Medical Scientist Training Program

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Penn State MSTP Training Program: Recruiting, Retaining, and Training Physician-Scientists Penn State College of Medicine Co-Program Directors: Robert Levenson, PhD and Leslie Parent, MD; Overview: This T32 proposal is a new application for MSTP funding for the Penn State MD/PhD program. Led by experienced researchers, physician-scientists, and educators, the MSTP Program will train physician- scientists to conduct innovative, rigorous biomedical research. Physician-scientists, by virtue of their combined research and clinical training, play a unique role in generating new discoveries and are essential for translating these discoveries into interventions that improve health. The number of physician-scientists entering the workforce, however, has decreased in recent years. The proposed MSTP is needed to contribute knowledgeable and skilled physician-scientists who can expand the biomedical research workforce. Measurable Objectives & Outcomes: The primary outcome will be the proportion of students who graduate to careers with a research focus. Secondary measures include students’ research output (peer-reviewed abstracts and publications; submitted and awarded grants), trainee retention, and diversity-specific metrics. Process-level measures will include repeated assessments of mentorship and training quality/impact, clinical and research skills through surveys of students and mentors, and post-graduate surveys. This MSTP provides an intellectually rich and nurturing environment with committed, diverse, experienced, collaborative faculty, leveraging the PD’s prior successful T32 leadership, educational, and research expertise. Project Accomplishment: This five-year proposal will support the training of 44 NIH-funded MSTP students with planned one year appointments, primarily during the preclinical curriculum years. The MSTP will ensure the training of diverse students for the conduct of rigorous, high-quality research through an integrated curriculum, including coursework, seminars, workshops and individually mentored research. Training Plan: The MSTP is guided by three curricular tenets: (1) basic and translational research; (2) experiential learning; and (3) active mentorship from training faculty for career development. The MSTP synergizes with institutional partners, including the Clinical and Translational Science Institute, Woodward Center for Excellence in Health Sciences Education, Institute for Personalized Medicine, Neuroscience Institute, and Cancer Institute. The MSTP also partners with robust graduate programs: Biomedical Sciences, Neuroscience; Bioinformatics and Genomics; Molecular and Cellular Integrative Biosciences; Engineering Sciences and Mechanics; and Anthropology. By integrating clinical and research training over the entire course of the program, we aim to provide trainees with the skills to transition seamlessly between medical and graduate school, preparing them to enter the biomedical workforce as rigorously trained physician-scientists.