MD Program
Student Experience

Research Opportunities

Application Information

Medical Student Research Opportunities

The future of medicine is being discovered in the Keck School’s departments, institutes, centers and labs. The Medical Student Research Program helps students identify research opportunities and faculty mentors aligned to their interests.

Student swabbing a petri dish as part of guided research.

The Keck School of Medicine of USC offers a wide range of research opportunities for medical students, including:

  • Basic science: Research in basic science focuses on understanding the fundamental mechanisms of disease.
  • Clinical research: Research in clinical science focuses on testing new treatments and interventions.
  • Population health research: Research in population health focuses on understanding the health of populations and how to improve it.

The Keck School provides a number of resources to support student research, including:

  • Research mentors: Students can work with experienced research mentors who can provide guidance and support.
  • Research funding: The school provides funding for students to present research projects at local or national meetings.
  • Research facilities: The school has a number of state-of-the-art research facilities that students can use.

We’re committed to providing students with the opportunity to conduct research, an important part of medical education that can help students develop their skills as scientists and clinicians.

More Research Programs Available to Keck School MD Students

  • Open to students in the summer after their first year of medical school. Students do six weeks of full-time research with a faculty mentor.

    Explore Keck and Saban Summer Research Fellowships

  • Gives medical students the foundations they need to conduct hypothesis-driven research. Participants conduct a research project with a faculty mentor and share the results of their work at the Medical Student Research Forum and Poster Day.

    Explore The Scholarly Project

  • A competitive fifth-year fellowship for students who wish to spend an additional year doing full-time biomedical research in an area of their choice.

    Explore The Dean’s Research Scholars Program

  • Gives students the opportunity to participate in a nine- to 12-month long clinician-scientist training program through the USC Caruso Department of Otolarygology-Head and Neck Surgery.

    Explore the USC Caruso Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery’s Clinical Scientist Training Program

  • Medical students have the opportunity to schedule dedicated time to focus on their research goals. Research electives range in length from 2-8 weeks and are completed during the third or fourth year of medical school. Research can be conducted in almost any field. Medical students have investigated health disparities, clinical advancements and basic science research.

Contact

Jeffrey Riddell, MD

Assistant Dean, Medical Student Research