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Alumni Perspectives

Rachel Wolfe 2022, Pediatrics (Research Track), Duke University

“Participating in research through the PSTP was essential to giving me a strong foundation for a career as a physician scientist. My experiences in the program have allowed me to dive headfirst into a research track residency program feeling incredibly prepared and capable. I also gained lifelong mentors and friends who continue to stay in touch and support me. I would 100% choose to do it again!”

Bhavana Vangara Chapman 2016, Radiation Oncology Resident, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

“The PSTP provided me with the foundation to pursue a career in academic medicine and scientific research. Mentorship is a formidable highlight of the program. I learned to think critically, write effectively, and convey my ideas in a thoughtful manner. I plan to continue polishing these skills in a research-intensive radiation oncology residency program.”

Brittany Dulmage 2015, Dermatology Resident, Northwestern University

“The PSTP allowed me to cultivate my interest in academic medicine and set goals for my career both in the short and long-term.  I knew after the completion of my research year, that research offerings and support would be key features of my future residency program.  Additionally, with the foundations of the PSTP, I was well equipped to move on to a research-intensive residency.  To creatively think about a clinical question and translate research to a meaningful application requires a set of skills that I developed while in the PSTP and plan to continue to develop during dermatology residency.”

Ellen Caparosa 2015, Surgery Resident, Thomas Jefferson University

“The PSTP provided a structured environment in which to begin a career as a young Physician-Scientist, while supporting and encouraging innovation. The training that I received through the PSTP provided me with a solid foundation for research in residency. It makes the road to becoming a surgeon scientist much easier to traverse.”

Leo Chen 2015, Urological Surgery Resident, Stanford University

“The PSTP played a big role in helping me match into my subspecialty and getting my 1st choice residency program. Taking a year to do research set me apart from the majority of the crowd, but having that year as part of a formal overarching curriculum made it even more attractive. It showed dedication to a pursuit of academic medicine from the start, and that is something that a lot of the top tier programs recognized and sought after. The courses during MS1 and MS2, along with the grant writing/review courses during the summertime was a big contributing factor for being chosen for an HHMI fellowship, which residency programs again loved. That and all of the practice giving various presentations through PSTP (WIPs, oral presentations at conferences during the research year) had a positive impact on my interviewing abilities and presenting well at grand rounds on my away sub-internships.“

Daniel Ludwig 2014, Diagnostic Radiology Resident, Barnes-Jewish Hospital of Washington University in St. Louis

“The PSTP provided a strong foundation in research that I will leverage for future research endeavors, specifically in critical manuscript analysis, grant writing, mentorship, and research methodology. It helped me secure a research track residency position in radiology.”

Aditya Iyer 2013, Neurosurgery Resident, Stanford University

“My PSTP training helped me obtain publications, experience with grants and early exposure to a career as a physician-scientist!”

Jeremy Chow 2010, Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases, University of Texas Southwestern

“The PSTP was a wonderful program that gave me enough dedicated time to complete a meaningful research project during medical school. Because of the project that I was involved in, I became very interested in HIV and to this day, it remains my clinical and research focus. The PSTP was also extremely helpful from a pragmatic point of view because of the scholarship, which helped reduce my loan burden and enabled me to pursue an academic position as I start my career.”

Xiao Yang 2010, Faculty Member, Harvard University

“When I was applying to a very competitive specialty such as dermatology, the PSTP definitely made me stand out—even though my research was not related to dermatology at all.”