Abstract This proposal is requesting continued support for the renewal of the NIH funded T32 "Graduate Training Program in Magnetic Resonance Imaging" (TPMRI), which was established in 2019 and provides funding to support five predoctoral PhD students in Radiology and Biomedical Engineer (BME) at Northwestern University. The TPMRI program is multi-disciplinary in nature, covering complementary imaging science topics for broad training in translational Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) projects. The objective is for students to obtain in-depth understanding of MRI physics and engineering principles and clinical applications based on participation in innovative MR research with a specific emphasis on PhD-MD interactions to facilitate informed clinical translational research. The TPMRI program is committed to developing proficient scientists who have the full range of professional skills required for success along any of the numerous career paths that PhD scientists follow. The TPMRI program elements have continuously evolved in response to changes in relevant scientific and technical knowledge, educational practices, and evaluation of the training program. Training elements included written and oral communication, grantsmanship, responsible conduct in research (RCR), experimental rigor and reproducibility (R&R), and networking and career development. We seek to instill in trainees a clear understanding of what constitutes responsible and professional scientific conduct, and to make trainees aware of ethical issues, particularly those most relevant to translational diagnostic imaging. Finally, the MRI training program strives to increase participation in biomedical research by female trainees and train qualified students from underrepresented groups (URGs). During the past 4 years, 11 predoctoral PhD BME students have been appointed to the TPMRI program, with excellent representation of female trainees (80%) and 2 female trainees from underrepresented groups. The TPMRI trainees have excellent productivity (52 original papers, 17 first-author papers), 7 of 11 PhD students (64%) have been or will be awarded subsequent NIH F-type fellowship or K-type training grants, and graduates have successfully transitioned to physician/scientist or academic clinical research positions. The established interdisciplinary medical imaging research and access to state-of the-art imaging equipment at Northwestern provide a prime opportunity to continue to train predoctoral BME students. Our goal is to build on the successes of the TPMRI to achieve an even higher level of integration of interdisciplinary and clinical translational research in medical imaging.

Narrative Diagnostic imaging with Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is an emerging field with ever expanding capabilities and roles in both basic medical research and clinical applications. This proposal is a request for funding of an institutional combined predoctoral Training Program for MRI in Radiology and Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern. Our goal is to train the next generation of scientists for a medical imaging career in academia, hospital, or industry.