Pharmacology T32 Grant

The Training in Pharmacological Sciences (T32) partnership between Vanderbilt University, Meharry Medical College, Fisk University, and Lipscomb University. The Training Program offers a focused experience that equips students with foundational principles of pharmacology while providing interdisciplinary, collaborative opportunities to move discoveries from bench to bedside.

Program Goals

The goals of the T32 training program are to:

  • Enhance coursework and professional development during the second and third year of graduate training.
  • Integrate mentored research targeted for each trainee’s scientific interests.
  • Promote rigorous science, reproducibility, and research ethics through structured workshops.
  • Foster resilience, integrity, leadership, communication, teamwork, and mentoring.
  • Allow cross-institutional collaboration and mentoring

Becoming a Preceptor

To become a T32 Preceptors, faculty can send their CV and a research statement explaining how their research fits with the T32 goals to the T32 director.

Preceptor requirements

  • Engage in mentor training at least once every four years. Incoming faculty have up to one year to complete this requirement the first time.
  • Commit to a dedicated mentor-mentee paired training session for each new graduate student who joins the lab
  • Contribute meaningfully to training in the Pharmacology curriculum at the institution.
  • Attend the annual retreat
  • Attend eight (8) Works-In-Progress and (4) journal club talks in all years where your student is in training.

Nomination and appointment process

Nominations for the Pharmacology T32 Training Program are solicited annually from all T32 preceptors. We anticipate that three (3) slots will be available each year for newly appointed students. Appointments typically cover the second and third years of graduate training, when pharmacology-specific training is most impactful.

Eligibility

  • Applicants must be U.S. Citizens or Permanent Residents.
  • Applicants must be PhD students in good academic standing who commit to didactic and laboratory training in Pharmacological Sciences
  • The student’s preceptor must be a designated T32 preceptor with up-to-date mentor training
  • Both the student and mentor must agree to participate in the required “Aligning Expectations” session.

Nomination materials

We encourage preceptors to nominate all eligible students, even if there is more than one from a lab. To nominate a student, preceptors should submit a single PDF that includes:

  • Letter of nomination addressing:
    • Confirmation that the student is pursuing graduate studies in Pharmacology.
    • Confirmation that mentor training is current, or commitment to complete training within 1 year if <2 years on faculty.
    • Confirmation that the student and mentor will attend the “Aligning Expectations” session.
    • A brief (~½ page) description of the proposed thesis project aims written by the trainee-mentor pair, including its relevance to pharmacology.
    • A brief description of the preceptor’s participation in departmental service.
    • A confirmation that the preceptor will attend 8 WIP talks and 8 journal clubs each year.
  • The student’s CV.
  • Confirmation of good academic standing.

Review and Appointment

Applications are reviewed by the T32 leadership team. Appointments are for one year, with the possibility of renewal for a second year based on satisfactory progress and a re-nomination package.

 

Partnership Universities

Photo Credit: Nicolas Noel, Cigliola Lab