The mission of the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine is to train physician-scientists who will become future leaders in biomedical and clinical research. It strives to recruit a diverse group of outstanding students and to provide them with rigorous combined medical and research training that prepares them for careers as physician-scientists. Through a flexible and continuously evolving curriculum that includes 1) specialized MSTP courses and 2) integration of grad and med school curriculum in the first 2 years, the students are guided through a program that can be tailored to meet their individual needs and interests. The program seeks to provide the trainees with a unique foundation for careers as independent physician-scientists and to facilitate their placement into outstanding postgraduate training programs to facilitate the next step in their career progression. The training program has 3 phases. In the first 2 years students take an integrated combination of medical, graduate and MSTP-specific courses to provide the didactic foundation for their research and clinical training. They perform research rotations to assist them in choosing their thesis research lab. In the program's 2nd phase, they perform independent, original research under their mentor's guidance. They publish their discoveries in high quality peer reviewed papers and prepare and defend a Ph.D. thesis. Participation in an evening, MSTP-run, ambulatory outpatient clinic allows them to build their clinical skills during the PhD phase of the program. In the final phase, they complete their clinical training on the wards. The admissions process seeks to identify individuals with the intelligence, curiosity, creativity, perseverance and enthusiasm for science that is essential for future success in a research career. 117 trainees are in the program, 43% are woman and 14% are members of underrepresented minorities. Since its inception in 1964 as one of the first three NIH funded MD-PhD training programs, 359 trainees have graduated. 277 have completed postgraduate training and published over 14,611 papers, an average of 53 papers per graduate. 82% have jobs at academic medical centers, research institutes, NIH or pharmaceutical companies. By various measures, the program graduates have achieved outstanding success in their chosen careers and have contributed to the advancement of biomedical research and academic medicine. Based on the quality of our past accomplishments, we propose to expand the program, to further integrate graduate and medical training, and increase opportunities for involvement in clinical and translational research in order to prepare a future generation of physician-scientists who will be at the leading edge of biomedical research with the ultimate goal of improving human health and reducing the burden of disease.
physician-scientists perform a critical role at the interface between basic biomedical research and clinical medicine. This program will train a diverse group of highly skilled physician-scientists who will facilitate the process of scientific discovery that aims to reduce the burden o disease for all Americans. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: This program will train a diverse group of outstanding students and prepare them to enter the biomedical research workforce as physician-scientists who will perform basic, translational and clinical research. This research will lead to new treatments to prevent or cure disease and improve the health of all Americans.
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