Location: Center for Autism Research, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

Description: PART is designed for high-achieving undergraduate and graduate minority students working with a CAR faculty scholar and interested in a career in clinical services or science related to autism.

The Undergraduate Program (U-PART)

• Full-time scholars attend the program for up to two years, and receive comprehensive training and scholarly experiences to fully prepare them for competitive graduate programs.
  • Two scholarships will be offered, and will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
• Summer scholars work intensively over a summer semester to further shape their career aspirations and research interests.
  • A total of four scholarships are available for the summer of 2011 & 2012 (6/1 to 8/31).
    Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, beginning February 15 of each year.
• All U-PART Scholars will:
  • Focus on a specific research question which could contribute to the formation of their senior research project. Scholars can choose to rotate between labs to explore their own emerging research interests.
  • Be required to participate in the preparation and/or presentation of a poster or oral presentation at an annual CAR research day and/or at a research specific conference.

The Graduate Program (G-PART)

• Eligible students are
  • Enrolled in graduate, medical school training or a post-baccalaureate scholars program with a degree in a related field of science from an accredited U.S. college or university.
  • Post-baccalaureate scholars (PostBac) intending to apply to a graduate program within two years of beginning the program.
• Post-Bac students are eligible for up to two years of full-time funding, and Graduate Students are eligible for up to 10 hours/week of funding for up to 3 years.
• All G-PART scholars will:
  • Be matched with a faculty mentor based on their research experience and research interests, to learn various techniques through individualized research mentoring. Scholars may have a primary and secondary mentor, a desirable option given the multidisciplinary nature of both
  • CAR and the field of autism research.
  • Graduate students must be enrolled at The University of Pennsylvania, Lincoln University or Temple University.
  • Learn to design, conduct, and evaluate clinical research. Scholars will also acquire an understanding of issues of data collection and study management, and an understanding of ethical issues regarding human subjects use in clinical research.
  • Be required to write up their research findings for publication or presentation at CARsponsored workshops or other conferences. All Faculty Mentors agree to provide support to GPART scholars to attend one conference related to their area of work.
• Up to four G-Part positions will be offered. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis.

Other expectations for all PART Scholars

• Seminars: All PART Scholars (except for Summer Scholars) also have opportunities to participate in weekly seminars in Understanding Autism, and scholars yet to enter graduate school will participate in more general seminars on a variety of topics related to research design, methodology, and ethics/neuroethics (for research involving human and animal subjects). All scholars will participate with all CAR faculty mentors in CAR’s Distinguished Lecture Series by international experts in autism
• Clinical Experience: All PART Scholars (except for Summer Scholars) will observe at least 4 diagnostic assessments from start to finish, in a specialized ASD training clinic established through the LEND program or as part of ongoing CAR research protocols.
• Community Awareness: All PART Scholars (except for Summer Scholars) will become familiar with community-based supports by helping to gather information about Pennsylvania service providers and advocacy organizations, as part of CAR’s ongoing program to maintain a resource guide for families and practitioners.

Stipend and Benefits

• All undergraduate and PostBac Scholars receive a stipend ($1,000 for U-PART summer scholars and $2,000 for other scholars) to offset the costs of graduate school application fees, visits to graduate schools, and GRE preparation courses.
• All undergraduate and PostBac scholars will receive guidance for successful interviewing and application assistance from the PennPREP and McNair Scholars programs, in the fall of 2011 or 2012. In addition, faculty mentors will support the scholars in contacting programs and colleagues, and arranging individualized site visits.
• Post-Bac G-PART Scholars are eligible for health insurance benefits as CHOP employees.
• All PART Scholars will benefit from inclusion in a broad university and hospital research community that includes students and colleagues with similar interests and backgrounds. Formal and informal activities conducted within a multidisciplinary group of PostBac trainees expose scholars to a broad range of professional role models. The 30-40 undergraduate and graduate students intensively pursuing careers in ASD at any one time within CAR provide for a very rich and collegial training environment.

Applications

• Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups – i.e., African-American, Hispanic, Latino American, Native American, Asian, Alaskan Native, or Pacific-Islander background - are encouraged to apply.
• All Applicants must submit (a) a CV, (b) a written letter describing their interest and future goals in the field of science, and (c) unofficial transcripts. Applicants must have a 3.0 GPA or higher.
• Applicants must have already identified a faculty mentor affiliated with CAR’s Center of Excellence in Autism Research

Contact: All materials and inquiries (electronic submission preferred) should be sent to
Dr. Peter Doehring, Director of Regional Programs ( doehringp@email.chop.edu )
Center for Autism Research, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
3535 Market St., Philadelphia, PA 19104.