Summer/Fall 2013 PDF - University of Minnesota College of ...

SUMMER SCHOLARS
Summer Scholars:
immersed in cutting-edge research
This summer, 20 veterinary students
immersed themselves in cutting-edge
research. Through these experiential
learning opportunities offered through the
Summer Scholars program, these first- and
second-year students gained an appreciation
of research while learning firsthand how it
contributes to advances in health care and
veterinary practice. Some will even decide
to pursue a research career.
“I knew I was interested in a career in
research, but I wasn’t completely sold on
it,” says Katie Anderson, a participant in
the 2012 Summer Scholars program. The
eight weeks Anderson spent on her Summer
Scholars’ project, however, convinced her to
commit to a career in research. Anderson’s
STUDENT PROFILE
Katie Anderson
CLASS: 2015
HOMETOWN: Maple Grove,
Minnesota
STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS: member,
SCAVMA, Research Animal
Medicine Club, Canine Club, and
VeTouch
PROFESSIONAL GOALS: Anderson
aspires to be a veterinary
researcher in the fi eld of canine
cancer research.
project looked at the role interleukin 8 plays
in hemangiosarcoma development in the lab
of Dr. Jaime Modiano, Perlman professor of
oncology and comparative medicine at the
college.
“Ideally, I’d like to combine bench-top
research with clinical research. My goal
is to design a therapy in the lab and
translate that therapy into the clinic,” says
Anderson. “I love the idea of exploring
the unknown and examining a problem
we are facing in veterinary medicine and
then coming up with a solution. I love the
problem-solving aspect of research.”
Veterinarians play an increasingly important
role in developing new treatments and cures
for all animals, including humans, through
comparative medicine and the animal
model of human disease. The goal of the
Summer Scholars program is to develop
veterinary scientists skilled in hypothesisdriven
research and translational medicine
by immersing students in research projects
related to veterinary, animal, and human
health initiatives.
“We are not graduating enough
veterinarian scientists to meet industry
and academic research needs, particularly
with the pending retirement of the baby
boomers,” says Dr. Mark Rutherford,
associate dean of graduate programs and
associate professor in the Veterinary and
Biomedical Sciences Department, who
directs the Summer Scholars program.
Veterinary research scientists also play
a critical role in addressing basic health
issues in human biomedicine, veterinary
health, and wildlife ecology.
“Participation in the Summer Scholars
program helps students be more
competitive as PhD candidates, provides
them with a first exposure to research as
a possible career, and strengthens their
applied knowledge of the science behind
the medicine,” says Rutherford.
Students who participate in the program
receive a $4,500 stipend; gain experience
in how to plan and implement a research
project, evaluate data, and work
effectively in a research lab; and develop
critical thinking skills. They also become
aware of various careers in industry,
government, and higher education.
“A career in academia allows veterinary
research scientists to be engaged in
teaching vet students at the same time they
are involved in research,” says Rutherford.
“They also have time in the hospital,
where they can see and treat patients. A
career in academia is probably the best of
both worlds.”
Opportunities in industry include careers
with biomedical and medical device firms,
animal health companies, and veterinary
or human pharmaceutical firms.
Students interested in the program apply
for specific projects, which have been
approved for the Summer Scholars
program by a committee that has already
determined a project’s value as a learning
opportunity. Students applying for the
program also must demonstrate through a
one-page paper that they understand both
the research question and the research
approach of their selected project.
Each year, the number of positions
available in the Summer Scholars program
is determined by funding. The National
Institutes of Health funded five projects this
year through a grant to Bruce Walcheck,
PhD, professor in the Veterinary and
Biomedical Sciences Department. Merial,
an international animal health company
based in Duluth, Georgia, provided
funding for four projects, which the college
matched. The remaining seven projects
were funded by a variety of sources.
“There is more interest than there are funds,”
says Rutherford. “We are always piecing
together the funding, but this is our 13th year
in the program, and we have successfully
received funds from Merial for 13 years.”
While a majority of participants in the
program are from the college, this year the
college will host one veterinary student
from St. George’s University in Grenada,
West Indies, and one from Utrecht
University in the Netherlands.
26 Profiles Summer/Fall 2013