The Biology and Chemistry & Biochemistry departments at San Francisco State University (SFSU) and the Cancer Research Institute at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) propose to continue their Post-baccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP). The SFSU and UCSF campuses currently have established collaborative programs developed through the SFSU Research Infrastructure for Minority Institutions (RIMI), Bridge to the Future, and an NCI Minority Institution/Comprehensive Cancer Center collaborative supported through P-20 and U-56 mechanisms. We will prepare and train 12 post-baccalaureate scholars each year for entry into high-quality PhD degree programs. The PREP program academic, curricular, and co-curricular activities will occur at SFSU, and the research training will take place at either SFSU or UCSF. Fifty research-active faculty members from both institutions with current publications and research funding (36 from SFSU and 14 from UCSF) have been selected as a pool to provide research training for PREP participants. Post-baccalaureate PREP applicants who have completed a bachelor's degree in a biomedically-related science within the previous 3 years will be considered for participation. A 12-month Core Program consisting of year-round research, summer GRE and Graduate School Preparation workshops, academic year colloquia, research seminars, and graduate courses is described. Prior to beginning the PREP program, each PREP scholar will, in consultation with the Program Director, develop a 1 or 2 year plan to prepare for entrance into an MA-MS/PhD. or Ph.D. degree program within two years of entering the SFSU PREP program. The proposed PREP program is ideally designed to complement the various existing undergraduate and graduate programs at SFSU focused on preparing URM students for entrance into and completion of Ph.D. degrees. During the first 4 years of our current PREP grant, we have placed 37/39 PREP participants into science graduate programs. Fifteen are currently enrolled in PhD or PharmD programs (13 PhD, 1 PhD/MD & 1 PharmD) and 21 are enrolled in MS degree programs. Twelve past PREP students currently enrolled in MS degree programs are applying to PhD programs for fall 2006. Ten current PREP students are applying to MS programs for fall 2006. [unreadable] [unreadable] [unreadable]