, including individual, group, center, and training grants.

Eastern Student Research Forum (ESRF) - This is a four-day international symposium held at the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine. ESRF selects medical, graduate, MD/PhD students, and resident physicians from throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Central and South Americas to present original basic science and clinical research in multiple biomedical fields.

National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) Workshops - Every year NCBI trainers conduct workshops based on the bioinformatics needs of the University of Miami research community. Past topics have included:

• Making Sense of DNA and Protein Sequences
• Unmasking Genes in the Human Genome
• Structure Analysis Quick Start
• Identification and Correlation of Disease Genes and Phenotypes

The Miami Nature Biotechnology Winter Symposia – The Symposia were created by the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine as a resource for its faculty and graduate students.

Creativity Forum (Gables) – The Research and Creativity Forum is a student run organization which provides students an opportunity to practice and experience what it’s like to give a research presentation at a science meeting.

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