UNIVERSITA VITA-SALUTE SAN RAFFAELE. Code of Practice for Graduate Programs

Transcription

1 UNIVERSITA VITA-SALUTE SAN RAFFAELE Code of Practice for Graduate Programs 1

2 INDEX Topic Page Premise...03 Scope and general description of UHSR graduate programs...03 Skills to be developed during the Programs...04 Expected outcomes...04 Managing the programs. I: the Board of Teachers...05 Managing the programs. II: the Scientific Advisory Board...06 Candidate selection...06 Eligibility criteria for participating groups and research projects...07 Role of the Direct Supervisor (DS)...08 What students can expect from supervisors...09 The monitoring process...09 Students assignments...10 Courses, seminars and other cultural activities...11 The dissertation

3 1. Premise Graduate programs are, in principle, among the most qualifying comprehensive teaching activities offered by Universities. This is because graduate programs combine research training with higher education, which are the most relevant institutional assets of academia. In spite of this consideration, graduate programs in Italy have generally failed to thrive since their inception in Nowadays, with few exceptions, holding a Ph.D. degree in Italy does not confer any substantial qualification nor does it facilitate access to a professional career in research. This is due, among other things, to the lack of efficient and objective quality control systems impinging on the educational curricula and the research projects carried out by the students. The following statements are intended to provide a set of rules, both practical and ethical, for staff and students participating in UHSR graduate programs. The aim is to improve the standards for program managing, candidate selection, monitoring of the students and the overall quality of the course curricula and research projects assigned to the students. The Code of Practice should be viewed as an integration of the existing UHSR regulations concerning graduate programs. 2. Scope and general description of UHSR graduate programs The overall goal of our graduate programs is to prepare doctoral students for professional careers in experimental and/or clinical research in life science and medicine. During the program, students should develop and pursue individually tailored course curricula to acquire a broad knowledge of pre-clinical sciences as well as to focus on areas of particular interest. During the first one to two years students should take departmental courses and selected courses in related areas such as biochemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, neurobiology, genetics, immunology and statistics. During the first year, students begin research in their thesis laboratory and are constantly supervised by a direct supervisor (DS) and by an internal advisor (IA), with whom they meet periodically to discuss their research. Some programs may also require an external supervisor (ES), who meets with the student at the end of each year to monitor progress in the thesis work, and discusses future strategies and individual problems with the on-site committee. Students undergo a probationary period during the first year, after which they submit a probationary report concerning their initial research work. The report is independently evaluated by several members of the Board of Teachers and advice is given on whether and how the project should be amended to achieve its final goals. The culmination of the Program is the submission of a written doctoral thesis, which is evaluated by several expert readers and then presented in a public lecture attended by the various tutors and by external thesis advisers. A successful thesis defense is a requirement to obtain the Dottore di Ricerca title. Students are expected to fulfill the requirements for the Ph.D. degree within three to four years. A high quality publication of the experimental work carried out during the Program, or at least submission of a manuscript concerning such work is required prior to the discussion of the doctoral thesis. 3

4 3. Skills to be developed during the Programs To achieve the PhD degree it is necessary for students to demonstrate that they have mastered the skills necessary to carry out research to professional standards. Professional research standards should include: 1. Having mastered the appropriate methodological, experimental and technological research skills needed to achieve a project s goals. 2. Being able to address the underlying mechanisms of the biological issue to be solved. 3. Being able to communicate: i.e. being able to present a coherent argument and tell a story that a world-wide peer group is interested to hear; to write clear, precise, logical conference and journal articles and to make presentations at international conferences, workshops and seminars; to demonstrate the importance/interest of one s research to expert and non-expert visitors. 4. Being able to evaluate the worth of what others are doing, which includes conducting literature searches, reviewing conferences and critically evaluating submitted manuscripts. Literature surveys should demonstrate that students have the maturity, critical and analytical skills to compare their work to previous and contemporary research and to point out the limitations of their findings. 4. Having the intuition and critical attitude required to discover where to make a contribution and the ability to evaluate and re-evaluate such contribution. 5. Being able to plan the experimental work required to achieve a scientific goal; to meet deadlines; to have the determination and application to work to the conclusion of what had been initially set out. 6. Being able to work with others and to understand the added value provided by team efforts in research. 4. Expected outcomes A high quality PhD dissertation in due course (3-4 years); At least one first-authored paper in a major peer-reviewed journal; Oral presentation(s) at an international conference; Meeting, discussing with and exerting a positive impression on professional researchers at workshops, seminars and visits; Valuable experience for student and direct supervisor; Benefit to fellow students in ideas, software, research grants or demonstrations. Research project is passed on to the next generation of students; A post-doctoral appointment at the end of three to four years; 4

