Virtual Summer Research Program: Supporting Future Physician-Scientists from Underserved Backgrounds

What is it about?

The Virtual Summer Research Program (VSRP) was a 4-week virtual program aimed at addressing the competitive disadvantage faced by individuals from underserved and underrepresented backgrounds in applying to MD/DO-PhD programs. The program connected 156 participants with medical school faculty members and current MD/DO-PhD students from 35 participating institutions. Participants improved their science-related skills, confidence in becoming a physician-scientist, and their ability to navigate mentorship relationships. VSRP facilitated long-term relationships between participants and mentors, and provided a skill set and connections to the physician-scientist community that could be applied in future training programs. The program's primary goals were to provide participants with mentors, foster science-related skills, and empower mentees to pursue graduate training. VSRP achieved these goals through one-on-one relationships with mentors, dedicated program leaders, and interactive sessions. Participants gained valuable research experience that could be included on their resumes and used to apply for future opportunities. The program also facilitated connections between participants and the physician-scientist community at large. The success of the program was evaluated using Kirkpatrick's four-level evaluation model. Participants felt individually supported, and the majority expressed their willingness to recommend the program to others. The program had a significant impact on the career trajectory of participants in a short period. VSRP is a flexible and low-cost program that can be easily implemented remotely. It serves as a model for future programs that support students from underrepresented backgrounds in finding research opportunities. The program's remote model helps connect students from geographically disadvantaged areas to mentors they might otherwise never have met, extending support networks beyond the local communities of participants and better distributing often-geographically concentrated resources. The primary limitation of the analysis is that measures of confidence and analytical skills were based on individual self-reporting, and not all VSRP mentees participated in the surveys. Future work will involve analyzing and improving the mentor experience and broadly, the program framework.

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Why is it important?

The Virtual Summer Research Program (VSRP) is important because it addresses the disadvantage faced by individuals from underserved and underrepresented backgrounds in physician-scientist training programs. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated this issue by closing research laboratories and suspending summer research opportunities. VSRP was designed to combat this shortfall by providing a virtual research experience for participants, helping them become better informed and better prepared for applying to MD/DO-PhD programs. Key Takeaways: 1. VSRP provided a research experience for participants, fostering the skills and domain knowledge necessary for future research opportunities. 2. The program facilitated long-term relationships between participants and mentors, supporting the development of the participants' career trajectory. 3. VSRP helped participants improve their confidence in becoming a physician-scientist, applying to training programs, and navigating mentorship relationships. 4. The program's remote model helped connect students from geographically disadvantaged areas to mentors they might otherwise never have met, extending support networks beyond the local communities of participants. 5. Participant and mentor feedback was incorporated into the design of VSRP 2021, with areas of improvement including increasing the breadth of programing events, facilitating student camaraderie, and optimizing the matching algorithm.