Getting Involved
The Division of Biological Sciences encourages members of the local community, our alumni and other friends to take advantage of opportunities to get involved in a variety of exciting programs, events and activities sponsored by the division. Below are several popular ways to participate in the life of the division. We welcome your suggestions for other ways to develop mutually beneficial connections.
Deans' Breakfasts with Alumni and Other Friends
Dean Steve Kay and Associate Dean Gabriele Wienhausen would like to talk with small groups of alumni and other friends of biology about the exciting vision the division has for accomplishing our research and educational missions. These breakfasts are informal conversations that also provide our guests with an opportunity to tell the deans what is important to them in the way of engagement and communication with the UCSD Division of Biological Sciences.
Summer Research Internships for Undergraduates
Our new Eureka! Program provides scholarships to our undergraduate researchers for summer internships with area biotech / pharma companies. We want our top students be able to focus on research during the summer without having to worry about their finances. Through this component of the Eureka! Program, we aim to deepen our students' learn key skills that will prepare them for a career in biotechnology; help them to see how what they are learning might be applied in a number of different industry settings, and deepen their understanding of discovery research as a path to developing new therapeutics and solving health problems.
If your company would like to discuss the possibility of one of our Eureka! Scholars serving a summer internship with you, please e-mail biodeaned@ucsd.edu or call Gabriele Wienhausen at 858-534-3105.
Career Mentoring with Our Graduate and Undergraduate Students
Each year we bring to campus professionals from a wide variety of backgrounds, include biotech / pharma, public health, law, teaching, academia, law enforcement, and the various health science specialties to talk about what they do, how they got where they are, the employment outlook in their field, and how students can prepare for that career. Some of the venues for these exchanges are our Journeys in Discovery talks, Beyond the Degree career panels, Beyond the Classroom lunchtime chats (above), the annual Life Sciences Career Expo organized by our undergraduate organization, the Biological Sciences Student Association.
We also need professionals willing to give tours of their facilities, to provide internships, and to coach individual students or small groups of students on resume preparation, job hunting, and interviewing skills for your particular industry.
Lunchtime Chats with Students
Be our guest. Come to campus for an informal small group lunch with biology majors as part of the Beyond the Classroom program organized by the Biological Sciences Student Association. Our biology students want to talk with professionals in fields they are considering as a possible career. The lunches also help our students develop their communication and networking skills. Areas of interest include biotech / pharma, the health sciences, public health, marine biology, teaching, women in science, law, and any of the biology specialty areas: stem cell research, microbiology, immunology, infectious diseases, ecology, the environment, bioremediation, biodiversity, climate change, molecular biology, cancer research, and more. If you love to talk about your profession, we have students who would love to listen and ask questions!
Mini-Job Fairs
If your company is hiring and would like to come to campus to talk with our undergraduate or graduate students, let us know. We will publicize your visit to our students and provide space for you to interview them. To discuss this possibility more fully with a staff person, e-mail us at: BioCore
Roundtable Brainstorming Sessions
Is your life science company working on a problem that you would like to discuss and brainstorm with a small group of our undergraduate or graduate students? Our rountable dinner discussions focusing on a particular research topic provide an opportunity for this type of interaction.
Lab Equipment & Supplies for Biology Undergraduate Labs
The division welcomes contributions of equipment and supplies for our undergraduate lab classes. With increasing enrollments and state cutbacks help from area companies is greatly appreciated. Currently, our labs are in greatest need of thermal cyclers, spectrophotometers, balances, microplate readers, water baths, tabletop centrifuges, power supplies, and all kinds of microscopes. If you have something not on this list, please e-mail us and let us know.
Contributions are tax deductible.
Communications
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