AACR-Bardos Awards For Undergraduate Students Announced

Philadelphia, PA - To foster interest in cancer research careers among the next generation of young scientists, the AACR will provide an opportunity for 10 undergraduate students to experience the field first hand at its Annual Meeting 2008 through the AACR-Thomas J. Bardos Science Education Awards for Undergraduate Students.

This program is designed to enhance the education of the students by providing financial support to travel to AACR Annual Meetings, which are attended by more than 17,000 scientists from around the globe. The AACR Annual Meeting allows young investigators to present research, learn from various educational sessions and symposia, and take advantage of mentorship and networking opportunities.

"Many of the world's greatest scientific discoveries have been due to collaborations and correspondence between laboratories," said Uzoma Iheagwara, a biological science major at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and a 2008 Bardos Award recipient, "Winning this award allows me a chance to branch out, talk about my research as well as learn from other people about different approaches to problems we address in the lab."

The award program is open to full-time, third-year undergraduate students majoring in science. In addition, winners will participate in the 2008 Undergraduate Student Caucus and Poster Competition. Because the award provides registration for two consecutive meetings, 10 winners will attend the AACR Annual Meeting 2009 as well.

Bardos, a native of Hungary, has been an AACR member for nearly 50 years and, since 1997, has supported the Science Education Awards for college students. Following World War II, he came to the United States and earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Notre Dame. He went on to hold a full professorship at the State University of New York at Buffalo, where he was a member of the faculty until his retirement in 1995; he now holds emeritus status. The Bardos Awards are supported by matching contributions from the AACR.

SOURCE: American Association for Cancer Research