Research Block
The research and scholarship component of the curriculum includes a required
mentored 4-month research block, which usually provides the basis for the M.D.
thesis. The research block will provide students with an opportunity to pursue
an area of interest in greater depth than can presently be accomplished within
the curriculum. The topic of the research project is as varied as the range of
interests of the students. The research block includes opportunities to pursue
mentored basic, translational, clinical, or population-based research in the
biology, pathophysiology and social and behavioral determinants of health and
disease that advance the field of interest. This requirement will also provide
a formal mechanism for students to develop interactions with one or more
research advisors who have expertise in shared interests.
The goal for each student working with an advisor will be to formulate a
question in an area of interest, to develop and implement an approach to
answering it, to complete this project, and to arrive at an interpretation of
the results.
Students will have an opportunity during their first and second years to learn
about the research and scholarship conducted by faculty at CWRU through:
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The information provided at the "Research opportunities" icon.
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A searchable database of faculty research and scholarship interests ("Search"
icon on left).
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The required seminar course entitled "Foundations of Research and Scholarship"
that includes seminars by
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principal investigators leading research programs and centers;
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faculty heading critical forefront technologies such as proteomics, genomics,
animal and cellular imaging, bioinformatics, biostatistics, and epidemiology;
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research leadership describing practical aspects of performing research and
completing a thesis.
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The elective 8-week mentored summer research experience after year 1
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Pubmed and internet searches of topics and faculty interests.
Preferably, students will work with a CWRU faculty member for their 4-month
research block. However, if there is a compelling scientific reason, a student
may propose to pursue this work with a faculty member at another institution.
Each student must also identify a CWRU faculty member who agrees to serve as
the research advisor at CWRU. This faculty member must be interested in the
work and knowledgeable in the area. The CWRU faculty member must agree to this
arrangement and be willing to oversee the work and the preparation of the M.D.
thesis.
Medical students will have three opportunities to pursue the research block:
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March-June of year 2
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July-October of year 3
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November-February of year 3.
Due to limitations on the number of students who can do each clinical rotation,
only one-third of the class can pursue research at any one of these times.
Schedules will be determined by a weighted lottery.
The USMLE Step 1 must be taken before starting the research block.
Students who are interested in pursuing a year-long research fellowship through
the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
(HHMI), the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Sarnoff Cardiovascular
Research Foundation, the Fogerty International Center, Center for Disease
Control (CDC) or other organization should talk with your society dean in
the fall of the second year to individualize the timing of the research block
and the USMLE Step 1.
Prior to beginning the research block, each student will select a faculty
advisor who has expertise in the area of the student's interest. The student
will formulate a question and an approach to answering it, through reading and
discussions with his/her advisor. The student will then write a thesis proposal
(1000 words plus references), which will include sections entitled:
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Background and rationale for the question
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Question and/or hypothesis to be tested and specific aims of the project
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Approach (methodologies) that will be taken to answer the question.
The thesis proposal is due about 7 weeks before the students begin their 4-month
research block and will be reviewed by the Medical Student Research Committee.
Key points of the review include the feasibility of the proposed research
project and the likelihood that it will fulfill the M.D. thesis requirement.
For research projects involving human subjects or material that require any type
of Internal Review Board (IRB) approval, this approval must be in place prior
to June 1. Advisors usually have IRB protocols in place, and the student is
then added following appropriate
CREC training at the Office of Research Compliance. In some cases, the
advisor and student will need to submit a new IRB protocol. Please speak with
your advisor about IRB submission and/or training. Even straightforward IRB
applications are requiring 6-7 weeks for approval, and IRB applications should
be submitted at the time the proposal is submitted. Approval must be in place
before starting the 4-month block.
Following approval, the student will then pursue this research project working
with his/her advisor during one of the 4-month blocks. This time is reserved
for full-time research and is completely free of clinical responsibilities,
unless they are part of the proposal and the research project.
The requirements for the research block include two progress reports, the first
due 4 weeks after the start date and the other 8 weeks after the start date,
and a summary. All three requirements are due online at the student's
ePortfolio MyResearch site by the deadline given at this site. The summary is
in the format of a manuscript in the leading journal of the field that the
student is pursuing. It is due on the last day of the 4-month block. It can
form the basis of the M.D. thesis, following any required updating and
revision. It usually includes the following sections:
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Abstract
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Introduction
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Methods
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Results including figures and tables
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Discussion
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Acknowledgments
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References
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Figure legends
Elective time subsequently can be used to either finish work or to pursue new
research. A proposal similar to the one for the 4-month block is submitted 4
weeks ahead of the start date.
The M.D. thesis is required by January 15 of year 4. Please see the "M.D.
thesis" icon for more information.
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