CAPS Research Scholars Program

Programmatic Components

For Medical Students
CAPS Pathways Medical Student Program works with MCW’s Medical Student Summer Research Program (MSSRP) and Summer Academic programs for Medical Students (SAMS) to support medical students who choose a faculty mentor within CAPS for their scholarly project and research experience.

For Undergraduate Students
CAPS hosts undergraduate students through MCW’s Summer Program for Undergraduate Research (SPUR).

For Other Scholars & Trainees
Please contact us at capsrsu@mcw.edu if you are interested in connecting with one of our faculty mentors to discuss potential mentorship and research opportunities within CAPS.

CAPS Pathways Medical Student Program

Program Overview

The CAPS Pathways Medical Student Program allows medical students to pursue a research topic of interest in areas such as health disparities, social determinants of health, global health, and chronic disease in populations that have been economically and socially marginalized. Pathways students work with faculty and staff within the Advancing Research in Community Health Equity (ARCHE) team in CAPS. CAPS Pathways program is designed to support medical students with completing applications and project proposals for research fellowship funding and designing a scholarly project that will satisfy graduation requirements.

The intention of this program is to further develop first- and second-year medical student’s research experience while developing their understanding of the importance of community-engaged research and outreach to improve health outcomes. Pathway mentees are expected to commit to a minimum of two years of mentorship and will be assigned a primary faculty mentor from the ARCHE team to oversee their scholarly project. The ARCHE faculty also utilizes a group mentoring approach that aligns with their practice of team science and interdisciplinary research. Student mentees attend meetings with the faculty group where they may present their initial project ideas for feedback and refinement. 

The CAPS Pathways Medical Student Program* is comprised of two components:

1) Experiential

• A community-engaged summer research project/Medical Student Summer Research Program (MSSRP) project
• Collecting primary data from community-engaged research study participants.
• Participation as a student member of the Advancing Research in Community Health Equity (ARCHE) research team.

2) Scholarly

• Using primary or secondary data sources to draft a scientific manuscript, to fulfill their scholarly concentration project requirement, and for submission to and publication in a scientific journal.
• Data obtained for the student’s MSSRP project may be used for the scientific manuscript to fulfill the scholarly concentration project requirement.
• Attending faculty 1:1 and group mentoring meetings, including writing group and writing teamlet meetings.

Optional component – Honors in Research

• CAPS Pathways students who have completed their Medical Student Summer Research Training Program can apply to Honors in Research as part of the MSSRP program.
• Medical students accepted into Honors in Research will work with their faculty mentor on a second independent research project, and an additional manuscript for publication, to be completed by the beginning of the student's 4th year.

Interested in becoming a CAPS Pathways student mentee?
The CAPS-ARCHE team accepts an average of four medical students each year into the CAPS Pathways program. Students interested in the program should plan to do the following:

• Complete the program interest form or email capsrsu@mcw.edu during their first semester of medical school.
• After an interest form is submitted and reviewed, the student will be contacted to schedule a brief interview. Interviews typically last 15-minutes and are conducted with the program coordinator and faculty lead.

Core Criteria and Characteristics for Mentee Selection

• Research interests align with the expertise of the faculty mentors and the mission of the ARCHE research team.
• Intent to complete a summer research program in CAPS, either through application to the MSSRP program, or through another funding mechanism/program approved by their faculty mentor.
• Able to commit to being in-person/on-site for their MSSRP project and experiential components of the CAPS Pathways program.
• Willingness to work across MCW sites and community sites, as needed, to engage community members in research.
• Highly motivated to meet expectations within the ARCHE research team and work as a supportive team member with other staff and students.

Mentor Assignment

• Once selected, each Pathways student will be assigned one mentor from the team based on their stated preferences, research interests, and faculty capacity to take on new student mentees.
• Students will attend an initial orientation session and receive their training schedule after winter break.

Summer Academic Programs for Medical Students (SAMS)

About SAMS/MSSRP

• The MCW Medical Student and Summer Research Programs are collectively referred to as the “Summer Academic programs for Medical Students” or SAMS for short. Medical Student Summer Research Program (MSSRP) is a merit-based 8- or 10-week research program for medical students. Students are expected to commit to working full-time, 40 hours per week, for the entire duration of the program. The CAPS project for SAMS/MSSRP is a continuation of the CAPS Pathways Medical Student Program.
• Students who choose to complete SAMS/MSSRP with CAPS will be students who are receiving mentorship guidance from CAPS faculty for their scholarly concentrations/project.

Summer Academic Programs for Medical Students (SAMS) Program Page 

Important dates

• Intent to Apply is due by December 20th at 11:59pm
• MSSRP Completed Application due February 15th at 11:59pm
• Please note: If the due date falls on a weekend, the deadline will be the next business day (Monday) at 11:59pm
• Funding decisions will be announced by April 15th
• SAMS/MSSRP Program Start Date begins on the Wednesday following Memorial Day

Project Components:

1) Experiential Learning
Students will work with research staff and medical students on active community-engaged research studies. In addition to learning how to work on a research team, students will have the opportunity to attend other experiential learning activities such as guest lectures and community events.

2) Final Project
All students are required to complete a research project that aligns with CAPS research areas, and they will be expected to complete a scientific poster and/or PowerPoint presentation that they will present at the end of the program. Interested students will have the option to write a scientific manuscript, but this is not a required project component.