The VUU MARC U*STAR Program

Minority Access to Research Careers Undergraduate Student Training in Academic Research Program

Creating Opportunities for Undergraduate Research and Scholarly Enhancement

• MARC U*STAR is a program funded by the NIGMS branch of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
• The goal of the program is to increase the pool of well-prepared minority students who can compete successfully for admission into, and completion of Ph.D. or MD/Ph.D. degrees in the biomedical sciences.
• This goal is achieved through a strengthened undergraduate curriculum in the sciences including new, innovative, and lab-intensive courses, research training, and internships.
• The academic units participating in this program are biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and psychology.
• The research training component takes place at various departments at the Medical Campus of Virginia Commonwealth University, and The University of Richmond.
• The program provides financial support for tuition and stipend to trainees in the junior and senior years of college.

• Offers unique curriculum.
• Enhances undergraduate education.
• Models scientific environment.
• Provides enrichment activities.

• An aggressive recruitment of high caliber students to the program
• Continued strengthening and augmentation of the undergraduate curriculum.
• Tutorial and Supplemental Instructions in gatekeeper courses.
• Academic year research experiences at MCV/VCU, and UR.
• Summer extramural research internships.

• Workshops on graduate school survival skills and career explorations.
• Attendance and presentations at scientific meetings.
• A formal course in GRE preparation.