Research

GMS Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium Hosts STaRS, UROP, and SPIN Scholars

This year’s Summer Training as Research Scholars (STaRS) cohort culminated their 10-week on-site internships at the Graduate Medical Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium on August 11. Held at Hiebert Lounge, the symposium offered STaRS scholars the opportunity to present their independent research projects to Boston University Medical Campus faculty, staff, and students.

The 2023 STaRS scholars:

● Jacqueline Alford
● Jessica Oliveira Bacelar
● Matthew Jacob Byrne
● Jonathan Matthew Carnino
● Malia Magnolia Cole
● Shira Maya Freilich
● Arielle Gilliam
● Stevia Coralie Nanfack Tsakem
● Chioma Okolo
● Elizabeth Myriam Puyo
● Valerie Reyes Ortiz
● Leila Alejandra Rivera Rosario
● Diana Esmeralda Rodriguez
● Mikaili Zoe Senwah

Coming from colleges and universities across the continental US and Puerto Rico, the cohort included six second-year undergraduates, seven third-year undergraduates, three fourth-year undergraduates, and one Boston University medical student.:

● Joseph P. Mizgerd, ScD
● Francesca Seta, PhD
● Sarah Mazzilli, PhD
● Andrew Wilson, MD
● Gareth Morgan, PhD
● Joseph Zaia, PhD
● Jeffrey Siracuse, MD, MBA
● Weining Lu, MD
● José Rafael Romero, MD
● Jessica Levi, MD
● Vickery Trinkaus-Randall, PhD
● Suryaram Gummuluru, PhD
● Frederick Ruberg, MD

The symposium was also open to all summer undergraduate students on campus and was attended by one Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) scholar and one Summer Program in Neuroscience (SPIN) scholar. This year’s presenting UROP scholar was Sanjana Prudhvi, mentored by Manveen Sethi, PhD, and Joseph Zaia, PhD. The presenting SPIN scholar was Grace Li, mentored by Ella Zeldich, PhD.

Founded in 2010, the STaRS program promotes equitable access to graduate research and education for students historically underrepresented in science and medicine. Every summer, STaRS cohorts participate in faculty- mentored research informed by the scholars’ personal research interests.

Over the course of 10 weeks, scholars execute independent projects, participate in seminars on career development, research competencies and graduate school applications, and receive training on critical scientific communication skills. Ultimately, the program aims to enhance skillsets for application and entry to graduate or MD/PhD programs in biomedical sciences. Scholars receive a certificate recognizing their outstanding academic research achievements.

“Congratulations to this year’s STaRS scholars for a summer of successful research,” said STaRS Program Director Isabel Dominguez, PhD. “Thank you to all participating faculty mentors, personnel, and staff for your commitment and support of the STaRS scholars. It has been a pleasure and a privilege to see the scholars grow their research and communication skills and be empowered to follow a research career path.”