International Clinical Research Fellowships for Medical Students

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Investigator: Joel Palefsky, MD
Sponsor: Doris Duke Charitable Foundation

Location(s): Kenya; Uganda; Tanzania; Zimbabwe; India; Cambodia

Description

The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF) International Clinical Research Fellowship program for medical students is a one-year mentored clinical research opportunity designed to span a broad range of research ranging from bench laboratory science to clinical and translational science, epidemiology and outcomes research. We define clinical and translational research as research designed to address a question of clinical importance. 

The International DDCF program is structured so that the student will have some didactic training throughout the year while they work in parallel to develop, perform and analyze the results of their study. 

During the course of the year, the students will also have a series of other regular activities, including bi-weekly Works-in-Progress (WIP) seminars, inter-professional Journal Club meetings, and guest faculty lecturers. Since the students are only at UCSF for a month or two at the start of the year and then are stationed at their international site, the WIP sessions, journal clubs, and faculty lecturers are all recorded and put on the CTRFP YouTube channel so that students don’t miss any of the information.

During the last two months of the program, students will begin to analyze the data that they have collected up to that point in time and prepare them for a written report and oral presentation. The final oral presentations will be given at the annual student research symposium on campus. Students may present their data at other student/fellow research meetings as well, including a national meeting for DDCF medical student fellows. Attendance at that national DDCF meeting is a requirement of the program.