Oct. 17, 2014 | Twenty-five doctoral candidates celebrated their move from the classroom to the lab recently as they received their white lab coats signifying the next step in earning their degrees.

The UAMS Graduate School Research Induction Ceremony, held Sept. 29, celebrated an important transition for students. The ceremony signifies students’ passing their doctoral candidacy exam and the end of their classroom work. Students will now begin work toward their research-focused doctoral dissertation.

“Today marks the completion of classwork to be able to focus more on lab work and dissertation work. We’ll be able to use our classroom knowledge to apply it in a laboratory setting,” said Max Ford, who is working toward his Ph.D. in pharmacology.

The Research Induction Ceremony serves as a memorable event to recognize the commitment to an honorable career of discovery and to commemorate the excellence of our UAMS Graduate School students, staff and faculty.

“We’re here to celebrate with the 25 students who have passed the qualifying exam since this time last year,” said Robert McGehee, Ph.D., dean of the Graduate School. “That alone is remarkable.”

He thanked family members on behalf of the students for their support and credited the role that the program directors and mentors play in the students’ academic success.

During the ceremony, each student was recognized individually, putting on their white coats with assistance from their program directors and mentors. The 25 students were from eight different programs within the Graduate School, including biochemistry and molecular biology, communications sciences and disorders, interdisciplinary biomedical sciences, microbiology and immunology, neurobiology and developmental sciences, nursing science, pharmaceutical sciences and pharmacology.

The Ph.D. candidates then recited the Affirmation of Scientists — a promise to represent their scientific professions honorably and conduct research and their professional lives in a manner that is above reproach.

The ceremony also recognized a number of other students and mentors for their work in the graduate school this year. Yicong Li, Clark Sims and Ayasha Thomason were presented with outstanding achievement awards. Li and Sims both received a pre-doctoral fellowship from the American Heart Association. Thomason received a John A. Hartford pre-doctoral fellowship.