10 Faculty Research Facility; (949) 824-8642
World Wide Web: http://www.ucihs.uci.edu/som/envtox
Sheldon Greenfield, Department Chair

Faculty

Israel De Alba: Disparities in health and health care

Dean B. Baker: Environmental medicine and clinical toxicology; epidemiology; clinical effects of heavy metals, pesticides, and hazardous waste

Stephen C. Bondy: Neurotoxicology; biochemical changes in membranes resulting from toxic exposures

Jefferson Y. Chan: Chemical pathology of tissue injury with focus on the oxidative stress response in cells exposed to toxic xenobiotics

Ralph W. Cygan: Pathophysiology

Derek Dunn-Rankin: Laser and optical diagnostics in practical systems, optical particle sizing; droplet formation and vaporization in high-pressure environments

Sheldon Greenfield: Childhood injury prevention and control, cancer prevention and control; health care delivery and organization; cost effectiveness and health priorities; post-traumatic stress; medical education

Chenyang (Sunny) Jiang: Application of molecular techniques to detect human pathogenic bacteria and viruses in aquatic environments; coastal water quality microbiology

Sherrie H. Kaplan: Evaluating quality of care for chronic disease; increasing patient participation in treatment decisions; health status and quality of life assessment; changing physician and patient behavior and doctor-patient communication

Michael T. Kleinman: Uptake and distribution of inhaled toxic materials in the respiratory tract; effects of air pollutants on cardiopulmonary function

Charles E. Lambert: Toxicology of chemicals in the workplace; industry and regulatory toxicology; risk assessment, risk management, and risk communication

Ulrike Luderer: Reproductive and developmental toxicology

Quyen-Ngo Metzger: Clinical epidemiology; medical decision making

Ronald B. Miller: Medical research ethics

Dana Mukamel: Health care financing; health economics; medical statistics

Betty H. Olson: Environmental microbiology and water chemistry; public policy issues in environmental toxicology

Kathryn E. Osann: Cancer epidemiology; biostatistics

Robert F. Phalen: Biophysics, aerosol science, and inhalation toxicology; toxicity of mixtures of particles and gases, lung defenses, and particle deposition in airways.

J. Leslie Redpath: Studies on the chemical and physical modification of radiation damage aimed at basic research in carcinogenesis

Ronald C. Shank: Graduate Program Director; Biochemical mechanisms in toxic tissue injury with emphasis on chemical carcinogenesis; application of tools of molecular biology to study cytotoxicity

Dara Sorkin: Behavioral theory and health

The Department of Community and Environmental Medicine provides graduate training in environmental toxicology and offers the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Environmental Toxicology. The program in Environmental Toxicology provides students with the knowledge and skills necessary and appropriate to teach and/or conduct basic and applied research programs in inhalation/pulmonary toxicology, environmental carcinogenesis, biochemical neurotoxicology, chemical pathology, phototoxicity, toxicology of natural products, and toxicokinetics. The master of science degree program has been expanded to include opportunity to study in four areas in addition to toxicology. The current degree program in Environmental Toxicology continues and master's degree students can seek additional training in Quantitative Methods, Clinical Sciences, Social and Behavioral Health Sciences, or Health Services and Policy.

Toxicology involves scientific study of the entry, distribution, biotransformation, and mechanism of action of chemical agents harmful to the body. The program interprets environmental toxicology as the study of the effects and mechanisms of action of hazardous chemicals in food, air, water, and soil, in the home, workplace, and community, and considers experimentally and theoretically such diverse research problems as: (1) new scientific approaches to toxicological evaluation of environmental chemicals such as air and water pollutants, food additives, industrial wastes, and agricultural adjuvants; (2) mechanisms of action in chemical carcinogenesis and mutagenesis; (3) the molecular pathology of tissue injury in acute toxicity; and (4) scientific principles involved in extrapolating from laboratory animal data to expected effects on human health in environmental exposures.

