Medical research informs everything we do in medicine.
Given the importance of research within the medical profession, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine requires a mentored research project and associated written MD Thesis to graduate. The sequence of these requirements, and subsequent elective opportunities, are illustrated below.
Research and Scholarship Curriculum
University Program MD students except MSTP
| Fall | Winter | Spring | Summer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M1 | Research & Scholarship Course | R & S Course | R & S Course | 12 week research experience |
| M2 | (Thesis write up) SOM Student Research Day Extracurricular research |
Thesis Due | ||
| M3 | Extracurricular research and/or up to 12 weeks of research elective* |
|||
| M4 | Extracurricular research and/or up to 12 weeks of research elective* |
Bold indicates required components
*Research elective is available in 4 week blocks; cannot exceed 12 weeks in M3&4 combined
Mission and Vision
The Mission and Vision of the Office of Medical Student Research are below, to give you a sense of our goals for students and how we assist throughout their medical school career.
Vision
We facilitate meaningful research experiences for medical students throughout their medical school career, in alignment with their career goals and past experiences, with faculty and resources on all five campuses.
After completing the research requirement, students will understand the research process and articulate the role that research will play in their own career plans and professional identity.
Students who complete additional research experiences will graduate with a network of faculty to serve as research resources in their early career journey.
Mission
We achieve our vision in the following ways:
- Clear communication and individual guidance to connect students with robust resources, accessible opportunities, and a network of advisors.
- Didactic sessions and dedicated experiential research time.
- Support to students who wish to disseminate their work through publishing and presentations by facilitating SOM Research Day.
- Recognizing and tracking student and faculty collaborations and accomplishments to inspire current and future students.
Current Medical Students
If you are a current CWRU medical student, you can search the database for potential research advisors and projects. This requires CWRU single sign-on.
We also keep a partial list of potential student research opportunities external to CWRU, of which we are aware. Explore external research opportunities.
Faculty Members
If you are a CWRU faculty member interested in being a medical student research advisor, you can submit a project and take a few minutes to enter one or more projects that would be applicable to medical students. If you have many projects, enter your research interests and contact information and indicate that students should contact you. The large majority of required medical student research occurs over 12 weeks of summer. Many students continue the same project or join another one beyond this required experience. You can submit projects that are appropriate for either timeline.
Contact
If you need help or want more information, please email medstudentresearch@case.edu.
Rosa K Hand, PhD, RDN, LD, FAND
Associate Professor, Nutrition
Director, Medical Student Research & Scholarship