The long-term goals of our postdoctoral training program (Traineeship in AIDS Prevention Studies, or TAPS) are to train the next generation of HIV Prevention scientists who will be skilled in diverse research methods, and to increase the number of ethnic/racial minority researchers. Our short-term goals are to build the skills of postdoctoral fellows to engage in research that combines biomedical, behavioral, and structural interventions to have the biggest impact on the HIV epidemic and to train more ethnic/racial minority scientists. TAPS balances social/behavioral and biomedical sides of Prevention by training scientists in the disciplines of their co-postdoctoral fellows. TAPS is housed in UCSF's Center for AIDS Prevention Studies (CAPS), with close relationships to other institutions working in HIV Prevention. Since the start of TAPS, we have trained 109 fellows who have become leaders in the field. Five-year renewal of TAPS will permit training of 2-3 new fellows per year, for a total of 8 in the program.

Training the next generation of HIV Prevention scientists, skilled in the methods of multiple fields, and increasing the number of under-represented minority researchers are the long-term goals of the postdoctoral Traineeship in AIDS Prevention Studies (TAPS) at UCSF. Short-term goals are to build the skills of postdoctoral fellows to engage in research that:

1) combines biomedical, behavioral, and structural interventions to maximize impact,

2) eliminates racial/ethnic disparities inHIV in the US, and

3) develops novel Prevention interventions.

TAPS balances the behavioral and biomedical sides of Prevention by training scientists newly minted in their respective fields in th disciplines of their co-postdoctoral fellows. TAPS is housed in UCSF's Center for AIDS Prevention Studies (CAPS), with close relationships to other institutions within the AIDS Research Institute umbrella. The program requires one-on-one mentorship with senior faculty; a master's degree in clinical or public health research; advanced courses in research methods and ethics; seminars and grand rounds; peer review and teaching; designing, grant writing, and implementing research projects; and submission of papers for publication. Since inception, TAPS has trained 109 fellows, while increasing URM scholars to 60% in the last five-year period; all transitioned to positions at universities conducting academic research and new discovery, health departments conducting implementation science research, and international organizations conducting policy research. Alumni in the last 10 years produced 580 publications and obtained 220 grants. Five-year renewal of TAPS will permit training of 2 to 3 new fellows per year who we envision will be poised to administer the coup de grace to the AIDS epidemic and carry on to address major future health issues in the US and worldwide.