Students entering the program have varied backgrounds, including chemistry, biology, and physiology. The curriculum is based on a foundation of basic and health sciences with applications of scientific principles to environmental problems. Formal course work is enriched by a strong commitment to student-professor interaction throughout the program. An important and integral part of the learning process is an early and intensive involvement of the student in ongoing original research projects in environmental toxicology, especially inhalation/pulmonary toxicology, chemical carcinogenesis, biochemical toxicology, chemical pathology, and neurotoxicology.

In addition to meeting the general admission requirements set by the Office of Graduate Studies, applicants must be admitted by an Admissions Committee composed of faculty members from the Department of Community and Environmental Medicine. Candidates are selected on the basis of a balanced evaluation of the following criteria: (1) prior scholastic performance, including a consideration of grade point average, course load, nature of courses taken, and college attended; (2) recommendations by professors and others; (3) scores on the Graduate Record Examination; the Subject Test in either Biology or Chemistry is strongly recommended; (4) an interview by the Admissions Committee, when feasible; and (5) experience in undergraduate research. The applicant must have received a bachelor's degree in a biological or physical science, in a premedical curriculum, or have an acceptable equivalent. Applicants with a bachelor's degree in engineering may qualify for admission into the program if they have had sufficient training in biology and chemistry.

Undergraduate preparation of applicants should include six quarter units in general biology, zoology, bacteriology, or anatomy; 12 quarter units in mathematics, including calculus through vector analysis and differential equations; 12 quarter units of chemistry, including four quarter units of organic chemistry; 12 quarter units of physics, including optics; and four quarter units in molecular biology or biochemistry. Outstanding applicants who lack one or two of these prerequisites may be given an opportunity to take the required course(s) either before admission or during the first year in the graduate program; in such circumstances, none of these undergraduate courses may be used to satisfy the program elective or core course requirements. Upper-division or graduate science courses may be considered as substitutes for the above prerequisites by the Admissions Committee.

The graduate core curriculum for the Ph.D. degree includes Environmental Toxicology 201, 206A-B, 207, 298A-B-C, and 16 units from an approved elective pool. This pool consists of Environmental Toxicology 202, 204, 208, 212, 220, 230; Physiology 206A-B; Anatomy 203A-B; Molecular Biology and Biochemistry 203, 204; and Developmental and Cell Biology 231B. Ph.D. students must also fulfill comprehensive examination, qualifying examination, teaching, and research dissertation requirements. The normative time for advancement to candidacy is three years. The normative time for completion of the Ph.D. is five years, and the maximum time permitted is seven years.

Requirements for the M.S. degree may be satisfied in one of two ways: Under Plan I, students complete the core program (including Environmental Toxicology 201, 298A-B-C, and 299A-B-C) and an elective program with an average grade of B or better, and, under the direction of a faculty advisor, prepare a thesis that is acceptable to the thesis committee. Under Plan II, students complete the core and elective programs with an average grade of B or better, prepare a scholarly paper based on individual study in an area of toxicology under the supervision of a faculty member, and satisfactorily pass the written comprehensive examination.

Opportunities for individual training and independent research experience exist in inhalation and pulmonary toxicology, atmospheric chemistry and aerosol science, chemical carcinogenesis, neurochemistry, biochemical toxicology, toxicology of naturally occurring compounds, chemical pathology, environmental microbiology, and environmental chemistry, quantitative methods, and health policy and service.

Research grants and contracts are available to support qualified doctoral students as research assistants.

GRADUATE COURSES IN ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY

201 Principles of Toxicology (4) S. Problem solving to demonstrate principles of toxicology; quantitative dose-response relationship; toxicant-target (receptor) interaction emphasizing interspecies differences in Ah receptor and dioxins; complete in vivo metabolism of xenobiotics by mammalian systems; integration of organ responses to toxic agents.

202 Environmental Toxicology (4) F. Analysis of real problems involving toxic chemicals and the human food, air, and water supplies, occupational exposures, and life styles. Formal problems will be considered by small groups of students and discussed by the class. Prerequisite: Environmental Toxicology 201.

