# UCSF IRACDA Scholars Program

> **NIH NIH K12** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · 2020 · $1,097,018

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY – UCSF IRACDA Scholars Program
The need for increased representation of a diverse workforce in biomedical research at the academic level
is clear and well-documented. This renewal application requests resources to continue our four-year
Scholars training program at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) in partnership with San
Francisco State University (SFSU). The goal of the program, which began in 2007, is to increase the
number of highly trained, successfully funded and sustainable research scientists, who will perform high
level laboratory and teaching and increase the diversity of younger trainees in biomedical research careers
to ultimately improve our understanding of health-related science. To this end, UCSF has partnered with
SFSU to build a program that provides comprehensive science and teaching training for mentoring Ph.D.
scholars who are committed to an academic career and impacting underserved minority trainees.
The key elements of our training program are (1) a mentored research experience, (2) a mentored teaching
experience at SFSU, (3) monthly career development workshops, (4) interdisciplinary scientific experiences
and (5) continuing review and evaluation. The centerpiece of the program is the 4-years of training, with the
initial three years covered by the training grant and the last year covered by the PI funds or Independent
Development Awards. The majority of this training (75%) is devoted to intense research training in basic
laboratory science with the remaining training devoted to teaching experiences at the SFSU campus and
mentoring experiences with undergraduate underrepresented students from SFSU. Our exceptionally well-
qualified faculty and teaching mentors have committed their support to our IRACDA scholars. Internal and
external Advisors as well as periodic formal evaluations will be a critical part of continued excellence and
achievement of stated goals of the Program.
Each Scholar is expected to interact with a team of at least three Faculty Research Mentors and two
Teaching Mentors during their training; meeting on a regular basis to assist him/her in setting, and then
monitoring training and career goals. Our program has a strong track history of recruiting exceptional
Scholars representing a diverse background. Of the 35 current and past scholars, nearly 90% are URMs. Of
the 21 Scholars who have completed their training at UCSF, they have produced an average of 3.4 peer-
review publications (0-9 range), and over 50% have assumed academic positions, with 80% of these at
R1/R3 Research Institutions (Vanderbilt, UCSD, UCSF, U of Arkansas, Duke, Georgetown, SFSU and
SJSU). We believe the Program's strong outcomes data, the collaborative research-intensive training
environment at UCSF, and the well-established and fruitful interactions between UCSF and SFSU provide
compelling rationale for renewing and expanding this unique training opportunity to train and diversify the
next generati...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9978069
- **Project number:** 5K12GM081266-14
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO
- **Principal Investigator:** Raymond M. Esquerra
- **Activity code:** K12 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $1,097,018
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2007-08-03 → 2022-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9978069

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9978069, UCSF IRACDA Scholars Program (5K12GM081266-14). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9978069. Licensed CC0.

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