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Keck Computational Biology (KCB) Training Program
Frequently Asked Questions
Applicants
1. How do I apply for this training program?
Applications should be completed online at Forms / Applications. Prior to completing an application, an applicant MUST speak with his/her mentor and the GCC’s Keck Center Institutional Training Director specific to the applicant’s institution.
2. When should I apply?
Funding for this program is ending. There maybe opportunities in the future and they will be announced to the Keck Faculty Affiliates.
3. Do I need to be affiliated with one of the six GCC member institutions to apply?
Yes. Predoctoral trainees must be enrolled in a graduate program in one of the GCC member institutions. Postdoctoral trainees must be affiliated with the lab of a Keck Faculty Affiliate.
4. What other documents are needed for application?
Please refer to Forms / Applications for details of application materials.
5. What institution, agency or organization supports this training program?
This training program is supported by the W.M. Keck Foundation and is administered by the Keck Center for Interdisciplinary Bioscience Training, whose policies govern many aspects of this program.
6. How much is the stipend?
The KCB Steering Committee regulates stipend levels to all individuals receiving support through institutional research training grants or individual fellowships. Support for predoctoral trainees in 2006 is $12,500 per year. Annual support for postdoctoral trainees is $20,000 per year in 2006.
7. What other financial benefits are provided?
There are no other financial benefits.
8. Is there a citizenship requirement for this training program?
No, there is no U.S. citizenship requirement.
9. What is the length of the trainee appointment period?
All appointments are for one year, subject to the availability of funds. Trainees are eligible for additional years of funding based on progress and availability of funds as described below:
- Predoctoral trainees (graduate students): Generally, predoctoral trainees are funded after completion of one year of training at their home institution, although an individual may apply prior to completion of the first year of graduate study. Depending on the trainees’ progress and longevity in their graduate programs, the trainee may be funded for no more than two years.
- Postdoctoral trainees: Generally the total number of years of funding is two years.
10. What are the housing options?
Refer to the GCC / Keck Center institution where the applicant is / will be training for this information.
Mentors
1. How many mentors are trainees required to have?
Predoctoral trainees are strongly encouraged to have two mentors. Postdoctoral trainees must have two mentors. These mentors are designated as primary and secondary. Both mentors must be appointed to Keck Faculty Affiliate status. It is preferable, although not required, for the mentors to be affiliated with two separate institutions in the GCC, as this training program is designed to draw from the unique and complementary strengths of the GCC institutions and the program’s training faculty. Trainees may have a tertiary mentor; that person does not need to be a member of this program’s training faculty.
2. What is the expectation regarding the disciplines represented by the mentors?
Generally, the expectation is that one mentor will be from a contemporary biomedical science (biochemistry, cell biology, pharmacology, etc.), chemistry, structural biology, medicine, and the other from computer science, informatics, mathematics or computational biology.
3. How do mentors submit their recommendations?
Mentor applications should be completed online at Mentor Recommendation Form.
4. Do both primary and secondary faculty mentors need to be members of the program’s training faculty?
Mentors must be a Keck Faculty Affiliate. This training program was designed to stimulate new interactions and ideas and draw from the unique and complementary strengths of the GCC institutions and the program’s training faculty.
5. Given the importance of collaborative projects, how much weight will be given to evidence of prior collaboration between mentors?
The emphasis is on the applicant’s proposed project and the interdisciplinary nature of the science. Prior collaboration is not a requirement. However, the mentoring plan must clearly describe how the mentors will collaborate to provide the trainee with an appropriate level of training in both disciplines and a model for collaborative interaction.
Training Program Faculty
1. Who are the training faculty participating in this training program?
Please see Keck Center Faculty Directory.
2. Will new faculty be granted faculty status for this training program?
The KCB Steering Committee will consider the addition of faculty to its training faculty roster in the future. Prospective faculty should first contact their institution’s Keck Center Institutional Training Director for discussion of research interests and how it relates to the NLM training program. Please contact the Program Director, Wah Chiu, (wah@bcm.tmc.edu) or the GCC/Keck Center Administrative Director, Lisa Blinn (lisblinn@rice.edu ) for more information.
3. How many trainees may a faculty member mentor?
The KCB Training Program has not established a policy regarding faculty mentorship of multiple trainees. However, the KCB Steering Committee members seek to establish a diverse cadre of trainees and may take the number of trainees mentored by a faculty member into consideration when awarding fellowships.
4. What are the requirements of a Nanobiology Training Faculty member?
Keck Training Faculty are members of the
Keck Center and of specific training grant communities and may be asked to:
1. Serve on the training grant steering committee
- Review trainee applications
- Interview and select trainees
- Review applications and select additional training faculty not on original grant
- Plan trainee and/or faculty retreats
- Plan program activities
2. Be mentors or co-mentors
- Supervise and support trainee research
- Participate in progress reviews and interviews
- Participate in Friday Keck Seminars: Speaker Selection, Attendance
3. Participate in annual Keck Annual Research Conference
- Attendance
- Assist with poster judging
4. Participate in Keck Center Undergraduate Research Training Program (summer)
5. Participate in training program curriculum development and teaching of specialized courses
6. Support the grant renewal and new training grant application
7. Support recruitment efforts
Keck Center Resources
1. What other resources are available to trainees in this training program?
Trainees will receive the designation of Keck Fellows, in addition to being trainees in the Keck Computational Biology Training Program. Keck Fellows participate in:
- Keck Seminars (weekly during academic year)
- Keck Fellows meetings (monthly)
- Keck Annual Research Conference (each fall)
- Sealy Structural Biology Symposium (each spring) – optional
- Journal Clubs
2. As this is an inter-institutional, interdisciplinary training program, are trainees allowed to take classes at other GCC member institutions?
Yes. Check with the Registrar at the home institution or with GCC/Keck Center staff for specific guidelines.
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