Keck School of Medicine
Master of Science in Clinical, Biomedical and Translational Investigations
Program Co-Directors:
Stanley P. Azen, Ph.D., Professor, Co-Director of Biostatistics, Preventive Medicine, Co-Director CETCD
Michael L. Paine, B.Sc., B.D.S., Ph.D., Associate Professor, Director, Graduate Program in Craniofacial Biology
The Master of Science in Clinical, Biomedical, and Translational Investigations (CBTI) is a joint effort to train medical students, fellows or other health professionals, including faculty and other scientists conducting clinical-related research, in clinical research methods to translate clinical, biomedical and technological discoveries into advances in population-based, clinical or basic science research. The M.S. Program of Clinical, Biomedical, and Translational Investigations (CBTI) is available to medical students who have completed their second year of medical school, and pre-doctoral students who are interested in expanding their pre-doctoral training to include methodology associated with conducting translational research. Pre-doctoral students will earn a joint degree (Ph.D. in their research area and an M.S. in CBTI). In addition, the M.S. CBTI Program is tailored to MDs doing fellowships at USC or Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), faculty interested in expanding their research careers, or are recipients of Young Investigator Awards, including Southern California Clinical Translational Science Institute’s (SC CTSI) Center for Education, Training, and Career Development K and T Awardees. Tracks include: 1) Clinical Translational Research, 2) Community-based Intervention Trials, 3) Design, Conduct and Analysis of Clinical Studies, 4) Epidemiology and Disease Etiology, 5) Health Outcomes Research, 6) Environmental Epidemiology, 7) Molecular Biology, 8) Cell Biology, 9) Vision Science, and 10) Alternative Options Track.
The M.S. program in Clinical and Biomedical Investigations is designed to train students, fellows and faculty for future independent research careers in an academic, government or private sector setting. The objective of the M.S. program is to produce a clinical researcher with either an in-depth knowledge in laboratory methodologies or statistical and analytic skills in population-based, clinical studies or outcomes research. The program gives students a solid background in the methodological aspects of translational research, and in statistical thinking as applied to molecular epidemiology, as well as a solid grounding in biostatistical, epidemiological methods, and community based intervention strategies.
Admission Requirements
Applicants must apply to the Graduate School and meet the minimum requirements for admission to the Graduate School. The Departments of Preventive Medicine, Cell and Neurobiology, Family Medicine, and the Center for Education, Training and Career Development (CETCD) jointly administer the program through the MS Program Office.
The program will consider applicants who satisfy all requirements for admission to the Graduate School. For the M.S. program in Clinical and Biomedical Investigations, MCAT scores may be substituted for the GREs. Applicants not meeting Graduate School requirements for regular standing may, with approval of the Graduate School, be conditionally admitted. Regular standing is contingent upon maintaining a GPA of 3.0 in the first 12 units of graduate studies. All graduate students must maintain a GPA of 3.0 throughout their graduate studies.
General Requirements
Graduation requires the completion of a minimum of 29 units, of which a minimum of 13 units are didactic course credits taken in the first year (including summer sessions), with the remaining units being directed to: a) PM 590 (directed research, 1–12 units ) and PM 594ab (thesis, 4 units) taken in the second year. The equivalent of one year of full-time effort must be devoted to research leading to a master’s thesis. The thesis provides a structure for the development of a plan to address a research problem and a suitable approach to the analysis and presentation of the results.
Because the background and interests of applicants varies widely, one of the co-directors will consult with each student prior to the first year in order to design an individualized schedule of recommended courses, or this may be negotiated with a student’s faculty sponsor. At the end of the first year, the trainee must submit a final program plan to the co-directors. This will summarize the courses taken, the proposed thesis title, and the names and credentials of the M.S. thesis committee. One of the members of the M.S. thesis committee will be the trainee’s research adviser and will serve as the chair of the committee. At least one member of the thesis committee must be from outside the student’s department. For faculty, at least two members of the thesis committee must be from outside the student’s department.
For those trainees or SC CTSI’s CETCD K and T awardees who do not wish to pursue an M.S. degree, the school offers a certificate in clinical, biomedical, and translational investigations (CBTI). The certificate program requires completion of 12 credits, and a minimum of six months of practical research experience working on a research project (PM 590) approved by either an Oversight Committee or the CETCD’s K and T Award Committee Review Process.
Students are expected to attend the three day workshop on NIH proposal development if offered by Thomas Ogden, M.D., Ph.D., and a workshop on the principles of scientific manuscript preparation.
Certificate in Clinical, Biomedical and Translational Investigations
Students who do not wish to pursue an M.S. degree may earn a university certificate in clinical, biomedical, and translational investigations. The certificate program requires 12 didactic credits and a minimum of six months (PM 590 Directed Research, 3 units) of practical experience working on a research project approved by the faculty mentor and co-directors.
