Medical Research Fellows Program
HHMI’s Medical Research Fellows Program is being suspended. HHMI will not be accepting new applications in the fall of 2018. Current Fellows will continue their experiences through 2019.
Over the past three decades, the Med Fellows Program has supported more than 1,800 medical, veterinary, and dental students in research experiences. As we celebrate the achievements of the Med Fellows, HHMI also seeks to experiment with new ways to achieve our goal of making science education, and science, more inclusive. We are working to positively impact the highest number of students we can, with a growing emphasis on sustaining inclusive environments for all students at universities and colleges around the country. To do that, we are shifting resources into a number of other efforts, including our Inclusive Excellence, Science Education Alliance (SEA) and Gilliam Fellows programs. Please join us in continuing to work to improve science education for all.
The Medical Research Fellows Program was designed to encourage the development of future medical-scientists by providing a year of full-time, mentored laboratory research training to medical, dental, and veterinary students with a demonstrated interest in and commitment to biomedical research, but who were not enrolled in an MD/PhD (or equivalent) program.
The program enabled students to be immersed in a high-impact, intensive research experience at a critical time in their professional education, before making plans for residency or postdoctoral training. Unique aspects of the program included national and regional professional development activities, mentorship by physician-scientists, interaction with HHMI investigators, and integration into a community of like-minded peers.
Each student selected and worked with a mentor to develop a basic, translational, or applied biomedical research proposal.
Med Fellows have been supported by organizations partnering with HHMI:
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American Society of Human Genetics
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Burroughs Wellcome Fund (veterinary students)
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Duchenne Research Fund
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Foundation Fighting Blindness (inherited retinal degenerative disease research)
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Parkinson's Foundation
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Society of Interventional Radiology Foundation
Alumni Perspectives
Kimberly Stegmaier
“The HHMI medical student research fellowship was a deciding experience in my path to a laboratory-based, physician-scientist career. It was truly a life-altering year. I am now an independent investigator with a research program focused on integrating chemical genomic, genetic, and proteomic approaches to discover new protein targets and lead compounds for cancer therapy.”
— Kimberly Stegmaier, MD, HHMI Medical Fellow, 1994
Olujimi Ajijola
“The year I spent in the HHMI medical research fellowship directly put me on my current career path. My passion for science was forged during this year of dedicated research. As an independent investigator studying neural control of cardiac excitability, I can directly trace my scientific drive to my profoundly positive experiences during my HHMI medical fellowship year.”
— Olujimi Ajijola MD, PhD, HHMI Medical Fellow, 2003
Valerie A. Arboleda
“My year in the HHMI medical student research fellowship program was key for me to decide to pursue a physician-scientist career. In that year, I was able to dive deep into a research project and ultimately realized that I belonged in a laboratory setting answering questions about the genetic underpinnings of human disease. Ultimately, I earned my MD and PhD and after completing a residency in clinical pathology, am now using functional genomic tools to identify targetable mechanisms underlying rare neurodevelopment disorders.”
— Valerie A. Arboleda MD, PhD, HHMI Medical Fellow, 2007
Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa
“Since first applying for an HHMI fellowship more than 20 years ago, I've believed that the hybrid position offers unique and rewarding opportunities…The patients in my clinical program motivate me to research the mechanisms of brain-tumor development, and my laboratory research addresses basic questions about the human brain and brain tumors.”
— Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa, MD, HHMI Medical Fellow, 1997
Katie Anderson
“The HHMI Medical Fellows Program has been an incredible, inspiring experience that will greatly influence my future career. The mentoring I have received, both through my primary mentor and through investigators I have met at HHMI meetings, has been invaluable. This year has provided me with the opportunity to merge my interest in basic science with my love of medicine and has definitely influenced my decision to pursue a research career. Thank you for the opportunity and for all the support along the way!”
— Katie Anderson, HHMI-BWF Medical Fellow, 2013, 2014