204 Neurotoxicology (4) F, odd years. The effects of various harmful chemicals upon nervous system function. Emphasis given to the molecular events underlying neurological damage and to the relation of such processes to basic mechanisms of neurobiology.

206A-B Target Organ Toxicity (6-6) F, W. Analysis of responses occurring in twelve organ systems of humans exposed to environmental chemicals at toxic levels; distinctive cellular and tissue structure and physiological function; toxicological responses discussed in terms of phenomena, mechanisms of action, and methods of study.

207 Experimental Design and Interpretation of Toxicology Studies (2) W. Introduction to methods of structuring toxicology experiments and analyzing data including experimental design, data distributions, sample sizes, hypothesis testing, linear regression, analysis of variance, multiple comparison testing, and non-parametric tests.

208A-B Introduction to Biostatistics (4-4). Provides those interested in conducting and interpreting clinical policy, public health, and/or health services research with the skills needed to apply statistical methods to the biomedical sciences. Emphasis placed on applications in the clinical and health policy research literature.

209A-B Introduction to Clinical Statistics (4-4). Enables clinicians and those interested in clinical research to read and interpret the medical literature critically, to identify appropriate statistics for basic research designs used in medicine, and to discriminate between appropriate and inappropriate statistical applications for common research designs.

210 Introduction to Clinical Epidemiology and Medical Decision Making (4). Principles and practice of clinical epidemiology, and the epidemiologic or population-based approach to health and disease; examination of role of clinical epidemiology in clinical practice and clinical and public policy, and changing patterns of community health problems. Prerequisites: Environmental Toxicology 208A-B.

212 Inhalation Toxicology (4) S, odd years. The principles and practice of laboratory inhalation toxicology. Topics include aerosols, gases, respiratory tract structure and function, lung defenses, aerosol deposition exposure techniques, characterization of exposure atmospheres, experimental designs, animal models, and regulations and guidelines.

220 Industrial Toxicology (4) S. Analysis of responsibilities toxicologists have in industry, including product safety, generating material safety data sheets, animal testing, ecotoxicological testing, risk/hazard communication, and assisting industrial hygienists and occupational physicians; emphasis on interdisciplinary nature of industrial toxicology and communication skills. Prerequisites: Environmental Toxicology 206A-B.

221 Toxicology in Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices (4). Examines the role of toxicology in evaluating the safety of medical devices and pharmaceuticals within the various regulatory schemes in the U.S. and E.U. Emphasis placed on preclinical toxicity testing programs. Prerequisites: Environmental Toxicology 201 and 206A-B, or consent of instructor.

230A-B Medical Statistics (4-4). Statistical issues involved in selected topics in clinical medicine involving more sophisticated research designs and applications. Prerequisites: Environmental Toxicology 208A-B.

232 Design and Analysis of Clinical Trials (4). History, organization and planning, rationale for, methods (design, sampling, analysis, bias, error), limits, ethics, and practical issues involved in the conduct of clinical trials. Examples from the clinical literature. Impact on the practice of medicine, national policy, and public opinion.

233 Measurement, Survey Research Methods (4). Measurement and measurement theory, survey design, planning and conduct of survey research; summary of issues involved in measures development, testing, application; item, scale development; sources of measurement error; methodologic issues involved in design, development, and use of surveys and questionnaires. Prerequisites: Environmental Toxicology 208A-B.

240 Introduction to Pathophysiology (4). Concepts in cell biology, anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiologic derangements of common diseases; patient case presentations on clinical manifestations of select diseases. Provides foundation of clinical knowledge to apply toward various research methodologies in study of disease.

241 Advanced Clinical Epidemiology and Medical Decision Making (4). Methods and analytic techniques for approaching clinical epidemiologic problems. Special topics such as chronic disease, genetic, reproductive, nutritional, and environmental epidemiology are discussed. Decision analysis, using epidemiology to evaluate health services, and ethical and professional issues in epidemiology are reviewed. Prerequisites: Environmental Toxicology 208A-B.

