Medical Student Handbook

Medical Student Education

Research

Policy 1040.00

Policy Statement

Research can be among the most valuable experiences during medical education. Each year, generally during the summer between the first and second years, or during the Advanced Integration level of the curriculum, some students choose to take part in a variety of research opportunities that are offered to medical students locally, nationwide, and around the world. There are many programs available that focus on clinical, translational, behavioral, health services, educational, and/or basic science investigations.

Program durations can vary from a few months to two years and opportunities can be found locally, here at UVM, and at universities across the country and in many different countries. There are programs to suit almost any interest. Different programs have their own requirements and expectations of participants. It helps to get this information sooner rather than later.

Programs that have gained national recognition and/or that the Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at The University of Vermont students have recently participated in include:

• LCOM Summer Research Fellowship (password required)
• LCOM One-Year Research Fellowship
• Doris Duke Clinical Research Fellowship for Medical Students
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Medical Research Fellows Program
• Sarnoff Research Fellowship
• NIH Research Training Programs
• NIH Medical Research Scholars Program
• The Benjamin H. Kean Traveling Fellowship in Tropical Medicine

Local faculty contacts are available to provide information about current research projects available for medical students at the UVM LCOM. The Director of Medical Student Research can help provide appropriate contacts for specific areas of research interest. For more information visit the Research Areas currently available under the LCOM Research website.

Students will also find the Summer Opportunities resource, in the LearningCommons (password required), which includes information regarding the Larner College of Medicine Summer Research Fellowship Program. The Office of Medical Education oversees the summer fellowship support and funding.

The UVM LCOM Funds for Educational and Scholarly Opportunities (FESO) program provides students with funding to engage in research and scholarly experiences. FESO was established to support students who would like to travel to conferences, alternative learning opportunities or similar events. Grants are funded through donations to the Larner College of Medicine. Application submission deadlines are advertised in the WeeklyWire. The program has three application review periods each year.

The Office of Medical Education shares any additional information regarding research opportunities with students over the course of the academic year as they are made available or advertised. Opportunities are posted under the “Research, Fellowship, Awards, & Scholarship” section of the WeeklyWire, our weekly student missive for all non-curriculum-related communications.

Applicability of the Policy

All Medical Students

Related Larner College of Medicine Policies

• 560.20 Quantitative Standards: Satisfactory Academic Progress
• 590.10 Medical, Family and Personal Leaves of Absence

Related University of Vermont Policies

• 6.3.5 Financial Conflict of Interest in Sponsored Research
• 6.5.5 Misconduct in Research

Related Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) Standard(s)

• 3.2 Community of Scholars/Research Opportunities
• 7.3 Scientific Method/Clinical/Translational Research

History

• 7/16/2013 Policy Adopted/Affirmed [Medical Curriculum Committee]
• 8/16/2016 Policy Revised [Medical Curriculum Committee]
• 12/18/2018 Policy Revised [Medical Curriculum Committee]
• 12/17/2019 Policy Revised [Medical Curriculum Committee]
• 8/24/2021 Policy Revised [Medical Curriculum Committee]

Policy Oversight

Assistant Dean for Medical Education (Director of Curricular Evaluation and Assessment)