Medical Education

Application Process

Essential elements of the Scholarly Concentrations experience include rigorous independent scholarship, cross-disciplinary study, and mentored relationships.

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Application Process

Essential elements of the Scholarly Concentrations experience include rigorous independent scholarship, cross-disciplinary study, and mentored relationships.

Essential elements of the Scholarly Concentrations experience include:

  • Rigorous independent scholarship
  • Cross-disciplinary study
  • Mentored relationships
  • Group seminars/courses
  • Scholarly work across Years 2-4 of medical school
  • Submission of a scholarly product

Participating students benefit from the faculty-mentor relationship that is central to the Concentrations Program. Students may have the opportunity to publish their work and/or present at national conferences.  Additional benefits to students include discussion of their concentration work in students’ Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE), a certificate upon completion of the program, and recognition of their accomplishments at graduation.

Interested students should:

  • Explore the different concentration areas and choose one that is of interest.
  • Meet with the concentration area Director(s) prior to winter break to discuss potential summer projects and final scholarly products.
  • Develop a proposal for participation in the concentration area and apply for funding as needed.

As students begin to work on their academic projects, librarians are available for one-on-one research consultation, to help with all aspects of the research process, including:

  • Identifying research topic ideas
  • Finding background information on a topic
  • Identifying high-quality, scholarly resources for a topic or project idea
  • Strategizing on how to manage citations
  • Contact Erika Sevetson (Erika_Sevetson@brown.edu)  to set up a session with a medical librarian

As students develop their proposals and progress through completion of an academic project, research methodology, evaluation design, and statistical analysis consulting are available. Please contact Maria_Stump@brown.edu for more information. Please note that the Scholarly Concentration and Summer Assistantship application processes are integrated and use the same application form.

 

Students pursue a Concentration during the summer between Years 1 & 2 during the self-directed learning time in Year 2, and during elective and clerkship time in Years 3 and 4.

Year 1 Students identify an area of interest and a faculty mentor.  Together, they develop a summer project, investigate summer funding opportunities, and outline a four-year plan to complete the concentration requirements.  Completed applications are due to the Scholarly Concentrations Office in February. Visit the funding page for examples of high quality funded applications.
Summer During the summer months between Years 1 and 2, students engage in an in-depth summer experience (~8-10 weeks).  This summer work will provide the scaffolding upon which the four-year Concentration, and the final scholarly product, will be built. The primary source of funding for summer work is through Summer Assistantships.  At the end of the summer, students submit a Progress Report form to the Scholarly Concentrations Committee.
Year 2 Students continue their participation in the Concentration through the utilization of self-directed learning time (Wednesdays) and through attendance of courses/seminars as required by the Concentration.  At the end of Year 2, students submit a second Progress Report to the Scholarly Concentrations Committee.
Year 3

Students continue their participation in the Concentration through independent work during clerkship rotations and through the choice of electives related to their concentration area. Students will be asked to submit a final Progress Report   to the Scholarly Concentrations Committee.

Tips for students on how to integrate concentration work into a clinical schedule.
Year 4 Students will continue their participation in the Concentration through independent work during clerkship rotations and through the choice of electives related to their concentration area.  Students will present their scholarly project for approval in February/March of Year 4 as required by their Concentration area Directors. Students are required to post their work electronically to the Scholarly Concentration Program Gallery, an online collection of students' digital scholarship archived in the Brown Digital Repository (BDR).

Program Participation

  • There is no penalty for students who elect not to participate in the Scholarly Concentrations Program.  Many students will continue to focus on the core preclinical and clinical curriculum, and to pursue their extra-curricular interests outside of the SC Program structure. 
  • Any change from good academic standing may result in a student being required to withdraw from the Program. These situations will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the SC Program Steering Committee.
  • Acceptance in a particular concentration area will be determined by the Concentration Director(s) based on the merit of the proposed project and the number of student spots available in that particular Concentration.

If you are interested in learning more about the Scholarly Concentrations Program, please contact Mariah Stump (Mariah_Stump@brown.edu), Director of the Scholarly Concentrations Program for more information.

Program Application

Faculty Letter of Support

Faculty Conflict of Interest Form