ISSUES IN BIOTECHNOLOGY TEACHING - A Manuscript Writing Course for Biochemistry Undergraduates and Graduate Students in the Biomedical Sciences

Over the past decade, there has been an increase nationwide in the number of undergraduate science majors who are engaged in independent study in the form of a research project for which they can claim substantial ownership and which results in a publication in a respected peer-reviewed journal. It is not uncommon for such students to begin their research at the start of their junior year, sometimes even as early as the freshman year. At the University of New Mexico, for example, students majoring in Biochemistry and who expect to graduate with honors are required to complete a research project, present their findings to the faculty in the form of a poster or 20-minute oral presentation, and, finally, submit an extensive written report of the results of their study. As the number of undergraduate students in the Biochemistry major who were electing to do independent study was increasing, it became apparent to the faculty-mentors and their students alike that the latter might benefit from a formal writing course that would train them to write a scientific paper. Many graduate students, too, do not understand the process of writing a scientific paper or the nature of the peer review and editorial process. It is not uncommon for a graduate student to be graduated with his/her Ph.D. without ever having had formal training with regard to manuscript writing