Program Activities for Master of Science in Clinical Investigation

In addition to the formal coursework, students will participate in the following training activities:

Biweekly Journal Club

This journal club, which is led by current trainees with a faculty person sitting in on each session to provide both methodologic input and disease specific content, discusses studies of contemporary public health and clinical relevance. The initial sessions of this journal club are devoted to understanding the peer review process and the do’s and don’ts in the preparation of articles for peer review submission. Several sessions of this course are devoted to the review of recently submitted, and peer reviewed, articles by a senior scientist.

Monthly Seminar Series

This is an ongoing seminar series offered monthly throughout the academic year that is led by individual senior scientists who discuss their clinical, public health, and translational sciences research. This seminar series provides trainees with exposure to a wide variety of potential research mentors as well as topic areas to explore for their thesis research and beyond.

Study Design Seminar Series

This year-long seminar series uses proposed and ongoing research projects to explore issues in study design, data collection, and data analysis. The course has a format that provides investigators and trainees the opportunity to present an ongoing, or to be developed, research-related problem that they are encountering, and engages students in a discussion of the approach to the problem and construction of an appropriate plan of action. Over the year, a wide range of research and study design problems are discussed, constituting a productive continuing educational experience for fellows and faculty alike.

Biannual Symposium Devoted to Clinical, Public Health, and Translational Sciences Research

We hold a twice yearly symposium, once in the fall and again in the spring, that encompasses basic science research, clinical investigation, and population-based research. These symposia are focused on the primary, as well as secondary, prevention of various infectious and chronic diseases and their risk factors and span the breadth of clinical and translational sciences. The half day continuing medical education type sessions brings together currently active basic science, clinical, and public health investigators who discuss a themed topic that illustrates bench to bedside to population wide applications. These expert speakers discuss contemporary advances, and areas in need of further research, in the clinical and epidemiological aspects of various diseases of major clinical and public health importance.

Annual Trainee Research Day

During the spring of each academic year, each trainee is required to present either their proposed research project or work to date completed on their ongoing research, to fellow trainees as well as members of the training faculty.