Training Grants

Among the many possible sources of graduate support are institutional training grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).  There are training grants in a variety of scientific areas. 

Training grants are typically cross-departmental, with faculty from many different departments participating and enriching the training environment. Five of the training grants that can support graduate education are directed by MIP faculty.

Systems and Integrative Biology T32-GM008322

Overview: 


This program is designed to train doctoral students in contemporary Systems & Integrative Biology. For details see: Goals of the Program. Our NIH funded program is now in its 29th year and  supports 6 students each year. Malcolm Low is the program director, Santiago Schnell is the Associate Director and Michele Boggs provides student services. The Training Faculty includes 55 individuals from 15 departments who share an interest in SIB. The course requirements are designed to allow students from different backgrounds and PhD programs to participate. Trainees also will participate in a monthly Systems Biology Workshop and an annual Spring Research Symposium.

Priority is given to students in their 2nd and 3rd year of graduate study and funding is normally for two years. To be considered for membership in the program students must make a formal application to the Training Grant Operating Committee; applications are considered yearly in the spring. We value and encourage students from underrepresented minority or ethnic groups and those with disabilities to apply to our program.  However, funding is limited to U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

The Highlights of this Training Program Include:

  • Thesis research that uses cellular/molecular approaches to tackle integrated questions.
  • Potential research mentors with expertise in a variety of problems and approaches that come from many departments in addition to Physiology.
  • Increasing the breadth of training by including intellectual and technical training from two research laboratories that use different scientific approaches.
  • Coursework in bioinformatics/computational biology in addition to systems and cellular physiology
  • A monthly workshop that focuses on the application of bioinformatics and mathematical modeling to biological problems.
                  

SIB progress, Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan

Definitions -
Academic: academic research and teaching appointments, including tenure-track and non-tenure track
Industry: research in an industrial, for-profit setting
Gov't: research in government agencies (e.g. NIH, NSF, etc.)
Sci-Rel: related to science, but not traditional research, e.g. science policy, scientific patent attorney, science writer
Non-Sci: careers unrelated to science
Postdoc: in a postdoctoral research position at time surveyed
Clinical: employed in a medical career field, i.e. in clinical practice (presumes professional degree was also obtained)
Med Std: a medical student or resident

For more information, contact the Director or Associate Director of the Training Grant:
-
Director: Malcolm Low
-Associate Director: Santiago Schnell 

Career Training in Reproductive Biology T32-HD079342

Overview: 
The goal of this NIH-supported Training Program is to provide graduate students with broad training in the discipline of reproductive biology, with research areas ranging from cell biology and genetics, to physiology, to mathematical modeling to public health. This program is for students who have completed prelims and has a strong emphasis on career development including non-academic paths

Unique features of this training program Include:

  • Rigorous hypothesis-based research that is integrated with completion of a Rackham Certificate Program training in teaching, public policy, entrepreneurship, translational research or another topic that melds with the dissertation work, building both academic and non-academic career skills and awareness.
  • Coursework in grantsmanship and reproductive biology.
  • Mentored research-in-progress seminar series

For more information, contact the Director or Associate Director of the Training Grant:
-Director: Sue Moenter
-Associate Director: Sundeep Kalantry

Training in Basic and Translational Digestive Sciences T32-DK094775

The University of Michigan has a superb history of training and research in gastrointestinal sciences over the last several decades. This program consolidates the major investigators who are conducting gastrointestinal research at the University of Michigan Medical School into a strong core of mentors for predoctoral and postdoctoral training.  Our faculty mentors are all members of the Michigan Digestive Diseases Core Center funded by NIH since 1986, and bring a long history of collaboration and team science.  This training grant supports 3 predoctoral and 3 postdoctoral trainees annually.

The training program focuses on three thematic areas that provide exceptional cross-disciplinary collaboration amongst the participating faculty:  1) neurobiology of peptide control, visceral pain and neurosignaling regulating GI motility; 2) molecular and cellular mechanisms of inflammation, tissue injury and repair in all digestive organs; 3) cell growth, differentiation and programmed cell death. The program includes unique coursework, seminars, strong mentoring and other enriching features. 

For more information, contact the Training Grant Coordinator: Don May 

Career Training in the Biology of Aging T32-AG000114

For the past 30 years, the Career Training in the Biology of Aging program has provided exceptional graduate students and post-doctoral fellows with a comprehensive, in-depth research training in aging biology, which emphasizes logical and conceptual thinking, together with career-oriented mentoring designed to promote success in a diverse professional landscape. The University of Michigan, and the Geriatrics Center in particular, is recognized internationally for clinical, educational, and research excellence in aging biology. The program benefits from a Nathan Shock Center of Excellence in the Biology of Aging, a Claude Pepper Older Americans Independence Center, the Ann Arbor VA GRECC (Geriatrics Research, Education, and Clinical Center), and the Glenn Center Laboratories for the Biology of Aging. Our 20 preceptors represent a diverse, highly-interactive, well-funded, and creative group that span 17 different department and four schools at UM. Our program has long emphasized hypothesis-based laboratory training through creative and impactful research, and we have proactively enriched these experiences with initiatives that ensure preparation for diverse career opportunities and that enhance synergy between the pre- and post-doctoral trainees. Trainees enjoy interactive Biogerontology Research Seminars, Biology of Aging Journal Clubs, and our annual Research Symposium, as well as new career-oriented initiatives, such as town-hall style trainee meetings with PhD scholars who have succeeded in career paths distinct from traditional academics, including industry as well as entrepreneurship.

A comprehensive training program in the biology of aging will prepare trainees for careers at the forefront of academics, industry, and biotechnology, thereby promoting the discovery of a deeper biological understanding of the aging process and nurturing a passion to apply their experience to alleviate the cost and suffering associated with age-related disease.

For more information, contact the Director of the Training Grant:
Director: Scott Pletcher

Multidisciplinary Postdoctoral Training Program in Basic Diabetes Research
T32-DK101357

Overview: This program provides an opportunity for postdoctoral fellows to pursue training in diverse aspects of diabetes research. Training grant preceptors fall into major interest groups across the spectrum of type 1 and 2 diabetes research – islet biology, autoimmune diabetes, adipocyte biology, neuronal regulation of metabolism, mechanisms of insulin resistance, metabolic control in liver and muscle, and diabetes complications - each area containing investigators pursuing basic research with potential translational applicability. Laboratory training is supplemented by a core curriculum in molecular pathogenesis of diabetes, a series of educational seminars and classes (including ethics), and workshops on grant writing, career skills, and research methodologies.
For more information, contact the Director of the Training Grant: Ormond MacDougald; [email protected], Website

Training Program in Translational Cardiovascular Research and Entrepreneurship T32-HL125242

Overview: 
The goal of this predoctoral training program is to prepare the next generation of scientists for diverse scientific careers by training them in both state of the art translational cardiovascular research, but also to expose the trainees to the principles of research entrepreneurship needed to move discoveries to application in human patients. This training grant is for PhD candidate students who have passed prelims.

Unique features of this training program Include:

Mentored training in state of the art cardiovascular basic research laboratories
Hands-on training in advanced cardiovascular physiology animal phenotyping
Coursework and boot camp focused on exposure to principles of research entrepreneurship
Clinical advisory board members to help identify important unmet needs in your area of research

For more information, contact the Director or Associate Director of the Training Grant:

Director: Jose Jalife ([email protected])
Associate Director: Daniel Michele ([email protected])