Research Training Abroad Expands
Horizons of Minority StudentsMichelle A. Williams
"There is no way I could have foreseen what I would eventually experience during my research training fellowship in Zimbabwe. I knew the summer was not going to be an easy one. I expected it to be an intense learning experience filled with countless hours of data collection and time in front of a computer. My expectations were not altogether incorrect, though I grossly underestimated the amount of fun I would have while working as hard as I feared. My daily work in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department at Harare Maternity Hospital, University of Zimbabwe, provided more drama than the television series "ER". . . . I was exposed to real life events such as stillbirths, neonatal deaths, premature deliveries, and babies born with major abnormalities. The more I saw and learned about obstetric services in Zimbabwe, the more I became involved in my research projects.... My biggest challenge was learning how to get things done.... Often small tasks such as using the phone or making photocopies would take hours. People were not always easy to reach and there were times I was forced to make critical decisions. Although these situations were frustrating, from them I learned how to be resourceful, decisive, and more confident in my abilities as a researcher."
Jonne Atkinson, 1996 MIRT Fellow, UW doctoral student in epidemiology
I thought I would participate in a research project and gain more knowledge about the subject matter at the conclusion of the project. However, I found out later that the expectations and goals I set out to achieve were far lower than what I actually gained.... I not only participated in a research project conducted by investigators at Blair Research Laboratories, Zimbabwe Ministry of Health, I was also given the responsibility to be a leader. This experience gave me the opportunity to apply the information I was exposed to in the classroom setting I learned to communicate effectively and work around problems without getting discouraged. Perhaps the most important personal benefit, I learned to effectively work with limited resources, to appreciate teamwork and to apply what I know... I learned the most not from the conclusion of the study, but rather during the process of the research. . . ."
Eyob Mazengia, 1996 MIRT Fellow, UW senior in environmental healthThe MIRT Program
It is clear that health and disease are not strictly biological phenomena and that health research must be conducted in a manner that is culturally appropriate and relevant to minority and disadvantaged communities. Recognition of the professional and intellectual void resulting from the relative underrepresentation of minorities in biomedical and behavioral sciences has prompted an innovative research training program sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, Fogarty International Center, at approximately 30 universities across the nation.The University of Washington Minority International Research Training (MIRT) Program is designed to address the research needs of under represented minority faculty and students in the biomedical and behavioral sciences. Working in a consortium with Western Washington University and Dillard University in New Orleans, the UW has primary responsibility for conducting the program, with student recruitment and planning assistance from its consortium partners.
By expanding upon the UW's International Health Program, the International AIDS Research and Training Program, and other research programs involving collaborations with investigators from foreign institutions in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, MIRT program faculty have been able to provide research training to 29 qualified minority undergraduate and 10 graduate students since 1995, most from the UW. The program selects students from all over the country, pending availability of fellowships, and has included students from WWU, Dillard , Johns Hopkins, Arizona. State, and George Washington University, among others.
The program selects 12 to 15 students each year, mainly for their academic achievements, prior research experience, and ability to work well outside the classroom setting. In mid- June, MIRT fellows from the three consortium universities participate in a one- to two-week orientation program on the UW campus before traveling to a foreign site for a three- to six-month research training program. MIRT fellows have received training at institutions in Senegal, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Thailand, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, and Argentina. The program provides a structured experience designed to foster a commitment to research as a career path while illustrating the various ways race, ethnicity and culture function in the context of public health. Training includes some formal course work in epidemiology, biostatistics, demography nutrition, and behavioral sciences. The curriculum emphasizes research methods for the identification and control of factors affecting the health of populations, and health systems research. Fellows are encouraged to participate in national scientific conferences upon their return to the United States.
In the first two years of the program, MIRT fellows have made notable scientific contributions. Three undergraduate students from the 1995 group received research prizes for their presentations at the Pacific Division, American Association for the Advancement of Science 1996 conference. In February 1997, eight MIRT 1996 fellows presented their research at the AAAS national conference.
Faculty members at each of the three consortium universities are strongly committed to continuing their goal of attracting and preparing qualified minority students for research careers in basic science and clinical research. In our view, these goals can be accomplished best by matching talented young scholars with faculty mentors at the cooperating foreign institutions. MIRT thus provides minority students with the opportunity to acquire the necessary intellectual qualifications and backgrounds needed to pursue further education and to become leaders in their areas of research.
"MIRT promised a great personal and academic learning experience."
The program's expectations were high. My personal expectations were high. Was I going to live up to them? My personal goals were to develop new friendships, improve my Spanish, develop my ability to adapt quickly to new research projects and to familiarize myself with the Afro-Ecuadorian experience.... Academically the skills I obtained through participating in the research process exceeded the goals I had upon entering the program. I expected to learn about research work, discover its usefulness, and to understand how skills we learn in school apply to research to help guide me as to how I will construct a project idea as I enter graduate school. I was surprised to find out how important and involved our work was going to be in this project.... we participated as active co-workers.... Our ideas and individual interests were deemed worthy and helpful by other professional investigators. We awoke early entering out into the field to conduct interviews, administer questionnaires, and attend research meetings. We spent dozens of hours on the computer, making decisions on how to analyze and present our data. Every day each one of the fellows had to pinch ourselves or one another to remind us that this was real and that our intense involvement in the Ecuadorian San Pablo Lake Study was not just an illusion .... The academic aspect of my fellowship was extremely valuable, as I am now excited and confident of my abilities to direct my own research projects in graduate school. . . ."
Marcus Clarke, 1996 MIRT Fellow, UW senior in anthropologyAuthor
Michelle A. Williams, ScD. is an associate professor of epidemiology at the UW School of Public Health and Community Medicine and director of the UW Minority International Research Training Program.
Return to the Table of Contents
Created: 4/27/98 Updated: 7/15/99
