INfectious Diseases Summer Program Integrating Research at Emory (INSPIRE)

PROJECT SUMMARY The objective of the proposed INfectious Diseases Summer Program Integrating Research at Emory (INSPIRE) research training program is to prepare undergraduate students from across the country for a career in infectious disease (ID) research through pursuing MD and/or PhD training. Differences in the way individuals are treated in healthcare has led to challenges within the public health system which has raised concerns about whether healthcare of the same caliber is available to all Americans. To address this challenge, we need to engage trainees early in the ID field. As one of the nation’s leading research universities, Emory University is grounded in both academic excellence and a commitment to providing opportunities to all individuals equally. The academic resources at Emory include access to dedicated world-class faculty with outstanding facilities and equipment with a reputation for being one of the best academic ID research centers in the world. Emory also has powerful research and training partnerships with many neighboring institutions, broadening the training available. The objective of our training program is to prepare 48 undergraduate students from across the country for a career in ID research by exposing them to hands-on research, conducting courses for professional and research skills development, and strengthening Emory’s mentorship capacity to support the development of these young researchers. In Aim 1, undergraduate students from across the country will be matched with a research mentor at a laboratory or clinical field site for a 10-week in-person summer research experience that will result in an abstract and poster presentation at an undergraduate research symposium conducted at the end of the period. In Aim 2, we will deliver in-person and online courses on: a) career guidance to enter medical and/or graduate school; b) biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research topics related to the NIAID mission; and c) understanding how early career scientists can successfully pursue a path in research and healthcare. In Aim 3, we will: a) provide undergraduate trainees with agency to select from a pool of career mentors, who will maintain regular contact the trainees for one year; b) conduct Mentoring Up workshops for 75 post-doctoral fellows and junior faculty; and c) provide workshops on mentoring and facilitation for 87 faculty members who are research and career mentors.