Annual Research Conference

Each year, the MSTP hosts a research conference on the UCLA campus. An extremely well-attended event, the research conference provides an opportunity to showcase MSTP student research to the larger UCLA and Caltech communities, and to foster communication between students at all levels of training. All trainees present their research in poster presentations, and students in later stages of their graduate training give oral presentations. In addition, each year the students invite two prominent keynote speakers working within a specific research field. Our strategy has been to invite two scientists at different stages in their respective careers, to illustrate distinct points on the research trajectory and to profit from the dialogue between two outstanding scientists working on a common problem. Lunch, coffee breaks, poster presentations, wine and cheese, and dinner provide ample opportunities for informal interactions between the keynote speakers and students. 

The topics and invited keynote speakers at recent UCLA-Caltech annual research conferences are listed below:

Year                 Topic                                             Keynote Speakers

2005-2006         Neuroscience                                Richard Axel (Columbia) & Cornelia Bargmann (Rockefeller)

2006-2007         Stem Cell Biology                          David Baltimore (Caltech) & George Daley (Harvard)

2007-2008         Systems Biology                            Leroy Hood (U Washington) & James Heath (Caltech)

2008-2009         25^th anniversary of the MSTP        26 UCLA MSTP alumni (2 day event)

2009-2010         RNA Biology                                  Philip Sharp (MIT) & Robert Darnell (Rockefeller)

2010-2011         Innovation                                      David Baker (U Washington) & Michael Phelps (UCLA)

2011-2012         MSTP Trainee Conference            Ming Guo (UCLA)

The Research Conference will be held in the Spring of each year.