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Research Mentors

​​The San Diego IRACDA program focuses on biomedical research and thus research mentors come from a diverse array of departments and divisions, including the Health Sciences (Medicine, Pharmacy, & Public Health), Division of Biological Sciences, Chemistry & Biochemistry, Bioengineering, BioPhysics, and Scripps Institution of Oceanography (see links below). Potential faculty mentors must have an appointment at UC San Diego, active, externally funded research projects, and track records in mentoring and training students and postdoctoral scholars. All faculty mentors should be trained in effective mentorship through the Health Sciences Faculty Mentor Training Program (FMTP)​.

Department and Research Programs

Bioengineering http://be.ucsd.edu/
Biology http://biology.ucsd.edu 
Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program http://biomedsci.ucsd.edu 
​Biomedical Informatics ​https://dbmi.ucsd.edu 
Biophysics ​https://physics.ucsd.edu/Research/Biophysics 
Cell and Molecular Medicine https://cmm.ucsd.edu/
Chemistry and Biochemistry http://www-chem.ucsd.edu 
Cognitive Science  https://cogsci.ucsd.edu 
Moores Cancer Center https://moorescancercenter.ucsd.edu/
​Obstetrics, Gynecology, & Reproductive Sciences​ https://obgyn.ucsd.edu/
Neurosciences Graduate Program https://neurograd.ucsd.edu 
Pathology http://pathology.ucsd.edu 
Pharmacology http://pharmacology.ucsd.edu 
Pharmaceutical Sciences http://pharmacy.ucsd.edu/research 
School of Medicine Laboratories https://medschool.ucsd.edu/research/index.html
Scripps Institution of Oceanography https://scripps.ucsd.edu 

Current Research Mentors

Radha Ayyagari
Ophthalmology
Michael Gilson
Pharmacy
Anthony Molina
Medicine
Michael Taffe
Psychiatry
David Gonzalez
Pharmacology
Alysson Muotri
Pediatrics
Susan Taylor
Chemistry & Biochemistry
Gerry Boss
Medicine
John Guatelli
Medicine
Sonya Neal
Biological Sciences

Varykina Thackray
OB/GYN & Reproductive Sciences

Michael Burkart
Chemistry & Biochemistry
Silvio Gutkind
Pharmacology
Alexandra Newton
Pharmacology
JoAnn Trejo
Pharmacology 
Ju Chen
Medicine
Randy Hampton
Biological Sciences
Victor Nizet
Pediatrics
Emily Troemel
Biological Sciences
Heidi Cook-Andersen
OB/GYN & Reproductive Sciences
Brian Head
Anesthesiology
Karen Oegema
Cell & Molecular Medicine
Bradley Voytek
Cognitive Science
Kevin Corbett
Cellular & Molecular Medicine
Paul Jensen
Scripps Institute of Oceanography
Hemal Patel
Anesthesiology
Jing Yang
Pharmacology
Luara Crotty Alexander
Medicine
William Joiner
Pharmacology
Gulcin Pekkurnaz
Neurobiology
Deborah Yelon
Biological Sciences
Richard Daneman
Pharmacology, Neurosciences
Amy Kiger
Biological Sciences
Manuela Raffatellu
Pediatrics
Gene Yeo
Cellular & Molecular Medicine
Neal Deveraj
Chemistry & Biochemistry
Rob Knight
Pediatrics
Fabian Rivera-Chavez
Pediatrics
Jin Zhang
Pharmacology
Emma Farley
Medicine
Elizabeth Komives
Chemistry & Biochemistry
Farah Sheikh
Medicine
Elina Zuniga
Biological Sciences
Richard Gallo
Dermatology
Mark Lawson
OB/GYN & Reproductive Sciences
Tatum Simonson
Medicine
Jack Gilbert
Scripps Institute of Oceanography, Pediatrics
Andrew McColloch
Bioengineering
Davey Smith
Medicine

 

 

If you reach an agreement with a potential mentor before applying to IRACDA, a letter from the proposed mentor must be included and should describe the proposed work, the mentor’s agreement to training you, and the mentor’s training track record. Please see the application page for more details.​