Biomedical Informatics and Behavioral Sciences (BIBS) Summer Research Program
During this 9-week, dental-focused program, you will become proficient in biostatistics, biomedical informatics, and behavioral sciences. You will gain skills via a structured introduction to data analytics, which will become increasingly critical to understanding oral healthcare in the decades ahead. You will also be paired with a mentor to complete a hands-on research project that a classroom experience alone doesn’t offer, and you will be able to shape and define the future of dental public health.
About the BIBS Summer Research Program
The Biomedical Informatics and Behavioral Sciences (BIBS) Summer Research Program is a 9-week program for undergraduate and graduate-level students interested in biomedical informatics, data science, public health, and dental public health. The program will provide ample opportunities for undergraduate and graduate-level students to learn state-of-the-art techniques in biomedical and clinical research. Every student will have access to weekly lab sessions, including programming in R, statistical modeling and inference, and in-depth lectures covering the application of statistics in biomedical informatics. Biweekly seminars/journal club and an end-of-summer project presentation will help students gain insight into high-quality research in dental public health. Additionally, this summer experience will help students consider careers in oral health research because each student will be paired with a mentor to collaborate on a focused research project relevant to oral and public health.
Learning Objectives
Upon successful completion of the program, you will be able to:
Grant Funding
The BIBS Summer Research Program is supported by a grant from the National Library of Medicine of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) (Award No. 1R25LM014219-01).
Build Relationships
Build a supportive relationship with a research mentor.
Set Goals
Set goals for professional growth and learning.
Understand Concepts
Understand the basic concepts and principles of statistical learning.
Use R
Use R to: implement statistical learning methods for clustering, classification; to perform statistical analysis, such as hypothesis testing and regression; to visualize and summarize multivariate datasets.
Interpret Data
Interpret data from both statistical and biological perspectives
Present Findings
Present research findings to an academic audience.
Requirements
Too few health professionals are engaged in oral health and dental services research, hampering the study of oral health issues. To fill these twin gaps, the BIBS Summer Research Program seeks talented students in science and health professions. The BIBS Summer Research Program does not require that applicants have specific majors. Students majoring in a variety of subjects including Communications, Public Health and Social Services, Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, and Social Sciences may apply.
Requirements
- Demonstrate an interest in oral health research and a research career post-graduation.
- Be in good academic standing.
- Be a U.S. citizen.
- completed at least one academic year of undergraduate education at an accredited school or university (with completion of at least two academic years preferred), OR be enrolled as a graduate student in an accredited school or university or an accredited post-baccalaureate program.
- Applicants who have been suspended form an institution for criminal conduct, or who have been involved in one of these situations, will not be allowed to enroll in the program, per TAMU policy.
Responsibilities
- Program Attendance (in-person, 40 hours/week for 9-weeks)
- Participation/Engagement in Program Activities including weekly activities
- Individual Learning Plan
- Coursework and a Research Project
- Abstract/Poster Presentation
Financial Support
Financial support is based on whether you are an undergraduate or graduate student and whether you live in the Dallas area. Undergraduates will receive $5,502 for the summer or can expect to receive $15/hour via monthly stipends. Graduate students will receive $6,500 for the summer or can expect to receive $18/hour via monthly stipends.
In addition, non-local participants can expect to be reimbursed for one domestic roundtrip flight to the BIBS program site and receive subsistence support to be used for housing costs. Please note that the Dallas Campus does not have dormitories. Housing is the responsibility of the participant.
Summer Faculty
Moumita Karmaker, PhD
Dr. Karmaker is an Instructional Assistant Professor in the Department of Statistics at Texas A&M University. She is also a Research Associate at the Data Science Facility Core at The Texas A&M Center for Environmental Health Research (TiCER) under the supervision of Prof. Raymond J. Carroll. Her research interests involve analyzing high-throughput genomic datasets for statistical patterns and developing statistical methodologies for toxicological problems. She also has a keen interest in interdisciplinary research on developing design strategies and analyzing multiregional clinical trials with multiple references. She has previously worked on developing a methodology for sufficient dimension reduction and variable selection.
Diana Keosayian, EdD
Dr. Keosayian is the Associate Director of Institutional Effectiveness at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston. She has also served as an adjunct professor, curriculum writer, and academic assessment specialist. Her achievements include the delivery of faculty development to dental educators, management of the use of educational testing instruments, an analysis of academic program information and statistics to formulate plans for improving existing programs.
Yang Ni, PhD
Dr. Ni is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Statistics at Texas A&M University. He is also a Research Affiliate at the Texas A&M Institute of Data Science (TAMIDS) and Co-Director of the Center for Statistical Bioinformatics. He enjoys working on problems at the intersection of statistics, artificial intelligence, philosophy, biology, and health.
Raghad Obeidat, DDS, MPH
Dr. Obeidat is an Assistant Clinical Professor in Public Health Sciences at Texas A&M University School of Dentistry. She also is a Diplomate of the American Board of Dental Public Health. Dr. Obeidat is a graduate of the Texas A&M University School of Dentistry’s Dental Public Health Residency Program. She has mentored several dental public health research trainees and provided statistical analysis and presentation skills training.
Program Director Peggy Timothé, DDS, MPH
Dr. Timothé is board certified in the specialty of Dental Public Health and has extensive experience in academic and clinical dentistry, health policy, and research. Her expertise includes curriculum development and improving dental care delivery models.
BIBS Program Mentors
Peggy Timothé, DDS, MPH
Associate Professor Program Director of Dental Public Health Residency Dental Public Health Sciences- ptimothe@tamu.edu
- 214-828-8480
Marvellous Akinlotan, BDS, PhD
Clinical Assistant Professor Department of Pediatric Dentistry- akinlotan@tamu.edu
- 214-828-8131
Raghad Obeidat, BDS, MPH
Clinical Faculty Dental Public Health Sciences- robeidat@tamu.edu
- 972-876-0200
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is Biomedical Informatics, and why does it matter?
A: Big data is a fact of our modern lives. Everywhere you turn, data analysts present statistics and information about health outcomes and how society should respond. The BIBS Summer Research Program aims to educate the next generation of oral health research scientists.
Q: What are Behavioral Sciences, and why do they matter?
A: Behavioral Sciences are a group of sciences focused on understanding human behavior and health through rigorous studies. Oral Health Sciences needs to improve health communication and patient trust to improve community oral health. The BIBS Summer Research Program seeks to expand the ranks of dental professionals who understand the link between oral health and behavioral sciences.
Q: What will a typical week look like?
A: The first six weeks will consist of coursework and activities in biomedical informatics and behavioral sciences, in which students will learn programming, statistics, tools for analyzing large data sets, and codes specific to dental procedures and dental public health. Each student will be paired with a mentor at the start of the summer. Together, they will develop a tailored mentorship plan and conduct a research project. At the end of the summer, students will present their projects and results at the "BIBS Summer Research Conference."
Q: Will there be professional networking opportunities?
A: Absolutely. The program is designed to provide multiple mentoring opportunities. In addition, there are plans for BIBS Summer Research Program students to attend a statewide public health conference.
BIBS Program Contacts
Peggy Timothé, DDS, MPH
Associate Professor Program Director of Dental Public Health Residency Dental Public Health Sciences- ptimothe@tamu.edu
- 214-828-8480