5 5. Managing the programs. I: the Board of Teachers (Steering Committee, Collegio dei Docenti) Each program is entirely managed by the Board of Teachers, which is composed by a Scientific Coordinator and several academic staff members selected by the Coordinator and approved by the Faculty Board. The following are the main duties of the board of Teachers: Establishment and periodic (once a year) update of a web site containing information about the Program, its participating members and the projects they offer to the students, the selection procedure and detailed instructions concerning the application and the selection process. A printed version of the entire information package concerning the Program should be mailed on request to applicants not having access to on-line network services; Advertisement of the Program, by publishing on a yearly basis a related ad on major scientific journals, and by sending out information (such as flyers advertising the program) to individuals and institutions included in appropriate mailing lists; Establishment of eligibility criteria for participating staff members (based on indications provided by the Chairmen of the various Departments) and yearly selection of investigators who are interested in supervising students for their thesis work throughout the Program (see below); Yearly selection of the candidates through the appropriate procedures indicated in the official regulations concerning PhD programs; Management of the selection process and assignment of the DS and IA for each student; whenever applicable, approval of the external supervisor (ES) indicated by the direct supervisor (DS) for each student; Organization and assessment of lecture courses, small group-based tutorials and other cultural activities; Assessment of the students at the end of the courses, based on their performance in the curricular activities and on the attendance of other departmental cultural activities. Mid-term (probationary period) as well as final decisions (to be made jointly with the IA and the DS) concerning the progress of the student through the Program and the appropriate time for thesis discussion; Assistance to the students and protection of the student s rights (which include appropriate direct supervision, regular provision of the salary, adequate assistance for thesis preparation, etc.); Secretarial and administrative duties. 5

6 6. Managing the programs. II: the Scientific Advisory Board On the basis of selected requirements, some programs are supervised by a Scientific Advisory Board composed of national and international experts from outside the Program. The Scientific Advisory Board should provide an unbiased supervision and preliminary approval of all aspects of the Program. Based on the thematic areas of the programs, the Advisory Board includes experts belonging to the areas of interest. The Scientific Advisory Board meets on a yearly basis in the sponsoring establishment. After each meeting the Scientific Advisory Board drafts a report to be forwarded to the Board of Teachers, the internal Evaluation Board (Nucleo di valutazione) of the University and the Chancellor of the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University. 7. Candidate selection A rigorous and unbiased selection of candidates is key to the success of a graduate program. Given the heterogeneous profile of individuals applying to the Program, some general guidelines should be considered when evaluating candidates during the selection process. Ideally, successful candidates should be young (25-28 yr. old) graduates with an excellent education track, a strong commitment to develop as independent investigators and good knowledge of the English language. One or more publications on high quality international journals, with a demonstrated active involvement in the work, would be appreciated. Students enrolled in the Program are expected to spend in the assigned lab the vast majority of the time required to complete their thesis work. The selection procedure should be a two-tier process. Candidates applying to the Program should submit a complete curriculum vitae, a short description of their current research activities, a statement describing their broad research interests and two reference letters by academic referees, which should contain an evaluation of the candidate conforming to appropriate guidelines reported in the web site of the Program. On the basis of the submitted material, the Board of Teachers selects a number of applications exceeding by approximately two fold the number of students to be enrolled. The selected candidates are invited for an interview (at their own expenses save special cases) by several members of the Board of Teachers as well as by expert scientists from outside the Board of Teachers chosen by the Scientific Coordinator of the program. The selected members of the Board of Teachers and the additional experts should interview all the selected candidates, and report to the Board the scores concerning each applicant. Individual scores (ranging from 1 to 10) should be assigned to items such as: i-curriculum vitae, ii-references, iii-adequacy for the Program, iv-interview. Interviewers should write a concise but clear statement motivating the assigned scores. 6

