Additional Program Activities

Program Activities

Additional Proposed Program Activities (New)

Trainees in the Research Training in Neuroendocrinology Program routinely present their work at the Carey-Marshall-Thorner Scholars and Research Day. We will continue to encourage such participation. However, to provide a more focused venue to highlight the program and its trainees—and to allow us to extend an invitation to all SOM faculty—we are planning an annual Research Training in Neuroendocrinology Program Trainee Research Day. This annual half-day symposium will highlight presentations by all trainees in the program, and any past trainees still at UVA will also be invited to present their work.

Grant Review Program

All trainees are required to submit independent fellowship applications as part of the Program. Prior to any grant submission, fellows will submit a grant draft to a panel of 2 Program mentors (excluding the trainee’s primary research mentor[s]). The 2 reviewers will include (a) a Program mentor with specific expertise in (or near) the topic of the grant, and (b) a Program mentor without such expertise. This will ideally be done in parallel with the mock NIH study section sessions described above (see Grant Brewing Sessions).

For PhD trainees in the Program, we will offer an optional Clinical Shadowing Program relevant to the trainee’s area of study. For example, shadowing opportunities exist in UVA’s Pituitary Tumor Program—a world-renowned clinical program that includes Drs. John Marshall (current Program mentor) and Gregory Hong (former Program trainee)—and in the areas of adrenal/endocrine hypertension (Drs. Siragy [current Program mentor] and Shetal Padia [former Program trainee]), obesity/diabetes (e.g., Drs. Eugene Barrett, Anthony McCall, and Jennifer Kirby [all MD-PhDs]), and reproductive endocrinology (Dr. William Evans [former Program mentor]), among others. Plans regarding participation in this optional activity (e.g., frequency of shadowing) will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the trainee, his/her mentor(s), and the Executive Steering Committee.

Course Work and Technical Training

Although the Research Training in Neuroendocrinology Program is not designed to provide advanced degrees, we recognize the importance of ensuring a strong theoretical framework relevant to a specific trainee’s interests and background. Trainees entering the Program have varied backgrounds, and different postdoctoral research projects may require new theoretical knowledge and technical approaches. Thus, some trainees will require targeted formal instruction in a specific area, and our trainees have taken advantage of numerous formal courses over the years.