Research Mentor News, December 2017

The year and the semester are coming to an end. But the Spring semester is right around the corner, and with it, new potential mentees will be applying to join the BUILD program. Is your mentor profile up-to-date and appealing to these young, future scientists? Read on to learn more.

ABRCMS Inspires Future Researchers

CSULB BUILD Scholars and Fellows atteneded ABRCMS in 2017
At the beginning of November 2017, 36 CSULB BUILD Scholars and Fellows had the opportunity to attend the 17th Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Scientists (ABRCMS) in Phoenix, Ariz. For many of them, this was either their first professional conference or the first time presenting their research at a professional conference. Fifteen CSULB BUILD students presented posters of their research and Anthony Ricci from Dr. Editte Gharakhanian’s lab in Biology won a “Best Poster” award! Read on to learn more about their experiences.

Recruiting Season is Here! Is Your Profile Up-to-Date?

Did you know that 71% of BUILD Research Mentors have a mentee through the program? Recruiting students for the 2018-2019 BUILD Associates, Scholars and Fellows classes began last month. Prospective trainees are being asked to find an appropriate mentor using the BUILD directory. Taking a moment to review your entry to ensure it is up to date in the BUILD Faculty Mentor Directory will help students find you and attract them to your research lab.

Tips for creating a compelling mentor profile:

  • Describe your research in terms that a layperson can understand. These young students are not necessarily all up to speed on your field’s jargon and terminology.
  • Include your mentor/trainee contract if you use one. This helps prospective mentees decide if you might be a good fit for their interests and research programs.
  • If you’ve had BUILD mentees in your lab before, mention them. Knowing that someone from our program has already been in your lab can be more appealing to students.

If you need help updating your entry, rewording your content so that it is more appealing to students, or will not be able to accept new students next year, please email Carma.Spence@csulb.edu.

BUILD Research Symposium Call for Presenters

Would you like to share your research with the CSULB and BUILD community at the 2018 BUILD Research Symposium in the Spring? Then submit an abstract for an oral presentation of your health-related research or for a research demonstration. We encourage faculty to present with their student researchers, to showcase the team spirit of research. BUILD students have the opportunity to submit abstracts to present posters.

The deadline to submit abstracts is Friday, Jan. 26, 2018. Click on the following links to submit your abstracts.

The Annual Symposium provides a unique opportunity for mentors and their student researchers to collaborate, share research findings, and to promote health equity and scientific leadership with an emphasis on diversity.

The Symposium will be held on Friday, March 2, 2018, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the USU Ballrooms. To register and reserve your lunch, click here. For more information, see the announcement on our website.

Grant Writing Workshop Available in January

Next month, NSF is offering a FREE grant writing workshop for faculty, postdocs, and grant administrators. The purpose is to familiarize prospective PIs with the process the NSF uses for proposal submission, review, and grants management. The workshop will be offered both online and at the Hilton Orange County, Costa Mesa (limited on-site seating).

Workshop Details

  • What: NSF Grant Writing Workshop
  • Where: Hilton Orange County, Costa Mesa, and online
  • When: January 24, 2018, from 1:30 pm - 5 pm

To register, click here.

CSULB BUILD in Pictures

CSULB BUILD’s Facebook and Instagram accounts are filled with pictures of our Associates, Scholars, and Fellows. Each month we’ll highlight a collection here.

Coming Next Issue …

  • December Faculty Mixer Highlights

Be Prepared

If you'd like to know what is coming up in the BUILD Learning Community for your mentee, download the current syllabus. This will give you a heads up on what events your mentee is required to attend and therefore will not be available to work in your lab at that time. This page will be updated each semester with the new syllabi.

Communicating with BUILD

We invite your news about your BUILD trainee and any questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions about BUILD. If you have any of these, in relation to being a BUILD Research Mentor, please contact us at BUILD.mentors@csulb.edu. If you have any concerns about your BUILD student, please contact Dr. Jesse Dillon (Student Training Core Director) at Jesse.Dillon@csulb.edu.

Be sure to keep an eye out for the January newsletter.