MSU Ph.D. Program Wants to Build Fellowship Along with Important Science

By Chuck Carlson

They are smart. They are passionate. And they have set their sights on making a difference in a field that is always evolving.

But Associate Professor Jamie Bernard, director of Michigan State’s Pharmacology & Toxicology Ph.D. Program, also knows this about the 25 or so students pursuing their goal – they are well-rounded humans with many hobbies and talents, enjoy leisure time, and appreciate spaces to talk and enjoy each other’s company.

After all, even students deep in research and discovery need a break.

“It’s not easy,” said Dr. Bernard, who has been the director since July, taking over for Dr. Karen Liby, who left for a position at Indiana University. “These are selfless, highly motivated individuals that are training for purposeful careers and are willing to make lots of sacrifices for that to happen. They also have a very deep curiosity about the world.”

So, when she stepped into her new role, Dr. Bernard decided to help the students not only do the work that’s necessary but provide some opportunities to make it a little less overwhelming. Her goal is three-fold.

“I’d like to create a community,” she said. “I’d like to foster their critical thinking skills, and I’d like to see engagement between the trainees to make the culture more collegial. I want us to have an identity that’s rooted in a common focus to make the world healthier and our mutual interest in Pharmacology and Toxicology. I’m really working for them.”

The MSU Ph.D. program takes at least five years to complete, and it is a grueling, often frustrating, journey that not only includes a rugged comprehensive exam midway through the course work, but concludes with the defense of their dissertation, the last step toward gaining the long-sought degree.

Pragya Saxena sees the light at the end of her tunnel as she’s looking to her dissertation defense this spring. She came to MSU after graduating from the University of Delhi in her native India with a bachelor’s degree in pharmacology focused on medicine and chemistry.

“I was always interested in pharmacology, and I always knew I wanted to get a Ph.D.,” she said. But, even though both of her parents have Ph.D.’s in math from the University of Delhi, Saxena knew her best opportunity to pursue her goal was a school in either the U.S. or Canada.

“For the amount of effort you put into your Ph.D. degree, there’s a better outcome in the States just due to how much we invest in research as a country,” she said.

She came to MSU and was just settling into the program when COVID-19 hit and sent everyone into quarantine.

But it was that experience in which students had to stay apart and isolate for three months that they were, in many ways, pulled together. When Bernard became director, she wanted to emphasize that familiarity and created a student-run seminar every other Friday over lunch called Research In Progress Pharmacology and Toxicology (RIPPT).

“It’s two students that lead the seminar, and they present their studies in the format of their choice,” Dr. Bernard said. “It’s not always faculty asking a question to a student and the student responding to faculty. It’s more collegial because they’re peers.” And Saxena has seen the change.

“It’s fun to get to know the other students,” she said. “It’s more of a family setting, and Jamie’s helped a lot with that.” For example, she hosted a summer pool party and a holiday Christmas cookie exchange at her home.

She has other events planned to continue building that feeling.

A recruitment weekend party for students seeking entry into the Ph.D. program was held in March that featured current candidates as well as faculty to explain the program and provide a sense of familiarity.

Another is on April 3, when First-Year Ph.D. students introduce themselves to the department with a short PowerPoint presentation. It’s an opportunity. Dr. Bernard said, for those newcomers to talk a little about themselves, including where they grew up, their research interests, their pets, favorite music, or whatever their interests might be. And it’s also an opportunity to break down walls and open conversations.

“A consistent platform for students to interact with each other about science is going to be the way to thread the needle, and everything else will follow from there,” Dr. Bernard said. “This is the direction I’d like to pursue with the students. If it’s of value, then the students will be the ones really driving this endeavor.”