This spring, UNMC Graduate Studies introduces a new, streamlined Medical Sciences Interdepartmental Area (MSIA) program, to better serve students studying research in the broad field of medical sciences.
The current MSIA program was developed to host graduate students from departments within UNMC who require a multidisciplinary/non-traditional focus that may not be provided by other graduate or professional degree programs. It allowed students, with their mentors, to pursue individually designed programs of an interdisciplinary nature.
But it had gotten a little too individualized.
With separate sub-plans in 21 different academic units, collaboration and engagement was actually decreasing, faculty found. Students in sub-plans with only one or two students tended to feel isolated and disengaged, without a cohort to call their own.
This spring, those 21 sub-plans will be condensed to six.
This restructure will still allow individual design for newly admitted students going forward.
“But it’s more cohesive, and allows for students doing similar research to have similar courses, seminars and other shared learning activities,” said Laura Bilek, Ph.D., MSIA co-chair, with David Shaw, Ph.D.
Three existing sub-plans will remain in place:
- Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA);
- Oral Biology (OB);
- Clinical & Translational Research Mentored Scholars Program (CTRMSP), specifically for UNMC faculty working toward independence as researchers.
But all other MSIA programs of study will fall under one of the new translational research sub-plans:
- Clinically Relevant Basic Research (CRBR), in which students will engage in and learn processes and methodologies affiliated with basic science questions that have translational relevance to the health of patients;
- Patient-Oriented Research (POR), in which students engage in and learn the processes involved in research that directly involves patients, evaluating either their tissue, behavior, physiology or responses to an intervention;
- Health Practice & Medical Education Research (HPMER), in which students engage in research that explores health practice, health policy, population health or health education. All of these specialty areas impact overall health of communities, with the goal of achieving a healthier global population.
Each sub-plan has its own representative and committee members. Sub-plan representatives will serve on the MSIA Graduate Committee.