Clinical Experiences Program
The goal of the MSTP Clinical Experiences Program is to provide longitudinal clinical exposure for MD/PhD students during the midst of their PhD training. Students are paired with primary care physicians at the UCI Gottschalk Clinic, for convenient half-day sessions once a month. The aim of the program is to maintain proficiency at taking patient histories, performing physical exams, and presenting cases to attending physicians. This allows for students to maintain their clinical skills for the duration of their research training, enabling students to be better prepared for the transition back to the clinical years of medical school.
Translational Medicine Journal Club
The Translational Medicine Journal Club is the MSTP student run journal club. The goal of the journal club is to discuss current literature that bridges the gap between basic research and clinical studies. Every meeting is joined by a clinical researcher who provides expertise and context to the papers presented. Not only does the journal club aim to keep students up to date on goings on, but foster relationship with faculty, and provide inspiration for avenues of research.
Lunch with Physician Scientists (LWPS)
Every month, the UCI MSTP hosts a Lunch with Physician Scientist (LWPS) where the program invites a physician scientist to have lunch with the current students. These luncheons provide a casual educational environment for the students to interact and learn from professionals who have first-handedly experienced and completed the MD/PhD training. Through these conversations, the distinguished guests often provide advice on how to navigate through the MSTP training and expose the students to the diverse career paths that are available to physician scientists. This monthly series also provides the opportunity for students to network and find mentorship in our invited guests. Overall, the LWPS offers the students a glimpse of their future and what life will be like as physician scientists!
UCI MSTP Distinguished Lecture Series (DLS)
UCI MSTP DLS is a one of a kind lecture series. Unlike other lecture series, in which faculties choose the speakers, it is the MSTP students themselves who invite scientists of their choice and to give a talk at UCI. The students organize the entirety of the event, ranging from the initial invitation to the hosting duties of the actual day, and it is a terrific way to not only learn how to run a seminar, but also to develop a personal connection with a world-renowned scientist that would difficult to do otherwise.
The series generally runs from September through April, and we have had the privilege of inviting nationally and internationally recognized scientists covering diverse topics, ranging from circuit neuroscience to microscopy engineering. Most faculties take pride in receiving a personal invitation from students, and we have been honored to host numerous Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators and Nobel Laureates.
- The DLS provides the opportunity to:
- Shape the scientific exchange of ideas on campus
- Establish a personal relation with world-renowned scientists
- Gain career advice from speakers who are in a wide range of career tracks and fields.
- Experience how to organize seminars and host speakers
Women Physician Scientists Group
The goal of the UCI Women Physician Scientists Group is to: Advocate for equal academic and professional opportunities for all MSTP students, Connect students to women mentors in networking and skill building capacities, Organize/collaborate to put on events to further above goals, Compile comprehensive electronic academic and professional resources for MSTP students. In the year since the group’s inception, we have organized an interactive career planning workshop in conjunction with the annual MSTP symposium, and supported the addition of a bias workshop to the annual MSTP retreat programme. We look forward to continuing to provide support for students.
UCI MSTP Retreat Planning Committee
The UCI MSTP Retreat Planning Committee, composed of the first year graduate student cohort, works with the MSTP administrator Joanne Wu to organize and execute the annual retreat at the Lake Arrowhead UCLA conference center. This group is responsible for inviting keynote speakers and recruiting compelling workshop leaders, in addition to planning social activities for the retreat attendees. This task provides great value to the program, and to the students, who have have opportunity to network with prominent physician scientists and invite faculty attendees, fostering new collaborations and mentorship opportunities.