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UNM Today

NSMS IGERT

August 27, 2007

Draft 3

Nanoscience and Microsystems Graduate Program Open House Invites Faculty Participation

The Nanoscience and Microsystems (NSMS) degree program invites faculty to an open house and reception at the Faculty and Staff Club on Thursday, August 30, 2007 from 4 to 7 p.m. The open house will allow faculty members on campus to learn more about this new interdisciplinary degree program. The open house will also highlight Nano-Bio research activities, educational programs and the scientific and economic impact of nanoscience research at UNM.

The New Mexico Higher Education Department formally approved the NSMS degree program this spring, and several graduate students enrolled in the program for fall 2007. The NSMS degree will allow UNM to attract students whose interests transcend traditional academic boundaries. The National Science Foundation supports the NSMS program through the Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) grant awarded to UNM in 2005.

The director of the NSMS graduate program, Abhaya Datye, professor of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering, says that “the NSMS program demonstrates UNM’s commitment to the integration of research into the formal educational programs at UNM.” There are several firsts for UNM, a new section of the UNM catalog featuring graduate interdisciplinary research, a novel management structure wherein the program reports to a committee of three Deans (School of Engineering, Arts & Sciences and Graduate Studies) as well as the Vice President for Research and Economic Development. The IGERT fellowships represent a paradigm shift in graduate education, helping to create novel approaches to train the next generation of scientists and engineers.

The open house is sponsored by the NSMS degree program, the NSF/IGERT fellowship and the nanoscience research centers on campus, the Center for Technology Materials and the Center for Micro-Engineered Materials in collaboration with the Cancer Research and Treatment Center.

Light refreshments will be served.

 


The University of New Mexico is the state's largest university, serving more than 32,000 students. UNM is home to the state's only schools of law, medicine, pharmacy and architecture and operates New Mexico's only academic health center. UNM is noted for comprehensive undergraduate programs and research that benefits the state and the nation.

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