To stimulate veterinarians' interest in pursuing advanced research degrees, the Department of Agriculture's Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service has announced an opportunity to support veterinary students' participation in research laboratories while earning their DVM/VMD degree.

The Higher Education Challenge Grants Program is requesting programs to address the shortage of trained professionals with PhD degrees to meet the current and projected needs of industry and academia in high-priority agricultural areas, including veterinary medicine. Veterinary students (first professional degree students) and undergraduate students (eg, in animal science) may submit proposals.

Funding is also available to support student experiential learning programs that provide students with opportunities to solve complex problems in the context of real-world situations.

The proposal deadline is Feb. 5, 2003. Visit www.reeusda.gov/1700/funding/rfahec.htm.

Questions can be addressed to Gregory Smith, National Program Leader, CSREES/Higher Education Programs, USDA, phone (202) 720-1973, gsmith@reeusda.gov.