Training: SRTP

The objectives of the Vanderbilt Medical Student Research Training Program (SRTP) are:

• To provide the opportunity for the student to conduct diabetes and obesity-related research, kidney and hypertension-related research, or digestive disease-related research in order to gain an improved understanding of research and career opportunities in biomedical research
• To provide an atmosphere that encourages and facilitates student interaction with a diverse group of established investigators and clinicians
• To give participants a comprehensive and current understanding of diabetes mellitus, its clinical manifestations and its unsolved problems

Read here: Impact of Medical Student Research in the Development of Physician-Scientists

The SRTP started in the summer of 1975 and during the past 46 years over 1000 students from more than 120 medical schools have participated. Each summer approximately 30 medical students participate in the program (see below section for a list of recent alumni). Each student chooses an established Vanderbilt investigator in the field of Diabetes, Obesity, Kidney Disease, or Digestive Disease. The areas of research are quite broad and range from basic laboratory studies to clinical studies in humans. Program staff will assist students in selecting a preceptor. The Vanderbilt faculty member and the medical student jointly design a research project which is then conducted over the course of the summer. At the conclusion of the summer, each student presents a brief summary of his/her/their work in a national research symposium. In addition to working on his/her/their own research project, each student attends a series of seminars addressing various clinical and research aspects of diabetes mellitus and its complications, kidney disease and hypertension, and digestive disease. Through these seminars, Vanderbilt faculty alert students to recent advances in basic and clinical research and treatment options.

Each student receives a stipend (currently calculated at a rate of approximately $2,300 per month) from which expenses for housing may be paid. The stipend amount is prorated based upon the actual number of days a student participates in the program. Students are expected to spend 2-3 months in the program.

Please note that students must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents to participate in this program.

Emphasis Area Co-Directors

Diabetes and Obesity Track

Cell Signaling

Clinical Research, Genetics, and Epidemiology

Complications Related to Diabetes

In Vivo Metabolic Regulation and Obesity

Islet Development, Biology, and Immunology

Digestive Disease Track

Check out our recorded lectures from the 2022 program.