charmer08 Posted October 9, 2011 Report Share Posted October 9, 2011 Would anyone like to tell us how? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerena Posted October 9, 2011 Report Share Posted October 9, 2011 I've answered this question in the general premed FAQ: http://www.premed101.com/forums/showpost.php?p=563675&postcount=3 |MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION I HAVE RECEIVED: How do I gain clinical research experience? Unless you have some sort of connections, this is definitely not an easy task to pursue. It can be very difficult to find a physician who is willing to take an undergraduate student on, especially for a paid position; however, clinical research experience is so important and has many benefits. I have had a great experience doing clinical research and I hope that those who are interested are lucky enough to obtain this. If you do not have connections (i.e. know a faculty of medicine researcher, have parents who are medical professionals, or have friends or a family member who is a medical student, etc.) you’re going to have to do this on your own. Find out who is doing clinical research in your area, search the internet, and email clinical researchers. Ask them if they are willing to take on student researchers and tell them that you will send your CV upon request, or you can even attach one if you're super keen. If you are not sure what to say in that first email/conversation/phone call, here is a post where I outline what has worked for me. I don't think it is a "golden approach" and it is definitely a bit of work, but it is simply my suggestion: http://www.premed101.com/forums/showpost.php?p=534640&postcount=13). So, yes it can be very difficult but it is possible. I've recently helped two individuals find clinical research opportunities, so it can happen Also, another thing you could do is if you are attending a university that has a medical school affiliated with it, send a message to the dean of medical research. This dean should be able to provide insight into who is hiring students and the appropriate course of action to take. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charmer08 Posted October 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 9, 2011 I've answered this question in the general premed FAQ:http://www.premed101.com/forums/showpost.php?p=563675&postcount=3 So, yes it can be very difficult but it is possible. Also, another thing you could do is if you are attending a university that has a medical school affiliated with it, send a message to the dean of medical research. This dean should be able to provide insight into who is hiring students and the appropriate course of action to take. uhm kinda confused... do clinical researchers hire undergrads? I thought undergrads applied for grants like CIHR. I couldn't find any info on any grants tho... when and how to apply etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerena Posted October 9, 2011 Report Share Posted October 9, 2011 uhm kinda confused... do clinical researchers hire undergrads? I thought undergrads applied for grants like CIHR. I couldn't find any info on any grants tho... when and how to apply etc. Yup, I was hired in undergrad as a student research assistant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tnwl Posted October 9, 2011 Report Share Posted October 9, 2011 uhm kinda confused... do clinical researchers hire undergrads? I thought undergrads applied for grants like CIHR. I couldn't find any info on any grants tho... when and how to apply etc. You do need to have a funding for yourself. Unless the PI has a group funding from which he can pay you off of Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
osteon Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 uhm kinda confused... do clinical researchers hire undergrads? I thought undergrads applied for grants like CIHR. I couldn't find any info on any grants tho... when and how to apply etc. The only funding that undergrads can get for research are the undergrad NSERC awards, the summer AIHS awards (in Alberta only), and sometimes schools have specific undergrad research awards. Most are around $5000 for one semester. CIHR does not fund undergrads, and undergrads cannot apply for typical research grants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.Want.In Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 The only funding that undergrads can get for research are the undergrad NSERC awards, the summer AIHS awards (in Alberta only), and sometimes schools have specific undergrad research awards. Most are around $5000 for one semester. CIHR does not fund undergrads, and undergrads cannot apply for typical research grants. Slightly misinformed. CIHR does as a matter of fact provide undergraduate student research awards (USRA), the EXACT same way that NSERC does. CIHR, NSERC and SSH (for social sciences research) grants are all part of the prestigious tri-council. As an aspiring med. student, both CIHR and NSERC look really nice on your CV and future application. Secondly, I don't know where you got the latter point in your response, but undergrads can apply for any of the above mentioned awards. I received CIHR in my third year of study, and I have close friends who received NSERC as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
osteon Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 Slightly misinformed. CIHR does as a matter of fact provide undergraduate student research awards (USRA), the EXACT same way that NSERC does. CIHR, NSERC and SSH (for social sciences research) grants are all part of the prestigious tri-council. As an aspiring med. student, both CIHR and NSERC look really nice on your CV and future application. Secondly, I don't know where you got the latter point in your response, but undergrads can apply for any of the above mentioned awards. I received CIHR in my third year of study, and I have close friends who received NSERC as well. I'm familiar with the prestigious tri-council, thanks. I've received over $60,000 in funding from them so far (I'm a PhD student). I think you are misinformed about what a "grant" is. A grant is not a summer research award. A grant is long-term funding for a research program, often upwards of $100,000. So, no an undergrad cannot get a grant. The Professor or PI is the one who gets it. They can then pay undergrads from it, but it does does not count as an undergrad receiving a "grant." This is how your standard RA position gets paid. Now, the undergrad USRAs. NSERC offers them. I think CIHR used to, but they do not any more. There are sometimes random institution-specific CIHR training programs that may offer undergrad awards, but these are not officially USRAs coming directly from CIHR. They come from a larger team grant that are then used to pay undergrads (see