7 Each candidate should be advised to carefully read the projects offered to the students and to contact the principal investigators responsible for the potential projects of interest. On the basis of the above information, candidates are invited, at the end of the interview process, to list up to five preferences among the participating DS. Candidates are short-listed based on the aforementioned evaluation system. The assignment process is carried out by the Board of Teachers, taking into account the individual preferences of the selected candidates (according to their ranking in the short list), their scientific and academic background and the statements of the DS involved in the interview process, to obtain the best possible match between the candidate and the participating investigators. 8. Eligibility criteria for participating groups and research projects Individual investigators are considered eligible to participate in the Program as DS if they qualify scientifically and accept to be actively involved in its management. This implies that the PIs or senior scientists in their groups will organize courses, will act as IA if needed (each participating investigator will be expected to supervise up to 2 students as an IA), provide the extra funds required to cover the student s salary should he/she need extensions over the standard three year duration of the thesis work and most of all provide appropriate direct supervision to the assigned students in their group. It should be clear to all direct supervisors that they should commit more time and energy to the Ph.D. students than to the other research personnel attending their labs. Names of eligible PIs will be initially identified by the Board of Teachers among the groups operating in the Institution and within selected laboratories in the San Raffaele Biomedical Science Park. For some programs, scientists operating outside the sponsoring establishment may be included in the program as members of the Board of Teachers and/or potential DS. In the perspective departmental organisation of the Institute, department Chairmen will provide a list of eligible PIs within their department to the Board of Teachers, which will independently consider whether such PIs should be selected for the evaluation and the enrolment of the students in the Program. Senior scientists belonging to large groups with a different PI, but carrying on fully independent (and independently funded) research within such groups, with a demonstrated ability to pursue independent research (i.e. senior authorship in one or more relevant publications) will be considered eligible to enrol a student under their direct supervision. Their name and a description of their research will therefore be included in the info pack concerning the Program, and they will be included, independently of their PI, in the yearly rotation for student assignment. Research projects offered to the students have to be carefully selected by each participating scientist. Each project should be inherently feasible within the three-year duration of the program, with a defined focus but at the same time with a sufficiently broad spectrum of potential approaches to tackle the underlying biological problem, so that the student will have a certain degree of freedom in deciding how to challenge the scientific issues to be addressed. Merely technological or purely descriptive research projects should not be suitable for a PhD thesis work. Rather, a project should clearly 7

8 focus on dissecting the mechanistic basis underlying an unsolved biological/pathological process of sufficient interest for a broad scientific community. In general, the principal investigator in charge of the project should also be the direct supervisor of the student. 9. Role of the Direct Supervisor (DS) 1. Give a small exploratory project in the first year with a definite deadline before April of the first year. This will highlight problems in approach and if conducted to conclusion will lead to a conference paper. 2. Make sure students are familiar with the professional standards of published work by getting them to read one good PhD dissertation and getting students to regularly review literature and attend journal club sessions. 3. Encourage all students to present first at a group seminar/journal club session and later on at national and international conferences, so that they face external criticism of research and hone presentational skills. 4. Encourage independence and transfer dependence after the first year. Make sure students are able to set their own goals and meet deadlines. Make students understand underlying problems when they fail to meet deadlines. 5. Ensure that students realize that original research contributions come about after diligent review, concentration and analysis. 6. Ensure that students have a professional attitude to research. Present legible written work at mutually convenient deadlines. Attend research meetings with notes on research in progress methods attempted and papers read. Treat research like any other job and maintain average though flexible working hours (minimum 7hrs real work/day). Students who fail to work on average 9-5, five days a week almost always fail to make satisfactory progress and overrun. 7. Establish a peer group to advise and give comments. Ensure that second and third year students help in the training of newcomers. Ensure that students make a contribution to group activities 8. Encourage students who fail to make adequate progress by time of first year report (May) to resubmit by September. Failure at the second report stage will lead to termination of the program. 9. Encourage final year students to give a group seminar before writing dissertation to help organize story line and structure. 10. Effective communication skills require the student to be able to write concisely, logically and in grammatical English. These skills are developed by reading journal articles and in discussion with colleagues. Students should also be encouraged to read as 8

9 widely as possible outside their discipline and to discuss their research ideas with friends and non-experts. 09. What students can expect from supervisor 1. Early direction. Initial project formulation and plan. 2. Exposure to all elements of research training. 3. Advice on reformulation of goals and plans 4. Positive feedback on research proposals. Interest in what they are doing. 5. Criticism if fail to meet professional research standards. 6. Meetings as requested by student and supervisor. 7. Support and encouragement on time of professional, financial or personal crisis. 10. The monitoring process Students will be subjected to a tight monitoring of their training and research activity twice a year during the entire duration of the Program. Tutorials will be carried out by the direct supervisor (DS) (generally the PI of the host group, see below), by the internal advisor (IA), a staff member having specific expertise in the research field concerning the thesis work and for some programs by an external supervisor (ES) having previous experience of graduate student supervision in the international academic world. At the end of the sixth month of each year, the student and her/his DS meet with the IA to discuss advances in the project. Whenever required, the site visit by the ES takes place at the end of the year and initially consists of a general discussion of the project with the student, the DS and the IA. This is followed by an individual discussion between the student and the ES, and finally by a separate meeting between the ES and the IA. At the end of the visit, the ES writes a short report to the Board of Teachers, concerning the thesis work and the management of the student by the various internal tutors. Special care should be devoted to identifying as early as possible potential problems in the implementation of the thesis work by individual students, to avoid late-stage discontinuations of such work. Three to four weeks after the end of the courses, students should take a written exam concerning the topics of such courses. The exam will be based on problem-solving tests (with tests provided by the course organizers) implying a general knowledge of the fields that have been dealt with during the courses. Success in these exams is required for the continuation of the Program. Only under special circumstances students failing the exam will be allowed to continue the Program, pending the attendance of selected courses during the second year and a successful re-examination. At the end of the three-year Program, a decision will be made by the Board of Teachers, jointly with the various tutors, concerning the appropriate time for defending the doctoral thesis. It is intended that the thesis will be written during the final year of the Program. Whenever the Office decides that the thesis work should be extended beyond the threeyear period, it will be the host group s responsibility to cover the student s salary for the 9