Recommended Core Courses for Each Research Track
| Clinical Translational Research | (13-16 Units) | |
|---|---|---|
| PM 510L | Principles of Biostatistics | 4 |
| PM 512 | Principles of Epidemiology | 4 |
| PM 523 | Design of Clinical Studies, or | 3 |
| PM 612abc | Clinical Translational Research | 12 |
| Electives (Pick one course) | ||
| BIOC 543 | Human Molecular Genetics | 4 |
| MPTX 511 | Introduction to Medical Product Regulation | 3 |
| MPTX 602 | Science, Research, and Ethics | 2 |
| PM 511b | Data Analysis | 4 |
| PM 512 | Principles of Epidemiology | 4 |
| PM 518a | Statistical Methods for Epidemiological Studies I | 3 |
| PM 570 | Statistical Methods in Human Genetics | 4 |
| RSCI 530 | Translational Medicine: An Overview | 2 |
| Community-Based Intervention Trials | (16 UNITS) | |
|---|---|---|
| PM 512 | Principles of Epidemiology | 4 |
| PM 528 | Program Design and Evaluation | 4 |
| PM 563 | Organizing and Mobilizing Communities for Public Health | 4 |
| Electives (Pick one course) | ||
| PM 526 | Communications in Public Health | 4 |
| PM 562 | Intervention Approaches for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention | 4 |
| Design, conduct and analysis of clinical studies | (18 Units) | |
|---|---|---|
| PM 510L | Principles of Biostatistics | 4 |
| PM 511a | Data Analysis | 4 |
| PM 523 | Design of Clinical Studies | 3 |
| PM 538 | Introduction to Biomedical Informatics | 3 |
| PM 570 | Statistical Methods in Human Genetics | 4 |
| Epidemiology and Disease Etiology | (14-15 Units) | |
|---|---|---|
| PM 510L | Principles of Biostatistics | 4 |
| PM 512 | Principles of Epidemiology | 4 |
| PM 517a | Research Methods in Epidemiology | 3 |
| Electives (Pick one course) | ||
| PM 518a | Statistical Methods for Epidemiological Studies I | 3 |
| PM 527 | Epidemiology of Infectious Disease | 4 |
| PM 529 | Environmental and Occupational Health: An Epidemiological Approach, or | |
| PM 533 | Genetic and Molecular Epidemiology | 3 |
| Health Outcomes Research | (16 Units) | |
|---|---|---|
| PM 511a | Data Analysis | 4 |
| PMEP 538 | Pharmaceutical Economics | 4 |
| PMEP 539 | Economic Assessment of Medical Care | 4 |
| PMEP 540ab | Seminar in Pharmaceutical Economics and Policy | 2-2 |
| ENVIRONMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY | (17-18 UNITS) | |
|---|---|---|
| PM 510L | Principles of Biostatistics | 4 |
| PM 512 | Principles of Epidemiology | 4 |
| PM 518a | Statistical Methods for Epidemiological Studies I | 3 |
| PM 529 | Environmental Health: An Epidemiological Approach | 3 |
| Electives (Pick one course) | ||
| PM 511a | Data Analysis | 4 |
| PM 533 | Genetic and Molecular Epidemiology | 3 |
| PM 570 | Statistical Methods in Human Genetics | 4 |
| PM 599 | Special Topics | 4 |
| Molecular Biology | (16 Units) | |
|---|---|---|
| INTD 531 | Cell Biology | 4 |
| INTD 561 | Molecular Biology | 4 |
| INTD 571 | Biochemistry | 4 |
| Electives (Pick one course) | ||
| BIOC 543 | Human Molecular Genetics | 4 |
| INTD 504 | Molecular Biology of Cancer | 4 |
| INTD 555 | Biochemical and Molecular Bases of Disease | 4 |
| MICB 551 | Procaryotic Molecular Genetics | 4 |
| Cell Biology | (15 Units) | |
|---|---|---|
| INTD 531 | Cell Biology | 4 |
| INTD 571 | Biochemistry | 4 |
| PATH 553 | Methods in Cellular and Clinical Pathology | 3 |
| Electives (Pick one course) | ||
| INTD 504 | Molecular Biology of Cancer | 4 |
| INTD 555 | Biochemical and Molecular Bases of Disease | 4 |
| Vision Science | (19-26 Units) | |
|---|---|---|
| INTD 501 | Recent Advances in Vision Science | 1, max 4 |
| INTD 531 | Cell Biology | 4 |
| INTD 571 | Biochemistry | 4 |
| INTD 573 | Systems Physiology and Disease II | 4 |
| PHBI 608ab | Advanced Cellular, Molecular and Systemic Physiology | 2 or 4 each |
| PSCI 667 | Intracellular Drug Delivery and Targeting | 2 |
| Alternative Options Track (Minimum 16 units) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Courses are determined by mentor and student, based on research interests, with approval from the oversight committee. |
Seminars/Workshops
Participation is required in a Recent Advances Journal Club to learn how to read papers critically and develop the speaking skills necessary to explain a research paper. Faculty members in the program rotate as course directors in order to emphasize new topics. Students are expected to attend the three-day workshop on NIH Proposal Development if offered by Thomas Ogden, Ph.D., and a workshop on the principles of scientific manuscript preparation.