section on grants above). I don't know anything about SSHRC. Maybe they have one; I have no idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leap87 Posted October 10, 2011 Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 Charmer, you are a York University student in kinesiology, and you STILL haven't figured out who are the profs who work with clinical populations?! Take a look at the research descriptions of some of your kine profs. I could name at least 4 profs involved in a clinical type of research and at least 2 of them accept undergrad students as RAs. I do not know if you are aware, but York University DOES have Sherman Health Research Centre that opened up recently with state-of-the-art technology. As for CIHR: it is very tough to get. At the time I was a York undergrad, CIHR put out a scholarship pertaining to my specific area of research. Years prior, they had a bunch of undergrad awards specific to other areas of research. You basically have to check the CIHR website and keep an eye on their undergraduate awards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charmer08 Posted October 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2011 Charmer, you are a York University student in kinesiology, and you STILL haven't figured out who are the profs who work with clinical populations?! Take a look at the research descriptions of some of your kine profs. I could name at least 4 profs involved in a clinical type of research and at least 2 of them accept undergrad students as RAs. I do not know if you are aware, but York University DOES have Sherman Health Research Centre that opened up recently with state-of-the-art technology. As for CIHR: it is very tough to get. At the time I was a York undergrad, CIHR put out a scholarship pertaining to my specific area of research. Years prior, they had a bunch of undergrad awards specific to other areas of research. You basically have to check the CIHR website and keep an eye on their undergraduate awards. I'm going to PM you later so that we can talk specifics (names, who I know that is currently looking, etc). In the meantime, can you send me a PM with your research experience to date? And your grades are in the A-range, correct? lol I'm in biology but by clinical research, I was looking to apply at my local hospitals But if its at york, I think applying for an NSERC would be more beneficial to me as it will provide me with an academic reference letter (by a professor who've taught me in a class) and it will be in a field I'm more interested in (molecular bio, biochem, genetics, microbio etc when compared to neuroscience, biomech) Thanks for your help everyone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KMMD Posted October 13, 2011 Report Share Posted October 13, 2011 If you are looking for something in the Toronto area in the summer look into the U of T IMS Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) or the SickKids Summer Research Program (SSuRe). I started at SSuRe after my third year with a clinician scientist (MD) in a dry lab. When applying you can read all the profiles of the possible positions and apply to clinical based ones. From the research days, I recall several dry lab students (although wet labs far prevailed, there were a decent amount). It's a good way to get into research and these programs have funding built into them (ie. the programs themselves or the PIs provide the funding). Good luck!!! I've had a great experience with my PI and clinical research (I was able to return for another summer and continue other aspects of the study at the Children's Hospital here in Ottawa) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aaronjw Posted October 13, 2011 Report Share Posted October 13, 2011 If you are looking for something in the Toronto area in the summer look into the U of T IMS Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) or the SickKids Summer Research Program (SSuRe). I started at SSuRe after my third year with a clinician scientist (MD) in a dry lab. When applying you can read all the profiles of the possible positions and apply to clinical based ones. From the research days, I recall several dry lab students (although wet labs far prevailed, there were a decent amount). It's a good way to get into research and these programs have funding built into them (ie. the programs themselves or the PIs provide the funding). Good luck!!! I've had a great experience with my PI and clinical research (I was able to return for another summer and continue other aspects of the study at the Children's Hospital here in Ottawa) Just wanted to point out that CHEO is fantastic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KMMD Posted October 13, 2011 Report Share Posted October 13, 2011 CHEO is amazing, I am currently in my fourth year of volunteering there - I love it and everyone is so supportive and kind! Also, just to comment on the SickKids program if you are having difficulty getting a position - there were a couple of first years in my lab this past summer as volunteers. I'm not sure what year you are in (sorry if I missed it), but if you can you may want to look in to the possibility of volunteering to get an in. The students got to do everything we did (although a little less experienced) - they got to do their own projects and present at two research days. A very valuable experience if that is an option for you. Just something to consider. Good luck!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charmer08 Posted October 13, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2011 If you are looking for something in the Toronto area in the summer look into the U of T IMS Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) or the SickKids Summer Research Program (SSuRe). I started at SSuRe after my third year with a clinician scientist (MD) in a dry lab. When applying you can read all the profiles of the possible positions and apply to clinical based ones. From the research days, I recall several dry lab students (although wet labs far prevailed, there were a decent amount). It's a good way to get into research and these programs have funding built into them (ie. the programs themselves or the PIs provide the funding). Good luck!!! I've had a great experience with my PI and clinical research (I was able to return for another summer and continue other aspects of the study at the Children's Hospital here in Ottawa) ah thank you... I'm gonna check those up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KMMD Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 ah thank you... I'm gonna check those up. No worries - those postings usually do not come out until the new year but keep checking! Also apply to as many as you can to increase your chances! GOOD LUCK - great experience!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.