242 Quality Care, Outcomes Research, Patient-Provider Communications (4). Principles and practice of quality-of-care research, outcomes research, and provider-patient communication research. Current methods for development of quality-of-care measures, assessment of performance of various levels of the health care system, and costs vs. quality of care. Prerequisite: Environmental Toxicology 208A.

244 Chronic Disease Epidemiology (4). Epidemiological concepts and research skills in the study of chronic diseases and associated risk factors. Enables students to describe trends and patterns, locate and appropriately use data, describe basic pathophysiologic and psychopathologic mechanisms, and describe effective chronic disease studies.

245 Social Epidemiology (4). Systematic review of conceptual approaches and research findings related to impact of social context on health of populations. Definition of social epidemiology including history, current status, future directions; social patterning of health across time and place; socioeconomic position, race/ethnicity, health.

250A-B Introduction to Health Policy and Health Services Research (4-4). Overview of theoretical, research design, construct, and measurement approaches to health services research; pervasive role of discipline in defining conceptual, methodologic, and dissemination approaches to problems addressed by health services research. Enables students to evaluate critically research designs, approaches, conclusions. Prerequisites: Environmental Toxicology 208A-B.

251 Health Care Financing, Health Economics (4). Basic concepts and tools of economic analysis applied to health care markets; principles of demand for medical care and health insurance, supply of care, interaction of supply and demand on the market; financing and impact on costs and quality of care.

253 Disparities in Health and Health Care (4). Aspects of culture that influence health status, development of public health policy, and management and practice of health care. Explores how race and ethnicity affect health and health care, including health care services and policies governing these services.

254 Introduction to Health Services and Health Policy (4). U.S. health care system with a focus on its major components, interaction of its elements, and its history and future; epidemiology of health services, role of government, health insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, managed care, facilities, work force, long-term care, quality of care.

255 Health Politics and Policy (4). Political and analytical insights into understanding the U.S. health policy making and into developing strategies that influence health policy outcomes; how political analysis can improve health policy research and its implementation; skill development in political strategy and case analysis.

261 Society, Health, and Health Care (4). Study of links between society, behavior, and health, and implications of those links; population-based approach to assessment and understanding of health; empirical literature linking social factors to health and health care; implications of patient's role in health care for clinical practice.

262 Behavioral Theory and Health (4). Behavior and social science theory, research, and interventions as they pertain to public health; theories associated with health and illness that draw broadly from the social and behavior sciences, including psychology, sociology, anthropology, political science, and nursing.

290 Independent Study in Environmental Toxicology (4) F, W, S. With consent from a faculty member who will supervise the program, a student may receive credit for individual study in some area of toxicology, culminating in the completion of a scholarly paper on the subject. May be repeated for credit as the topics vary.

296 Research Ethics and Practice (4). Major frameworks of ethics and basic ethical concepts operative in public health research; ethical issues facing researchers (health promotion, disease prevention, epidemiological and biostatistical research); historical background, current regulations, and Institutional Review Board requirements related to human subjects protection issues.

297 Advanced Topics in Occupational Toxicology (2) F, W, S. Discussions with clinical and research faculty in environmental toxicology and occupational medicine on current toxicology problems in the workplace and critical review of current publications in the field. Journal club/seminar format.

298A-B-C Environmental Toxicology Seminar (2) F, W, S. Presentation and discussion of current research problems and issues by students, postdoctoral fellows, faculty, and guests, covering the broad research and policy areas of environmental toxicology. Open to Environmental Toxicology graduate students only.

