The Medical Scientist Training Program at Yale University is designed to train physician-scientists who will be equipped to translate basic and clinical research to problems of human pathobiology. About 10 students each year enter our MSTP and make up ~10% of the medical school class. The strength of our Program is the flexibility of the Yale System of medical education and the breadth and depth of the graduate programs at Yale, unified under the Biological and Biomedical Sciences Program (BBS). These programs of medical and graduate education allow MSTP students to customize their educational paths. The extensiveness of graduate training at Yale provide students with opportunities in biomedical tracks including Cell Biology &Molecular Physiology, Genetics and Development, Immunology, Microbiology, Molecular Biophysics &Biochemistry, Neuroscience, Pharmacologic Sciences and Molecular Medicine, and Molecular, Cellular &Developmental Biology, and Chemistry. We also accommodate students in nontraditional areas such as epidemiology and public health, psychology, computer sciences, and anthropology. New programs in Translational Research (Genomics and Proteonomics, Clinical Immunology etc.), and in Biomedical Engineering will provide new training opportunities for MSTP students. The Program requires ~7 1/2 years to complete but is flexible in sequence and emphasizes interdisciplinary training and correlation with clinical disciplines. Students typically spend their first two years studying basic sciences;some of these courses are taken for graduate school credit. Clinical medicine is introduced in the 2nd year and emphasizes modular approaches to the study of disease. Most students complete 6 months of clerkships in medicine and pediatrics before embarking on thesis work. This prepares them for participation in weekly clinics in ambulatory medicine, primary care and pediatrics, designed for MSTP students during the research years and enables students to relate research training to clinical medicine without compromising lab time. Approximately 54% of our graduates pursue careers in clinical departments while 32% are in basic science departments. Our goal of preparing physician-scientists for academic/research careers has been successful in that ~90% of our graduates who have finished training are carrying out funded research in academic settings. Our MSTP has the support of the Dean of the School who has agreed to provide additional positions, staff and support for the Program.
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