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N ews
MU adds online PGx program
Visionary science meets
visionary educational technology
in January when Manchester
University adds an online
dedicated master’s degree in
pharmacogenomics (PGx).
The online component, which
can be done in as little as two years, will enable non-traditional students
and working students with families to earn a degree in the cutting-edge
science of PGx without having to relocate or disrupt their everyday lives.
Manchester’s on-campus PGx program, the first of its kind, graduated
10 students last May. The degree they earned enabled them to land
jobs literally from coast-to-coast at children’s hospitals, genetics labs,
precision medicine companies and software companies specializing in
PGx information.
PGx is an emerging science that uses an individual’s DNA to personalize
their response to medication.
VIDEO
See the video at magazine.manchester.edu
“(The online program) is really going to open a market that’s out there
that otherwise wouldn’t be able to pursue a degree,” said David Kisor,
director of pharmacogenomics education.
MU gets $646,000 NSF grant
Manchester has received a $646,134 grant from the National Science
Foundation to help academically talented students with high financial
need pursue science degrees.
MU’s STEM Pathway s Academy has created a learning community in
which students take classes together and work with professional, alumni
and student mentors. Yearly seminars will focus on preparation for
careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Grant funds will provide site visits to science employers and graduate
schools, rich internship and research experiences, and specialized classes
designed for hands-on learning. The first 13 participants started in the
program this fall.
The academy is under the direction of Kristen Short, assistant professor
of biology, and Kathy Davis, associate professor of chemistry.
“Through this program, we will design classes and programming that
support student success in STEM fields. The goal is to take what works
best and expand those practices to other students studying the sciences
and across all disciplines at the University,” Short said.
More than half of the first academy cohort is made up of women, which
is in line with Manchester’s strong tradition of women in the sciences.
Women make up more than half of the MU students in STEM-related
areas of study, and nearly half of those professors are female. The group
is ethnically and culturally diverse.
About 10 students will be recruited for a second academy cohort to begin
in the fall of 2018.
Manchester STEM
graduates report an
impressive success rate,
with 97.7 percent of
2016 graduates in the
sciences reporting being
employed or furthering
their education within
six months after
graduation.
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