Cal State Northridge College of Science & Math Dept. of Biology Bios Contents Contact us

Bios The Biology Department Newsletter Spring 1999 Volume 14: No. 1, Editor: J. Maxwell, Publisher J.W. Dole California State University, Northridge MARC/MBRS Program News Student Achievements Sabino Herrera, a former MBRS and MARC student, has been accepted to theVeternary Medical school at UC Davis, where he plans to combine his research experience and interest in animals. Cecilia Martinez has passed her first set of exams for the Ph.D. at Purdue University, and Eric Villagas has passed all of his exams for the Ph.D. at the Univesity of Pennsylvania. Both are former MBRS and MARC students. Eric has recently submitted several manuscripts for publication. MARC students Sonia Navarro, Maria Abundis, Rosemarie De Ocampo, and Edward Yamoah spent four days in Washington, D.C. at the national meeting of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). Three former MARC students now in doctoral programsñClaudia Garcia (Harvard), Luis Rodriguez (Cornell) and Jo Anne Del Rio (UC Irvine)ñalso attended. Jo Anne won the Vigil Award for outstanding presentation. MARC students Huong Can, Alain Pendon, Dang Huynh, and Julissa Sosa presented posters at the National Minority Symposium in NYC. They were joined by Drs. Maria Elena Zavala and Randy Cohen. Julissa also attended a conference in San Francisco for the American Society for Cell Biology where she won an award for her outstanding poster presentation. Applications Available The purpose of the MARC (Minority Access to Research Careers) and MBRS (Minority Biomedical Research Support) programs is to provide undergraduate students experience so that they are competitive when applying to Ph.D. programs. Program participants must be within two years of graduation, have a GPA of 3.0 or better, have a desire for a career in biomedical research, and belong to an ethnic group underrepresented in science (African Americans, Chicanos and other Latin Americans, Pacific Islanders or Native Americans). The MARC program provides a stipend of more than $8,000 yearly, tuition remission of $1,500, and research and travel support. The program at Cal State Northridge is well known for placing students at top Ph.D. granting institutions. Funding for new MBRS projects is under consideration by the NIH. A decision should be announced later in spring. These funds will provide support for students to conduct research for PAY! Qualified students are urged to drop by the MARC/MBRS office in Science 2310 for applications. Biology Graduate Student News Requirements for Admission to Graduate Program Students planning to pursue a Master's degree in Biology are encouraged to apply. Says Dr. Paul Wilson, one of the program coordinators, "Applicants must submit two applications, one to the University, another to the Biology Department." Each unit uses its own form. Applications must be accompanied by transcripts of all coursework previously completed. Biology applicants must take the General and Biology GRE. Says Dr. Randy Cohen, the other program coordinator, "Applicants who have not taken the exams are not considered. Currently, Biology GRE scores need not be in hand at the time of application, but definitely by the middle of summer." For information about the GRE call the Testing Center, 677-2364. The research interests of the Biology faculty are identified in the Biology Graduate Bulletin available in the Department office, Science 2102. Graduate Webpage Now Up Says Dr. Paul Wilson, a webpage with information about the graduate program is now up and running. It can be accessed at www.csun.edu/~bd46942. Says Dr. Wilson, "This is the first version and it will take a few iterations to get it perfected." Much of the work of preparing the webpages was done by graduate student Greg Benavides.