As a National Cancer Institute (NCI) designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, education is a fundamental part of our core mission. The Tobacco Research and Intervention Program (TRIP) offers numerous educational opportunities in tobacco-related research to trainees from the undergraduate to postdoctoral level.
Postdoctoral Training
Moffitt Cancer Center offers a postdoctoral training program in behavioral oncology funded by NCI. Postdoctoral fellows work closely with a faculty research mentor and also receive didactic training in several areas, including Ethics, Grant Writing, and Professional Development. Several TRIP faculty members serve as mentors for this program. Thus, scientists interested in obtaining postdoctoral training in tobacco research at TRIP are welcome to apply. More information about the program and the application form can be found here.
Graduate students
Dr. Thomas Brandon has an appointment with the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Training Program within the Department of Psychology at the University of South Florida. As such, he can admit doctoral students and serve as their primary mentor. Nearly two dozen students have worked under Dr. Brandon in the past 20 years, and many of them now hold faculty appointments at leading universities, including: American University, Louisiana State University, University of Oklahoma, Rutgers University, Case Western Reserve University, University of Alabama - Birmingham, Syracuse University, Brown University, and Medical University of South Carolina. Information about the USF Clinical Psychology program and application instructions can be found here.
Undergraduates
Each semester, undergraduate USF students volunteer as research interns at TRIP. Most of these students are psychology and biomedical science majors who often receive academic credit for the experience. Students typically work approximately 10 hours per week in the laboratory and attend monthly lab meetings. They work closely with faculty, graduate students, and research staff. This experience is extremely valuable to students planning to apply to graduate school. In fact, experience of this type is usually required before admission to doctoral programs in psychology and other fields. Research interns at TRIP have successfully applied to graduate programs in clinical, counseling and experimental psychology, as well as medical and law schools.
Typical responsibilities of undergraduate research assistants include: interviewing (by telephone or in person) research participants; running research participants through experimental studies; literature reviews; and data management. A 1-year commitment is required. Qualified students who have served in the laboratory for at least a year may be eligible to conduct honors thesis research at TRIP.
Interested students should send an email to Vani Nath Simmons, PhD.
