The BMS program is committed to combatting the structural racism that threatens our community values and ambitions. The information below provides an executive summary of current BMS program policies and actions to enhance diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in our scientific community. The descriptions of these efforts are grouped into three major areas: Transparency and Communication, Inclusion and Accountability, and Building Diversity. BMS coordinates with other graduate programs and the Graduate Division to share best practices and promote consistency in policies and student experiences.
Transparency and Communication
DEI Events: The BMS program hosts DEI Town Halls, DEI-specific sessions at the annual program retreat, community building events, and feedback sessions with program students and faculty throughout the academic year.
Consistent communication: The BMS program integrates DEI efforts and communication into core program activities, including but not limited to recruitment and orientations, ethics training, classes, retreats, seminars and journal clubs. DEI overviews will be presented at recruitment, orientation, and program-specific 3rd year reorientiation. These presentations will involve both program leadership and students, and focus on benefits to students and the community.
Inclusion and Accountability
Faculty Training: The BMS and DSCB programs led the creation of the Graduate Faculty Development Program (GFDP), and were the first to require participation by all training faculty with students in their laboratory. Effective mentoring across differences is a critical competency for BMS faculty. The central goal of this program is to ensure that faculty members gain the cultural awareness and skills they need to help all of their mentees thrive in the UCSF research community. Each faculty member with a BMS student in their lab must complete a yearly faculty development or mentorship training activity. Failure to do so triggers a ban from taking rotation students until compliant. Faculty participation is tracked, and this information is made available to all BMS students and to the BMS Executive Committee for program membership review.
- Participation: The expectation for participation in the GFDP is extended to all BMS faculty members. All members must complete a GFDP training activity each year.
- Transparency: Individual participation in the GFDP is prominently displayed on each BMS faculty member's profile on the BMS website.
Faculty Membership Policy: BMS faculty are made aware that membership in the graduate program is a privilege, and that all BMS faculty members are expected to represent and uphold UCSF values of Professionalism, Respect, Integrity, Diversity and Excellence. The BMS Executive Committee will revoke program membership as a consequence of conduct detrimental to the program, including but not limited to scientific misconduct or violations of the University Code of Conduct, which includes Title VII and Title IX violations. Program participation requirements, including participation in the GFDP, are also enforced by the Executive Committee.
Feedback: Given the power imbalance between faculty members and students, it is difficult to obtain granular and honest feedback on the performance of individual program faculty members, even after graduation. Both faculty and students have expressed that this a problem. The BMS program has made a point to recommend that faculty ask for feedback (i.e. after rotations, as thesis mentors, etc.), but this alone is inadequate.
- Bi-directional rotation feedback: Faculty members and students are instructed to meet to set expectations at the beginning of each rotation, and will provide mutual feedback at the end of each rotation.
- Community building and conflict resolution: For incoming student cohorts, BMS, The Restorative Justice Practices Office, and the Graduate Division host Community Circles, a restorative justice model for building community, and ultimately for addressing situations of bias, stereotyping, and exclusionary behavior.
- Anonymous feedback: The BMS Program created a Listening Box available to all students who would live to provide anonymous feedback, questions, or concerns to BMS leadership, and consistently shares with students existing options for providing feedback and reporting inappropriate or unethical behavior, including the Ombuds Office, CARE Advocate, and Whistleblower Hotline, in addition to staff and faculty directors of the BMS Program and the Graduate Division.
Student Training: All first year students are required to complete the below DEI-specific course:
Race and Racism in Science (GRAD202), directed by Dr. Aimee Medeiros, Professor of Anthropology, History, and Social Medicine. This introductory course provides the historical background of systemic racism in scientific research. It explores the relationship between notions of race and science and how scientific research has been informed by and perpetuates anti-Black racism. This course also examines the impact of bias and a lack of diversity in science and ways in which to address these deficiencies. Students will learn the principles of social justice-oriented scientific research and its potential.
Course Objectives:
- Execute the principles of social justice-oriented scientific research.
- Decipher how scientific research can endorse racial inequalities.
- Identify specific historical examples of anti-black racism in scientific research.
- Distinguish how the historical relationship between the white supremacy campaign in the US and scientific medicine influences contemporary scientific research.
- Analyze how implicit bias and lack of diversity undermine science.
Building Diversity
Outreach and Admissions: The BMS program recognizes the need to proactively identify future PhD candidates from underrepresented groups, invite them into the UCSF community, and encourage and help them to successfully apply to graduate programs (especially including BMS!).
- BMS staff, faculty and student representatives regularly participate in national outreach conferences ABRCMS, SACNAS, and CSUperb.
- BMS faculty visit CSUs and other Minority-Serving Institutions (MSI), including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) to provide information and an invitation to apply to UCSF graduate and summer research programs, and to provide advice about preparing for the admissions process.
- The Summer Research Training Program (SRTP), Science and Health Education Partnership (SEP), and the Emerson Collective CollegeTrack interns hosted by ImmunoX are 3 examples of effective programs that invite students from underrepresented groups to conduct research in BMS labs, make connections with BMS mentors, and participate in structured learning activities that help them to explore and prepare for post-graduate education in the biomedical sciences.
- BMS employs a holistic approach to selecting applicants for interview and admission to the program, and does not require GRE scores. A subgroup of the admissions committee provides focused review of applications from students from underrepresented and/or disadvantaged backgrounds, and students with disabilities. Resources for conducting fair evaluations and reducing implicit bias are provided to the admissions committee. Senior BMS students and members of the DEI committee also take part in the admissions process by participating in the applicant interviews.
Faculty diversity: Although the BMS program does not hire or employ faculty, it can and does influence the recruitment of new faculty, and the selection of faculty involved in student training.
- BMS sanctioned searches follow university policy regarding the diversity of search committees, the provision of educational materials to reduce bias in faculty searches and hiring decisions, and the requirement for Diversity Statements from all candidates.
- BMS program leadership actively encourages departments to seek BMS sanction for new searches and membership for existing research faculty that build the diversity of available mentors for BMS trainees.
- The BMS program actively recognizes faculty that make important contributions to the program, providing commendation letters to remind department chairs, division chiefs and institute directors of the importance of graduate program service to the Committee on Academic Personnel and decisions regarding promotions and retention. Major contributions to DEI in BMS will be specifically noted in these letters.