299 Research Problems (1 to 12) F, W, S. Research work for the M.S. thesis or Ph.D. dissertation.

City Tower, Suite 800, UC Irvine Medical Center; (714) 456-5789
Ann P. Walker, Graduate Program Director

Faculty

James Bartley: Genetic metabolic diseases

Maureen Bocian: Heterogeneity and variability in genetic diseases; characterization of new syndromes; neurofibromatosis; skeletal dysplasias

José A. Camacho: Genetic metabolic diseases

Pamela Flodman: Genetic epidemiology; human genome informatics; genetic counseling and risk perception

Kathryn Steinhaus French: Prenatal genetic diagnosis

John Jay Gargus: Genetic metabolic diseases; molecular genetics of cell membrane disorders

Taosheng Huang: Genetics of cardiovascular malformations; Holt-Oram syndrome

Virginia Kimonis: Characterization of disorders due to mutations in VCP and related myopathies associated with Paget disease of bone and dementia; natural history of Prader Willi and early onset morbid obesity syndrome; genotype-phenotype correlation in craniosynostosis

Steven Lipkin: Molecular genetics of colon cancer; clinical cancer genetics

Robert Moyzis: Chromosome structure and gene expression; human telomere and centromere organization and function

Vincent Procaccio: Mitochondrial and molecular medicine

Roxanne Ruzicka: Prenatal genetic diagnosis; risk assessment and counseling for hereditary cancers

Moyra Smith: Gene linkage and mapping in neurogenetic disorders including autism; mutation analysis and genotype-phenotype correlation in tuberous sclerosis

M. Anne Spence: Genetic epidemiology, quantitative genetics; linkage and mapping

Ann P. Walker: Genetic counseling in hereditary cancer and late-onset diseases; genetics education; genetics services delivery; ethical, cultural, and public policy issues in genetics

Douglas Wallace: Mitochondrial genetics, evolutionary biology and metabolic disease

Michael V. Zaragoza: Genetics of cardiomyopathies in humans and mice

The Division of Genetics and Metabolism in the School of Medicine's Department of Pediatrics offers a Master of Science degree program in Genetic Counseling. Most graduates of the program join academic or hospital-based genetics teams providing clinical services, teaching, and research. Others work for local, state, or federal genetics programs, for commercial genetics laboratories, on genetic research studies, or in education. The graduate program is fully accredited by the American Board of Genetic Counseling.

Division faculty and staff are engaged in teaching, research, and patient service. Clinical activities center on diagnostic evaluation, management, and genetic counseling for genetic disorders, including birth defects, developmentally disabling conditions, and hereditary cancers. Faculty research interests include: gene mapping and linkage analysis using molecular and quantitative methods; characterization and management of malformation and chromosomal syndromes; counseling for late-onset genetic conditions—including familial cancers and neurogenetic disorders; factors causing chromosome abnormalities and congenital malformations; cancer genetics and cytogenetics; psychosocial and cultural issues associated with genetic conditions, birth defects, prenatal diagnosis, genetic screening and testing, and genetic services delivery; and ethical and public policy issues in genetics.

During the six to eight academic quarters of the program, students complete a sequence of core courses covering medical, quantitative, biochemical, molecular, and cancer genetics; teratology, embryology, and development; cytogenetics; counseling theory and application; research methods; ethical issues; and community resources. All courses are taught by Division faculty specifically for students in the program. Experiential professional training occurs concurrently with formal course work in a variety of clinics at UC Irvine Medical Center and satellite facilities, in the prenatal diagnosis program, in the cytogenetics and molecular genetics laboratories, and in various community agencies. Students participate in these and other divisional and departmental professional and educational activities such as lectures, seminars, journal club, Pediatrics and Obstetrics and Oncology Grand Rounds, cytogenetics conferences, and various research, counseling, and patient management conferences throughout the program. While not required, some students choose to arrange optional clinical rotations at other academic, private, or commercial genetics units.

Degree requirements include a minimum of 75 quarter units, completion of a research thesis that should be publishable, and demonstration of appropriate professional skills in genetic counseling. The program director serves as faculty advisor to students. Teaching and supervision of professional experiential training are shared by all Division faculty and staff, who frequently review student progress. In the second year, development of professional skills can be individualized according to the trainee's needs and interests. Successful completion of the program fulfills the curricular and clinical training requirements for eligibility to sit for examination by the American Board of Genetic Counseling.

