Research Year

Medical students at BU Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine may choose to take an additional year (outside of the medical school curriculum) to undertake full-time research under the guidance of a mentor.

There are two pathways for medical students to take a year off for research:

Application 2025 Due Dates:

Students interested in either pathway (listed above) should submit an application that will be reviewed by the Student Research Steering Committee. Applications will open in December, 2024.

  • Applications for M3 students (class of 2026) students are due mid-March, 2025
  • Applications for M2 students (class of 2027) are due mid-March, 2025

Program Contacts:

Priya Desai MD Class of 2025

My Research Year Experience

"Participating in the Medical Student Research Year program has been an incredibly valuable and formative experience for me. As someone who had very little research experience, this research year has allowed me to dedicate time in learning the process of creating, implementing, and showcasing research projects. I have gotten the chance to work closely with mentors who have vast knowledge in their fields and hone my own skills in completing research projects. I feel that now I am able to think of topics and analyze research articles more critically with a deeper understanding because of this experience." - Priya Desai, MD Candidate, Class of 2025

Project Title: "Mental Health Follow-Up among Immigrant Populations Following Inpatient Treatment for Traumatic Injury at a Safety Net Hospital"

Faculty Mentor: Lisa Allee, MSW, LICSW.