Dick Mains

Chair, Neuroscience Dept.

Assoc. Director, Neuroscience Graduate Program (elected; 2yr; to be Director next)

mains@uchc.edu

860-679-8894

PhD in Biomedical Sciences OR

PhD in Biomedical Sciences, Neuroscience Area of Concentration

~30 matriculate every year to U Conn Health Center

Neuroscience students = 2 (low) to 9 (highest, this year)

About 2/3 enter our program committed to Neuroscience, 1/3 not committed initially (any Area of Concentration)

We gain 1-2 and lose ~ 1/year to another Area of Concentration; net is positive for us

We always have students for Training Grant Slots (NS 41224-09; previously 17 years at Johns Hopkins)

70% of the students in the Program eligible to apply for Individual NRSA’s are successful at receiving an NRSA

Jul - Aug | Sep – Dec | Jan | Feb – May | Jun

Year 2

Summer rotation

Neurosci Jnl Club Neurosci Jnl Club

Elective Elective

Thesis research

Plan of study

General examination Submit prospectus

Year 1

Summer rotation 1

Cell-Mol & Devel Neuroscience 4

Logic of Modern Biol 4

Neurosci Jnl Club 1

Fall Rotation 1

Systems Neurosci 2

Neuroanatomy 2

Neurosci Jnl Club 1

Spring Rotation 1

Excitable membranes 3 or

Adv.Mol.Neurobiol. 3 or

Neurobiology of Disease 3

or Cell Biol 4 or Adv.Microscopy

Responsible conduct 1

Current Res Topics

Jul - Aug | Sep – Dec | Jan | Feb – May | Jun

Year 1

Summer rotation 1

Cell-Mol & Devel Neuroscience 4

Logic of Modern Biol 4

Neurosci Jnl Club 1

Fall Rotation 1

Systems Neurosci 2

Neuroanatomy 2

Neurosci Jnl Club 1

Spring Rotation 1

Excitable membranes 3 or

Adv.Mol.Neurobiol. 3 or

Neurobiology of Disease 3

or Cell Biol 4 or Adv.Microscopy

Responsible conduct 1

Current Res Topics

10-11 credits per semester

Co-existing with generic program, being open to crossovers

“bite-size” courses

so far, no rigid core curriculum

so we create “incomplete” students

by postdoc placements, NRSA success, that is OK

Requirements:

• 7 credits in Neuroscience didactic (formal) courses [most are 3-4 credits; no specific courses]

• Neuroscience Journal Club (every Wednesday – passive, just attend – attendance important); present near end of first year, then every year (not in 7 credits)

• Lab Rotations (3 recommended and used to be required, now 2 with petition to drop third)

• nearly always, required course credits finished in first year (except for students from the Biomedical Science Program)

• pick a lab home by September of second year

• financed by school or training Grant or Dept for 2 years – still doing many degree requirements in 2nd yr

Jul - Aug | Sep – Dec | Jan | Feb – May | Jun

Year 2

Summer rotation

Neurosci Jnl Club Neurosci Jnl Club

Elective Elective

Thesis research

Plan of study

General examination Submit prospectus

Fall second year to February, creating thesis proposal

1 page outline in October to 3-5 member Committee

revisions, 3 page outline by end December

10 page proposal written in 5 weeks ALONE

may ask other people questions but no editing!

Jul - Aug | Sep – Dec | Jan | Feb – May | Jun

Year 2

Summer rotation

Neurosci Jnl Club Neurosci Jnl Club

Elective Elective

Thesis research

Plan of study

General examination Submit prospectus

Oral defense of proposal (general exam) in February – like “admission to candidacy” or “qualifying exam”

Not infrequently, rewrite required, now with advisor’s input, representation of written or oral or both in early summer – this is where mentoring kicks in (and where the lack of “enough formal courses” is sometimes evident)

Goal for eligible = to submit individual NRSA in August or latest December; success rate in 10 years about 70%

• Systems and behavioral students are committed Neuroscience from the beginning – if they had to take more than a minimum of cell-molecular-biochem, they would never come to UConn

• Problem is finding homes for cellular-molecular-biochemical-pharmacological students

• Power of joint appts – notably in MMSB, CCAM, Cell Biol (also Psychiatry, Neurology but not relevant here)

• Goal is to find right home and right set of interests – students do work in Neuroscience labs as part of other programs and gradually get sucked into Neuroscience, often by our Research Seminar and Journal Clubs (each once/week 9-10 months) – no other program has those!

• Several go on in Neuroscience as postdocs when they never planned to do so – we claim credit for them

Where our graduates go next ?

Post-doctoral positions:

Harvard 3 Duke 1 NIH 1 Scripps 1 Vollum 1

Yale 3 Johns Hopkins 1 UCLA 1 UCHC 2

Dual degree (MD-PhD or DMD-PhD) residencies:

Johns Hopkins 1 Yale 1 North Shore Univ 1 (Chief Res)

UCHC 1

Masters:

Biotech 1