UCSF Receives $1 Million to Support Amgen Scholars Program

By Juliana Bunim

Summer research participants 2010
Since 2006, Amgen Foundation’s relationship with UCSF and other top universities has enabled the next generation of scientists to gain critical hands-on experience at top research universities in the U.S. and Europe.

Amgen Scholars Program

U.S. partners:

  • California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
  • Columbia University/Barnard College
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
  • Stanford University
  • UC Berkeley
  • UCLA
  • UC San Diego
  • UCSF
  • University of Washington
  • Washington University in St. Louis
European partners:
  • Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
  • Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat, Munich, Germany
  • University of Cambridge, UK

Now that relationship will continue thanks to a $1 million grant to UCSF which extends through 2014 to advance science learning by providing undergraduates hands-on lab experience during a unique summer training program.

The Amgen Scholars Program fully supports about 25 undergraduates who come to UCSF to work with faculty members for nine-and-a-half-weeks on original research projects in the biological, biomedical and behavioral sciences. The projects are completed under the guidance of faculty mentors and at the end of the program the students give a written abstract, oral and poster presentation of their findings.

In addition to their daily laboratory work, the students also attend seminars and workshops focused on preparing them for both graduate school and an advanced career in the sciences.  All Amgen scholars receive full financial support for the program, including a stipend, room, board and a travel allowance, including travel to and from UCSF and a mid-summer symposium.

“There continues to be a shortage of qualified scientists and engineers entering the workforce each year,” said Jean Lim, president of the Amgen Foundation.  “By 2014, a significant portion of the nearly 2,500 undergraduates who are Amgen Scholars will use their experiences to pursue PhDs and careers in a scientific field.”

Related Links

Topics