Diversity@UCLA-Caltech

Diversity@UCLA: Recruitment and Retention of URM Students and Students with Disabilities

The Institutional Training Grant (T32) announcement calls for a “Recruitment and Retention Plan to Enhance Diversity” and specifies groups underrepresented in the biomedical sciences to include: A) individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups shown to be underrepresented nationally, defined as Blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, American indians or Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific islanders and B) individuals with disabilities, defined as those with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

The UCLA-Caltech MSTP is strongly committed to enhancing diversity amongst students enrolled in the program. We have developed a strategic plan for the recruitment and retention of URM and disabled students that engages a number of programs in both campuses. Our plan follows a multipronged approach that includes targeted recruitment strategies, taking advantage of existing assets at UCLA and more aggressive outreach efforts to publicize our program (talks, leaflets, online presence). We are especially pleased with our fantastic accomplishment as far as retention, which we believe is a testament to the success of our genuine commitment to mentorship of our students at different stages of their training.

In order to coordinate and monitor campus compliance with requirements of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the provisions of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, the University of California Los Angeles created the Chancellor’s ADA & 504 Compliance Office. Here are a few links to get more information regarding the university’s resources.

http://www.ada.ucla.edu

http://medschool.ucla.edu/diversity

Applicants for admission and currently enrolled students with questions about classroom or housing accommodations may contact the Office for Students with Disabilities at http://www.osd.ucla.edu/