The 5^th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium in the Chemical and Biological Sciences was held on the UMBC campus on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2002. Approximately 250 undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty members, from eight States and the District of Columbia, representing 36 institutions, attended the day-long event.

The Symposium represents UMBC's efforts to offer a unique and intimate venue in which the Region's premiere chemists, biochemists and biologists of tomorrow can present the fruits of their research efforts in a relaxed yet stimulating format. This year's meeting was comprised of nearly 150 submitted abstracts with nearly 250 attendees including students and faculty. Abstracts were submitted from students at Universities from 10 States and the District of Columbia. Four sessions were held, two sets of oral presentations, with three oral sections in parallel in each session, combined with two Poster Sessions that comprised the largest number of contributions. Morning and afternoon sessions were separated by a leisurely lunch and the opportunity to stroll the grounds in the bright Autumn weather or participate in a tour of facilities in the Biology or Chemistry and Biochemistry Departments at UMBC. Both the poster and oral presentation formats were uniformly characterized by the high quality of research being done at all the participating institutions and by the careful preparation of the presenters. Contributions focused on both the diverse sub-disciplines of chemistry and biology as well as the broad interface areas shared by these two major disciplines. In sum, the organizers were most grateful for the extremely high quality that presenters continue to bring each year to what has become a truly significant regional scientific event.

In summary, all of the participants deserve congratulations for their fine work! Students and faculty alike had an enjoyable experience. On behalf of everyone at UMBC, we would like to thank the participants and attendees for making the day a success.

We hope to see you next year at UMBC for the 6 ^th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium in the Chemical and Biological Sciences.