Summer Scholars Program

The University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry continually strives to diversify student populations and thus to increase the number of graduate students currently underrepresented in the biomedical and health sciences.  The Summer Scholars program is designed to encourage students from historically underrepresented minority groups in the STEM fields interested in a PhD degree in the Biological or Biomedical Sciences and for students with a potential interest in attending graduate school at the University of Rochester. 

Underrepresented minority groups in STEM are defined by identifying as a member of one more of the following groups:

- Race and ethnicity (Black or African American, Hispanic or Latinx, American Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander)

• - Individuals with disabilities who are defined as those with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, as described in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended.
• - Individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds

The Intellectual Merit of the program derives from the major strengths in the University of Rochester's cross campus programs in the Biological Sciences, combining programs from the undergraduate campus Department of Biology and Basic Science Departments of the University of Rochester Medical Center. Trainees will be selected from a large national pool of applicants, and will participate in a centerpiece 10-week, hands-on, independent research project under the supervision of a faculty mentor, with guidance from graduate students and postdoctoral appointees, and oversight from the Program Director.

All trainees will attend research seminars as well as seminars on ethics, graduate school and career issues; trainees in their junior year will also be offered the opportunity to participate in a GRE prep course and in discussion groups. Trainees will generate an abstract on their work at the end of the summer, and will present their research in poster form at a mini-symposium. Trainees and their mentors will also be encouraged to present their work at national meetings and provided with funds to do so; co-authorship of publications will also be encouraged. Finally, continuation of research work during the academic year will be strongly supported and used as a mechanism to support linkages between UR and other colleges.

The summer program will provide enhanced research opportunities in Cellular and Molecular Biology to promising undergraduates, so as to encourage these students to pursue graduate education and careers in the Biological Sciences. The Intellectual Merit of the program derives from the major strengths in the University of Rochester's cross campus programs in the Biological Sciences, combining programs from the undergraduate campus Department of Biology and Basic Science Departments of the University of Rochester Medical Center.

Students that are eligible to apply:

• Undergraduates from US local and national colleges and universities.
• Undergraduates that are US citizens, permanent resident aliens or students with current F1 Visas from their host institutions in the United States.
• Matriculated college sophomores or juniors with strong academic backgrounds (applicants must have a GPA of at least 3.00).