Elisabeth Van Bockstaele, PhD

The faculty and administration of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and Professional Studies in the College of Medicine are excited to welcome back our new and returning students for the 2015-2016 academic year. The Graduate School strives to provide a distinctive educational and research training experience for its students and support their career and professional development activities. A special thank you to the Graduate Student Association for hosting a spectacular welcome social event following the general orientation program at the Mandell Theater. We also hosted our first clinician mixer at the Academy of Natural Sciences (visit on Facebook) where pre-medical and pre-health graduate students were introduced to clinical faculty in a relaxed setting to learn about their paths to their medical specialties and the lifestyle that goes along with their chosen profession. Students also enjoyed trolley tours of Philadelphia to get to know each other, and the research-intensive biomedical science students concluded their orientation with a dinner in Dinosaur Hall at the academy with program directors, faculty and students.

Professional and Career Development Series

With the success of last year's Careers Beyond the Bench Conference, a full-day conference to expose doctoral graduate students and postdocs to diverse careers in the biomedical sciences, we are pleased to announce this fall's program, Success in Academia. This conference will bring together highly accomplished speakers and panelists discussing academic career opportunities for biomedical scientists. A keynote address will focus on "street smarts" for science, and breakout sessions will include "Fellowship Opportunities for Academic Career Building" and "Negotiating Tactics for Faculty Positions." The conference will conclude with a networking reception with speakers and panelists. The Graduate School is delighted to partner with the School of Biomedical Engineering in sponsoring this professional development event.

Travel Award Program

The Graduate School will continue its Travel Award Program for graduate students (PhD and MS) to partially defray the cost of attending a scientific meeting or professional development conference that is related to the student's graduate study. A call for applications will be forthcoming in the next few weeks.

Council News

This fall the Graduate School launched the Graduate Council, and we continue building relationships with other Drexel schools via the Collaborative Graduate Council. The purpose of these committees is to clearly define graduate policies and procedures, continually discuss best practices in graduate education, and develop innovative programs and courses to better serve our student body. Graduate students serving on the executive board of the Graduate Student Association participate in these committees and have a vote on action items brought forth to the Graduate Council.

Division News

The Graduate School welcomes Dr. Michael Bouchard as the new director of the Division of Biomedical Science programs as well as Dr. Richard Rest as the interim director of the Division of Pre-medical and Pre-Health programs. Our distinguished faculty are committed to supporting our students through their journey as graduate students and guiding them toward reaching their professional goals.

On behalf of the faculty, staff and administration of the Graduate School, we wish you continued success in your academic pursuits.