Recommended undergraduate preparation includes course work in the biological and behavioral sciences—particularly in genetics, biochemistry, molecular biology, psychology, and human development. Course work in statistics is desirable. Fluency in Spanish or a Southeast Asian language confers a considerable advantage. Extracurricular or employment experiences that provide evidence of the student's maturity, interpersonal skills, and promise as a genetic counselor figure prominently in the admissions decision. References should speak to these qualities as well as to the academic qualifications of the applicant. The GRE General Test and Writing Assessment are required. Subject Test scores in any area will also be considered if they are available. Since there is no GRE code for the Department of Pediatrics, applicants should use the UCI institution code: R4859.

Applications are accepted for the fall quarter only and must be complete by February 1. Because of keen competition for places in the program, a two-stage admissions process is employed. Following initial review of applications by the faculty admissions committee, approximately one-fifth of applicants are invited for interviews, which are usually conducted during March and April. If invited, it is greatly to the candidate's advantage to have an on-site interview, although in difficult circumstances it may be possible to arrange an out-of-town interview with a program graduate or a traveling faculty member. Any candidate planning to be in the Southern California area in March or April is encouraged to inquire in advance regarding the likelihood of an interview. Final selection from the interviewed candidates occurs in late April or early May. Five or six students are usually admitted each year.

GRADUATE COURSES IN PEDIATRICS GENETICS

200A Introduction to Medical Genetics and Cytogenetics (4) F. Lecture, three hours. Covers current concepts regarding mitosis, meiosis, the cell cycle, and chromosome ultrastructure and function. Clinical disorders caused by chromosomal aneuploidy, duplication, and deletion, and principles of Mendelian, chromosomal, and multifactorial and nontraditional inheritance are presented and illustrated.

200B Genetic Screening, Prenatal Development, and Human Teratology (4) W. Lecture, three hours. Principles and techniques of prenatal, neonatal, and carrier screening. Infertility, pregnancy, and delivery. Normal and abnormal prenatal growth and development. Reproductive and fetal effects of drugs, radiation, infections, and other environmental factors. Prerequisite: Pediatrics Genetics 200A.

200C Human Genetic Disorders (4) S. Lecture, three hours. Inheritance, diagnosis, natural history, management, and counseling considerations for commonly encountered genetic diseases, birth defects, and dysmorphic syndromes. Prerequisites: Pediatrics Genetics 200A and 200B.

200D Disorders Due to Inborn Errors of Metabolism (4) F (even years). Lecture, three hours. Aspects of biochemistry and metabolism are reviewed with special emphasis on genetic abnormalities which lead to inborn errors of metabolism. Diagnostic procedures, heterozygote detection, treatment, counseling issues, and prenatal diagnosis are reviewed. Prerequisite: Pediatrics Genetics 200A or consent of instructor.

200E Molecular Genetics (4) S. Lecture, three hours. The derivation of different types of DNA probes and DNA libraries, restriction endonuclease polymorphisms, assignment of genes to chromosomes, and genetic linkage. Particular emphasis is placed on the use of recombinant DNA technologies and genetic linkage analysis for diagnosis of human genetic disease. Prerequisite: Pediatrics Genetics 200A, 200D, or consent of instructor.

200F Quantitative Genetics (2) S. Lecture, one and a half hours. Quantitative aspects of human genetics, including population studies, segregation analysis, linkage, mapping, and genetic risk determination. Corequisite or prerequisite: Pediatrics Genetics 200A.

200G Hereditary Cancer Counseling (4) W (odd years). Lecture, three hours. Issues in genetic counseling for cancer. Cancer biology; genetic mechanisms and environmental influences in carcinogenesis; tumor pathology; cancer gene mapping; epidemiology. Features natural history, diagnosis, prevention, surveillance, and management of heredity cancers. Psychosocial, ethical, legal aspects of cancer risk assessment. Prerequisites: Pediatrics Genetics 200A, 200B.

