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Hospital Molecular Epidemiology Capstone Project

Note: This document and the forms associated with the Capstone Project can be downloaded as a pdf file: HME Capstone Document

The Capstone project in the Hospital Molecular Epidemiology program should provide the strongest applied experience of your scholarship in the Department. What follows is a general description of the requirements and logistics for Epid 565.

YEAR ONE

:

Term 1
You are required to attend seminar presentations by HME students who have completed their research projects. You are required to find an appropriate research project to fulfill the requirement for Epid 565. Your project may consist of volunteer or paid work; working in a lab or in a hospital. Speak to your advisor for other ideas and suggestions, or with any ideas of your own. This project should be a learning experience in epidemiology, so this includes many different types of projects. Once you have found a project, you, the person you are going to work for, and your advisor must sign the attached, "Contractual Agreement for Research Experience". In some cases, you may be able to use a Summer Fieldwork Experience to fulfil part or all of the Epid 565 research experience. If you plan to do this, you need to obtain the appropriate signatures on the attached, "Contractual Agreement for Epidemiology Fieldwork by HME Students".

Term 2
This is the term that most second year HME students present their research, so be prepared to attend all of the presentations. This will give you an idea of what is expected of you next year, show you the range of topics, and inform you as to what type of research others in your department are doing. Meanwhile, you should have ideally started your own Epid 565 research project. Many students primarily complete the research project during the summer between the first and second years.

You are required to attend all Epid 565 meetings during the two years of your MPH. You will be notified through your mailbox in the Epidemiology Reading Room, room 2009 SPH-I and by e-mail. There will also be notices posted on the bulletin boards in SPH-I and SPH II. For the Fall 2003 term, 565 meetings will be on Fridays from 12pm-1pm in room 3040 SPH I. There will only be a meeting if it has been scheduled, so please check your mailbox and the bulletin boards at least once a week. For Winter 2004 term, 565 meetings will be on Tuesdays from 12-1.

YEAR TWO:

You may choose to present either fall or winter term.

When you present, make sure the following is arranged:

There will be a sign-up sheet in the Epid Student Services Representative's office (1009 SPH I). You must sign up there to be scheduled for a presentation. At most, two students can present on a given day.

Write your name, title and abstract, along with the date, time and room of your presentation, on a single page. This is to be distributed into the mailboxes of all the other HME students and professors at least one week before your presentation (about 35 copies). A list of HME students is posted above the mailboxes in the Epid Reading Room. Professor's mailboxes are located on the first floor, Room 1029.

Post notices on the bulletin boards in SPH-I and in the Epid Reading Room. The notices do not have to contain the abstract.

Write up your research in a research paper format (title, abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion or conclusion, references). Your master's Thesis is to be handed in to your advisor the day of your presentation, unless you make other arrangements with your advisor.

Examples of past reports and a book chapter "The Scientific Paper" will be available on reserve in the SPH library.

REGISTERING FOR YOUR RESEARCH CREDITS

Register for one credit of Epid 565 each term, except for the term that you give your presentation, when you should register for two credits. You can earn up to five credits of Epid 565 within the two-year MPH program. Sign up initially for the section specific for your advisor, although if you end up doing your research with one of the other Epidemiology faculty you should use their section number for terms after the first one.
Dr. Foxman - section #006, Dr. Marrs - section #021, Dr. Yang - section #030, Dr. Gerrard - section #062

Research Experience to fulfil Epid 565 requirements

  • Most HME students do their independent laboratory experience on or near campus and start no later than Winter term of the first year.
  • The laboratory experience needs to be supervised by a scientist approved by the HME faculty.
  • One HME faculty member must approve the Epid 565 laboratory experience and will act as the student's advisor for the laboratory experience.
  • This laboratory experience must involve more than just carrying out experiments planned by others. It must also include the students involvement in the analysis of the data from the experiments and in the planning of follow-up experiments. In other words, the student should be obtaining experience in all aspects of doing independent research.
  • Where human subjects data is being collected or worked with in any way, it is imperative that the student receive University of Michigan IRB approval before beginning work on the project.
  • The Department of Epidemiology needs to insure that the above characteristics of a Epid 565 research project are met. For that reason, we request that the student, the local supervisor and the HME faculty member approving an assignment sign a contract (available in the pdf file).

Fieldwork Experience to fulfil Epid 565 requirements

  • Most HME students do their independent laboratory experience on or near campus and start no later than Winter term of the first year. In some cases a summer fieldwork experience can be used to fulfill part or all of the Epid 565 research experience (although students must still attend other students presentations and present their results in a seminar and a written report). While this fieldwork experience may involve some general epidemiology types of research, it should also have a laboratory component.
  • The fieldwork of a student needs to be supervised by a scientist approved by the HME faculty.
  • One HME faculty member must approve the fieldwork experience and will act as the student's advisor for the summer fieldwork experience.
  • Whether the summer fieldwork experience can be used to fulfill only part of the requirements or all of the requirements for the Epid 565 research experience depends on the amount and quality of the research carried out. This will be determined by the HME faculty upon the completion of the summer research.
  • Where human subjects data is being collected or worked with in any way, it is imperative that the student receive University of Michigan IRB approval before beginning work on the project.
  • The Department of Epidemiology needs to insure that the above characteristics of an HME fieldwork placement are met. For that reason, we request that the student, the local supervisor and the HME faculty member approving an assignment sign a contract (available in the pdf file).