Medical Student Summer Research

Faculty Oversight: Dr. Patrick Grant

Summer research opportunities are available for FAU medical students interested in basic science and/or translational research experience on the Boca and Jupiter campuses. Students will be matched with a mentor, based on research interests. Students are expected to participate in journal club/lab meetings, give an oral presentation at the program end, and present a poster on Research Day. Slots are available for up to 6 students. A full-time commitment of approximately 40 hours per week for 8 weeks is expected. Students can explore the different areas of research on the COM website.

Faculty Oversight and Program Contact: Dr. Lea Sacca

Dissemination and Implementation Science (D&I) is a growing research field that seeks to inform how evidence-based interventions can be successfully adopted, implemented, and maintained in health care delivery and community settings. The following research track will provide mentorship on the development of scoping reviews and systematic reviews. Students will also be exposed to public databases for secondary data analysis. The primary goal is to develop scientific writing skills for peer-reviewed publications, assess the quality and rigor of the evidence provided by health promotion studies, and nurture critical thinking when it comes to the design of health promotion interventions for cancer prevention. Students are expected to work in groups of 2-4, attend weekly research meetings, present a poster at COM Research & Scholarship Day, and submit their research to a regional or national public health conference. Slots are available for up to 4 motivated, hard-working students who are genuinely interested in public health scholarship and prevention research. A full-time commitment of approximately 40 hours per week for 8 weeks is expected. 

Faculty Oversight & Program Contact: Dr. Scott Alter

About Department of Emergency Medicine Research

FAU medical students interested in emergency medicine may participate in summer research with the emergency medicine faculty. The specific area of focus is in geriatric falls. Students will participate in all steps of the research process including: developing a research question based on existing datasets, performing a literature review, reviewing data analyses with faculty, and writing a manuscript. Students are expected to write an abstract and submit a poster to be presented at the FAU Medical Student Research Day, in addition to a regional or national emergency medicine conferences.  Students are expected to attend in-person emergency medicine didactic conferences and meet with their faculty mentor weekly on Tuesdays throughout the summer. Two students may be selected for this opportunity.

Faculty Oversight: Dr. Charles H. Hennekens

We will provide mentorship to FAU COM students, residents, fellows, and faculty in scholarship and descriptive epidemiologic research utilizing existing databases. Our primary goal is to nurture critical thinking. In scholarship, this includes reviews of the medical literature and hypothesis formulation.  In descriptive epidemiological research, this will, in addition, including data analyses. We can offer 2 slots for highly self-motivated, hard-working students genuinely interested in epidemiology scholarship and research. Students are expected to present a poster on Research Day.

Faculty Oversight: Dr. Joseph Ouslander

Program Contact: Dr. Gabriella Engstrom, 561-297-3188

Summer opportunities are available for FAU medical students interested in participating in research in the areas of geriatric medicine and gerontology. Potential projects are outlined and the students are guided to formulate research questions. Students are expected to attend group meetings, present a poster on Research Day and submit their research to a regional or national conference. Slots are available for up to 4 students. A half-time commitment (approx. 20 hrs per week) for approximately 8 weeks is expected.

Faculty Oversight: Dr. Vibhor Agrawal

Summer opportunities are available for FAU medical students interested in amputee rehabilitation research. Current project involves a longitudinal study assessing osteoarthritis and back pain in individuals with lower limb amputations. Students are expected to attend meetings, present a poster on COM research day and submit their research findings to local or international conferences. A part-time commitment of 20 hours per week for 8 weeks is expected.