We are requesting continued support for the Medical Sciences Training Program (MSTP) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison). The overall goal of our program is to train a diverse group of physician-scientists who will have a major impact on biomedical research and the practice of medicine and who will be future academic and research leaders. The guiding principles that have shaped the program are (1) the rigor and caliber of both MD and PhD training should be equivalent to those of single degree candidates; (2) students learn from one another; and (3) graduates will receive integrated training in science and medicine and all students will be exposed to translational research. Four physician scientists of the School of Medicine and Public Health, each of whom is active in research, graduate training, and clinical activities, direct the MSTP. A student organization works closely with the Directors. Directors are advised by the MSTP Steering Committee, which includes faculty from multiple disciplines and ensures that the MSTP exploits the breadth of training opportunities available to students at UW-Madison. The usual student does the preclinical phase of medical training while becoming acquainted with research methodologies in a three-semester seminar course and participating in research rotations. Research mentors and graduate programs are chosen in the second year. With the transformation of the medical school curriculum in 2016, we will further integrate clinical and research training and condense preclinical training from 2 to 1.5 years. The students will engage in a year of clinical clerkships before beginning the Ph.D. thesis. A clinical bridging curriculum facilitates the transitions between medical and graduate studies and provides mentorship from physician scientists. Students are introduced to clinical research through a new M4 translational research rotation that provides further mentorship from campus physician scientists. The new curriculum will allow our students to complete dual degree training in 7-8 years. Although the majority of student theses are in the biological and chemical sciences, a significant number of students are doing research in engineering, clinical investigation, or on population-based problems, with integrated training from our CTSA. Students produce substantial dissertations that result in important publications. Activities that foster program cohesiveness include the strong student organization, a weekly seminar, yearly retreat, yearly symposium, and regular social gatherings. To have an interactive and dynamic group of students, we are aiming for a class size of ten students for an overall program size of 80 students.
Trainees receive integrated training in both clinical medicine and research and are awarded both an M.D. and a Ph.D. degree. Graduates of our program are well prepared to provide outstanding clinical care and establish research-focused careers in which the goal is to improve human health.
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