Course Description
An overview of the principles of effective communication in the format of a research grant, manuscript, thesis/dissertation, abstract, short talk, research lecture, and class lecture. Opportunities for students to practice communication skills are provided in the weekly writing, speaking, and discussion section.
Athena Title
BIOMED GRANT WRITNG
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
Upon successful completion of this course, the student will have: - effective communication skills - effective scientific writing and speaking skills - expertise in written and oral scientific communication
Topical Outline
The weekly schedule of activities is outlined below in the following format: Week # (#.1) Didactic Material (#.2) Writing/Speaking/Discussion Session Week 1. (1.1) Introduction to Scientific Communication Skills: Organizational Meeting. (1.2) Guided discussion of the ethics of scientific writing and speaking Week 2. (2.1) Major Writing Assignments: Steady Progress with Organization and Technical Skill. (2.2) Using outlines as tools to organize and integrate ideas. Write an outline for an autobiography. Week 3. (3.1) Reference Management Programs: EndNote and Reference Manager. (3.2) Use the Reference Manager Program to begin to catalog, organize, and file your papers. Week 4. (4.1) Preparation of Figures and Tables: Describing an experiment in the terms of the “Scientific Method”. (4.2) Write a description of a figure or table using the terms “hypothesis”, “approach”, “result”, and “conclusion”. What are the implications or significance of the results? Week 5. (5.1) Writing Peer Reviewed Manuscripts. (5.2) Read a Published Paper: Work backwards to write an outline of the manuscript. Week 6. (6.1) Manuscript Reviews: Giving and Receiving. (6.2) Read a Published Paper: Write a review of the work as if you were assigned the work as a submitted manuscript. Week 7. (7.1) Departmental Policy for Written/Oral Admission to Candidacy. (7.2) NIH Grant Format, NIH Review Criteria, and NIH Tips for Grant Preparation. Week 8. (8.1) Annotated NIH Sample Grant. (8.2) Discussion of Grant Preparation with Invited Guest Faculty Week 9. (9.1). Writing Thesis/Dissertation. (9.2) Discussion of Written and Oral Admission to Candidacy and Writing Dissertation with Invited Senior Graduate Students Week 10. (10.1). Scientific Meeting Presentations, Published Abstracts. (10.2) Methods for preparation of an effective poster presentation Week 11. (11.1) Elements of Effective Public Speaking. (11.2) All Students Give 5 minute Talk on an effective tip for use of Power Point Week 12. (12.1) Short (20 minute) Research Talk. (12.2) Assigned Student Talks: “20 minute Journal Club” Week 13 (13.1) Research Lecture/Job Talk/Dissertation Defense. (13.2) Assigned Student Talks: “20 minute Journal Club” Week 14. (14.1) Preparing a 50 minute talk to a class. (14.2) Assigned Student Talks: “20 minute Journal Club” Week 15 (15.1) CV Formats; Job Search; Professional Correspondence. (15.2) Assigned Student Talks: “20 minute Journal Club
Syllabus
Public CV