10 additional period required to complete the doctoral thesis. Should this not be the case, the DS should notify students at least one year in advance. 11. Students assignments Students need to have at least twelve formal meetings per year with their direct supervisors. The student can request that the student s internal advisor is present at these meetings. The meetings require a short written report/data presentation from the student addressing progress during the previous month, possible problems and a research plan for the upcoming month. The supervisor may add notes to this report as necessary. The Faculty Graduate Office will keep a file of the students meetings with their supervisors. Students are responsible for providing the office with a copy of the report of each meeting with their supervisor. The office will ensure that annual reports and viva reports are provided and processed on time. From the beginning of their studies, students will be required to maintain a Personal Profile (laboratory notebook) and prepare a portfolio that contains information about the objectives of their work, publication quality figures and feedback from seminars and workshops they have attended. The folder will be presented at all assessments. Students will attend workshops and seminars according to the training template provided by the Board of Teachers. Students will attend regular workshops or seminar presentations arranged by the Schools or research centers/institutes that allow them to discuss technical and scientific aspects of their work. Students will keep a record of their attendance in their portfolio. Each year, students should attend at least major research seminars and 30 journal club sessions given by internal or external speakers. Graduate students are expected to devote their whole time during their course to the research or program of research training. Within 12 months all students will present their work in a poster session and/or in a talk that is assessed by members of the School or research center/institute. Within eleven months, the student will submit a report on their work (probationary report) to date and future plans to the Graduate Office. This report and the student s portfolio will form the basis for a viva by members of the School or research center/institute, who will decide whether progress is sufficiently satisfactory to allow registration of the student for a PhD. The decision needs to be approved by the Board of Teachers, usually acting through the IAs and DSs of the students. During their second year, the student will give a short presentation to the School or research center/institute and will submit a 2nd year report by 24 months. By the end of the third year, the student should have given at least one further talk to the School or the research center/institute. Students are encouraged to present their work at national/international meetings. All students will be encouraged to submit their thesis by the end of the third year. 10

11 12. Courses, seminars and other cultural activities Courses dealing with broad topics in the area of cellular, molecular and developmental biology are expected to be organized by all participating investigators on a rotational basis. The Courses (5 to 6 each year on average) should be held in one week time and contain formal lectures by staff members and invited guests, as well as interactive tutorial activities in the form of journal clubs, etc. The courses should be completed within the first four months of the first year, to allow proper time for individual literature search and for the accomplishments of pilot experiments concerning the perspective thesis work. Course planning should be established at the beginning of each academic year and distributed to the students, along with reference material as requested by the individual courses. Students are expected to attend and take part in all the major departmental cultural activities, including journal club sessions, internal seminars and invited lectures. The Office will pay particular attention into surveying that the students rapidly acquire the competence and confidence required to be actively involved in the cultural activities of the Institute (preparing journal clubs, asking questions at seminars, requesting time to discuss individually with the invited guests, etc.). 13. The dissertation The culmination of the Program is the submission of a written doctoral thesis, which is evaluated by several expert readers and then presented in a public lecture attended by a Commission nominated by the Chancellor of the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University. The Commission includes up to three members of the Board of Teachers and at least two external thesis advisers. A successful thesis defense is required to obtain the Dottore di Ricerca title by the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University. A high quality publication of the experimental work carried out during the Program, or at least submission of a manuscript concerning such work is required prior to the discussion of the doctoral thesis. The PhD dissertation should allow the examiners to determine whether the candidate has met the above requirements. It should not be a record of all of the student's work in the department. The dissertation should be structured to include: 1. Identification of an unsolved problem and reason for solving it. The nature and purpose/motivation for the investigation should be clearly stated. The thesis approach/standpoint and whether the purpose was substantially achieved should also be made clear. 2. Status of research in direction of solution. The relevant background material and limitations of existing methods. The candidate must show that he/she has an adequate knowledge of the subject and of the literature and can critically place his/her work in a wider context. The literature survey should not be encyclopedic. 3. A foreseeable solution. Development of own ideas and experimental framework backed with statistical analysis if required. 11

12 4. Demonstration that the solution is plausible. This should involve the implementation, justification for assumptions and evaluation of evidence. Demonstrate analytical skills. 5. Assessment of the suitability of the solution 6. Evidence of the importance of the student s individual contribution 7. Identification of directions for future work 8. Appendices 9. Complete bibliography with numbered list of references. References in text should use names and numbers. 12