With continuous NIH funding since 1980, the Short Term Research Training Program at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) offers intense exposure to sophisticated biomedical, behavioral and health services research to students during the summer after their first year in medical school. The purpose of the Program is to increase trainees' understanding and appreciation of biomedical research and its role in both science and medicine, to provide a positive research experience, and to interest students in pursuing additional research activities. Emphasis on the STRTG experience as the first step in a commitment to continual research will increase in the next grant cycle. UCSD medical students are prepared for advanced research as exhibited by their exceptional academic credentials and reputable undergraduate institutions. Trainees are selected on the scientific merit, clarity, and feasibility of their research proposals and on the support and productivity of their chosen preceptors. Although students may choose any USCD faculty member as a preceptor, preference is given to those who select Program Faculty, who are recruited to participate each year by the Executive Committee. The quality of the mentor greatly influences a student's research experience. In the next grant cycle, those who have successfully mentored students in our Ph.D. programs will be preferentially listed. Perhaps UCSD's greatest strength is the richness of its research faculty, which includes leaders in the fields of molecular biology, immunology, genetics, epidemiology, bioengineering, physiology, pharmacology and neuroscience. Students may choose to work at neighboring organizations such as the Scripps Research Institute, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, the Burnham Institute and other UCSD affiliated sites such as the San Diego Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Children's Hospital. Because of the students' preclinical orientation, most choose laboratory research in the basic sciences. After the research period is complete, students summarize their research in writing and participate in a poster presentation to share their projects with the medical school community. Students are evaluated by their preceptors and their work is reviewed by members of the Executive Committee. The remarkable productivity of the trainees, the excellence of their research and their continued positive involvement in research activities in medical school and beyond speak forcefully to the program's success.
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