Independent Study in Biomedical Data Science (ISBDS)

Invitation

Prospective advisors are invited to participate as advisors available for one or more students per semester and be publicly listed as such. Advisors may choose to be unlisted and depend upon the course director and instructors for student assignment recommendations. Advisor participation is fully voluntary on a case basis, in other words, advisors may accept or decline any student research project proposal for any reason, including the preparation of the student. Expectations of advisor effort level are important to communicate clearly with the student. As a guideline, we expect the advisor to budget one hour per week per student. 

Research plan approval

Prior to registration, the student’s research plan must be approved by an ISBDS instructor, and must include a named advisor who has agreed to participate. Instructors may contact the advisor to confirm their approval of the plan. Advisors should understand that rigorous evaluation and screening of research plans are to avoid problems with students who are unprepared for independent study in this format, with the limited resources and support available.  

Interacting with students

Schedules and modes of interaction with students, whether online or in person,  should be established early and preferably prior to research plan instructor approval. ISBDS stipulates a one hour per student per week commitment from advisors, but managing this could be more or less difficult depending on the student. Again, establishing clear expectations early can mitigate problems later.

Interacting with course instructors

Advisors are welcome and encouraged to contact course instructors with any questions or problems throughout the semester. Addressing problems earlier usually is better, especially if a student is having serious problems and may be advised to drop the course.

Grading

Grading is the responsibility of the instructors, not the advisor. However, advisors are encouraged to review and evaluate, for instructor consideration,  the final reports and other student products.

Participating in the online forum

Using the online forum to ask and answer questions and share experiences and resources provides many benefits. We encourage advisors to share their expertise and answer questions via the forum, and to advise students to use the forum effectively. 

Submitting project ideas and templates

Advisors are encouraged to submit project ideas, either via the forum, or by email to instructors for inclusion in course materials. Project templates can also be submitted, which specify the data sources, problem statement and possibly other details, for students to complete as an acceptable research plan.

Sharing educational resources

Advisors are encouraged to recommend various types of educational resources, including other courses, online or traditional, books and other publications.   

Alignment with other courses and programs

At UNM and worldwide, formal academic units and programs are evolving in recognition of the importance of biomedical data science and related disciplines. This course is an effort to contribute to that progress, in cooperation with other courses and programs, but specifically not to replace existing, structured subject course offerings. Students with learning objectives suited to existing courses and programs will be directed appropriately.