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Medical School summer research
program opens doors to
international medical students

By Darla Brown

The Medical School’s Summer Research Program had an international flavor this summer with the inclusion of foreign medical students for the first time in its history.

One student from Mexico and two from Taiwan joined the more than 50 first-year Medical School students and undergraduate students for the summer program, which pairs students with faculty mentors and puts an emphasis on laboratory research.

The idea to add international students to the program started as a request to take in a group of foreign students two years ago.

“We had a last-minute request, but we weren’t able to accommodate them because we did not have a legal agreement. From then, I realized this was something we should try to do in an appropriate way,” explains Hui-Ming Chang, M.D., M.P.H., associate vice president for international programs.

A series of meetings resulted in an agreement with Instituto Technologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico, and Fu-Jen Catholic University in Taiwan.

“I told each dean to select one or two students they are most proud of to send, and we’ll start this way,” Dr. Chang says.

Those students were Raul Ossio Vela, from Monterrey, Mexico, and Nicholas Yeh and Paul Lin, both from Taiwan.

“The international medical students we had this year were outstanding – they worked out beautifully,” says Gary Rosenfeld, Ph.D., assistant dean for educational programs and director of the Summer Research Program.

“We’re glad that with the competition between other U.S. universities, these schools have decided to send these bright students – this shows our program is providing value,” Dr. Chang says.

Each student was assigned a faculty member to work – just like the domestic Summer Research Program students. Unlike their U.S. counterparts, student mentors also were identified for the international students to help them pave the way in a foreign environment. Jimmie Pope, coordinator of the program, helped with the orientation of the students and coordinated several special enrichment activities designed for the international visitors.

Vela, who plans to return to the United States to do his residency and specialize in neurosurgery, was paired with the laboratory of John Byrne, Ph.D., in the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy.

“It was great. I was doing experiments with neurons and proteins in the snails, aplysia,” he says. “I appreciate the opportunity to come here.”

Yeh, who said he has not decided upon his specialty yet but wants to return to the United States to pursue a doctorate, worked in the lab of Carmen Dessauer, Ph.D., in the Department of Integrative Biology and Pharmacology.

“I learned quite a bit from her lab and the members of her lab. I am quite satisfied with the Summer Research Program,” he says.

Lin, who says he will likely specialize in surgery, worked in the lab of William Dowhan, Ph.D., in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

“It’s a shame we couldn’t enjoy the enrichment programs (at the start of the program), but the tours were nice because we could see the differences between the hospitals here and in Taiwan,” Lin says, adding that he would like to return to the United States to get his doctorate.

Although the Summer Research Program is a 10-week program, due to conflicting academic schedules, the international medical students spent eight weeks at the Medical School doing research and getting hands-on experience.

“We didn’t think the calendar year would be a problem, but we’re going to try to work it out – the holiday times are different in different countries,” Dr. Chang says.

Due to the success of the program’s first year, Drs. Chang and Rosenfeld said the plans are to gradually expand it. An affiliation agreement has been signed with Chile, and one more is in the works, Dr. Chang says.

“The idea is to slowly develop an international program,” Dr. Rosenfeld says. “By expanding the program internationally, we hope to expose these medical students to our system and to allow our students to get a view of foreign medical education. This program provides a broader educational experience for both sides.”

“If we keep going, we’ll have multiple universities exchanging both cultural and medical knowledge. In the end, it’s a win-win situation for everyone – the visiting student, our students, and our faculty,” Dr. Chang says.