Hi! I am also someone whose interests and dreams have been greatly influenced by the work of MAPS and Rick Doblin. I am currently entering a doctorate program in Medicinal Chemistry with the express purpose of pursuing my goal to study psychedelics. This has been my goal since I first heard of MAPS a little over 5 years ago. I feel that there is still a lot for us to learn about the action of psychedelics in the brain, and that this area deserves research and attention. While this is true, and I have always dreamed of working for MAPS some day, I doubt that a career with their organization is in my future. The studies that they are conducting involve mostly clinical applications/ experiments and psychotherapy. Medicinal chemistry, psychopharmacology, and the fine details of the way that psychedelics affect our brains are preclinical matters. It makes sense that understanding these things could be instrumental in the furthering of the use of psychedelics in their studies and in medicine in general. However, MAPS has a somewhat more narrow scope of research which they specialize in. They conduct studies, in humans, usually involving therapy. They consider the effects of psychedelics on the ability of the patient to cope with trauma, fear, or communication issues. Therefore, they tend to employ therapists, not chemists who work in a lab. Also, a lot of their work involves pushing the boundaries of what people think about psychedelics as medicine, and the legal boundaries preventing studies in humans. If MAPS was actively trying to support scientists interested in psychedelic research, it would be more prudent to choose a discipline closely related to their own studies.
All of that aside, I think it would be wonderful to create scholarships for such a purpose. One issue with creating such a program is that there are a million different ways to approach the study of psychedelics. These drugs have cultural, literary, scientific, and spiritual implications which could all be studied separately in a lifetime of work. If they were to provide a scholarship for psychedelic research not related to their experiments, how could they pick a single discipline? Also, to become an expert in psychopharmacology or medicinal chemistry requires a doctorate. Funding an undergraduate student for something that requires a doctorate is somewhat risky, considering how many students change their minds or drop out. Doctorate programs are usually paid for by the graduate school, and therefore additional funding is not entirely necessary (although it would be welcome!) I think that a small, one time scholarship for students based on an essay competition would be the best way to reward such a scholarship. That way, the funding would not require future research or obligations, but could potentially increase interest and discussion in the topic of psychedelic research. Many students spend substantial amounts of time finding outside scholarships, and universities keep lists of ones that are available. More people could learn about MAPS and their goals, which could potentially offset the cost of funding students who would not eventually benefit their research. Also, the essay itself would make a good addition to their newsletter, and give a peek into the future generation of scientists who will be studying psychedelics. I think this could be a great way to promote MAPS and get the word out to students interested in pursuing psychedelic research.