200H Genetic Counseling Research Design (4) S. Seminar, three hours. Quantitative and qualitative methods for genetic counseling research. Reference management; statistic: sample size, power, and data analysis; reliability and validity; surveys, questionnaires, interviews, and focus groups; quality of life and genetic epidemiology research; designing a research protocol; IRB issues; grant writing.

200L Cytogenetics Laboratory (4) F. Laboratory, 10 hours/week. A practicum introducing methods of specimen collection, short-term lymphocyte and bone marrow culture, long-term fibroblast and amniocyte culture, harvesting and slide preparation, chromosome staining, microphotography, and darkroom techniques. Microscopic chromosome analysis, photographic karyotyping, and the appropriate use of cytogenetic nomenclature are emphasized. Open only to Genetic Counseling students.

201A Introduction to Genetic Counseling (4) F. Through directed readings, observing patient evaluations, role-playing, and conducting intake interviews, students are introduced to the process of diagnosis, management, and counseling for genetic disease. Psychosocial issues, interviewing techniques, pedigree construction, clinical photography, and various other skills are addressed. Open only to Genetic Counseling students.

201B Clinical Rotation I (4) W. Tutorial and fieldwork. Provides extensive supervised experience in history taking, interviewing, and psychosocial assessment in the clinical genetics setting. Students independently perform telephone, office, and home-visit intake interviews, participate in counseling, and present cases at patient management conferences. Open only to Genetic Counseling students.

201C Clinical Rotation II (4) S. Tutorial and fieldwork. Provides further supervised experience in genetic counseling, case management, clinic administration and organization, and the use of community resources. Emphasis is on sharpening counseling skills and on developing a professional identity and code of ethics. Open only to Genetic Counseling students.

201D Prenatal Diagnosis Counseling (4) F. Tutorial and fieldwork. A practicum with extensive supervised experience in prenatal diagnosis counseling which provides the student with the opportunity to conduct genetic counseling sessions semi-independently and to further develop clinical skills. Open only to Genetic Counseling students. Prerequisites: Pediatrics Genetics 200A, 200B, and 200C.

202A Counseling in Human Genetics: Theory and Methods (3) S. Lecture and discussion, two hours. Theoretical approaches, counseling models and methods, and bio-psychosocial assessment strategies are examined in the context of genetic counseling. Contract-setting, working alliance, the use of self and evaluation methods. Beginning counseling and peer supervision skills are practiced in class. Open only to Genetic Counseling students.

202B Community Resources (2) F. Seminar and activity, two hours. Lectures, guest speakers, and community visits acquaint the genetic counselor with public and private health care and funding agencies, parent support and advocacy groups, and other resources available to assist individuals and families confronted with genetic disorders, developmental disabilities, and birth defects. Open only to Genetic Counseling students.

202C Ethical Issues in Human Genetics (2) S (odd years). Lecture and discussion, two hours. Explores major social, legal, and ethical issues in genetic counseling including those arising in genetic screening, prenatal diagnosis, informed consent, privacy and confidentiality, rights of the disabled, new genetic and reproductive technologies, treatment, and access to services. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.

203A Counseling in Human Genetics: Putting Thought to Practice (4) F. Seminar, three hours. Builds upon the skills learned in previous courses emphasizing advanced counseling methods such as listening, empathy, and collaboration. The counselor's own self-awareness, ethical behaviors, and limits are explored. Individual, team, and group exercises are performed. Prerequisite: Pediatrics Genetics 202A. Open only to Genetic Counseling students.

204A, B, C Professional Skills Development (4, 4, 4) F, W, S. Hones and augments existing competencies in genetic counseling through ongoing clinical experiences. Students develop skills in use of computers for genetics applications, provision of community and professional education, and clinic administration. Further experience in genetics laboratories or specialty clinics may be elected by students. Open only to Genetic Counseling students.

295 Master's Thesis Research and Writing (4 to 8) F, W, S. Tutorial. Under the supervision of one or more faculty members, the student designs and conducts a research project or completes a case report. A problem in the cytogenetics, biochemical, clinical, psychosocial, or behavioral areas of medical genetics may be investigated. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.