Summer Opportunities for Rising M2 Students
As our M1 students approach the end of their first year in late May, they enter an eight‑week period in June and July that offers a wide range of research-, clinical- educational-, and service‑oriented opportunities before beginning their second year in August. These summer experiences allow students to explore career interests, develop scholarly skills and engage with faculty mentors across UMMC and beyond.
At UMMC, several structured research programs anchor the summer landscape. The Medical Scholars Research Program (MSRP) provides an intensive eight‑week research experience with faculty mentors across basic, clinical, and population sciences, supported by a summer lecture series and a modest stipend. Students interested in surgical careers may pursue the Department of Surgery’s Surgical Scholars Program, while additional internal research pathways include the Pediatric Research and Clinical Education Program (PReCEP), radiology research with Dr. Candace Howard, the Bower School of Population Health’s summer scholars initiatives, and self‑directed projects using the Patient Cohort Explorer. Opportunities in preventive medicine, pharmacology, and the Jackson Free Clinic further expand the range of available research environments.
Clinical and educational experiences also play a significant role in summer programming. The Mississippi Rural Physicians Scholarship Program’s Primary Care Exploration Program places students with rural preceptors for hands‑on patient care, while the Internal Medicine Summer Observership introduces students to inpatient and outpatient IM practice. Students may also participate in the Mosaic Summer Enrichment Program or engage in summer improvement projects within the Offices of Medical Education and Student Affairs, which include planning orientation for incoming students and supporting program operations. The Department of Family Medicine offers a paid summer internship that provides exposure to family medicine and includes travel to the Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians annual conference.
Beyond UMMC, numerous national programs welcome rising M2 students. Camp Sweeney offers a unique summer experience working with children and adolescents with diabetes. Research‑focused students may consider the Vanderbilt Student Research and Training Program, the MSK Summer Research Fellowship, or the Injury Research Program at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. The AAMC Summer Opportunities database provides a comprehensive listing of programs across the country and internationally. The NIH also hosts a broad portfolio of competitive summer internships across its institutes, spanning genomics, biomedical engineering, cancer research, data science, health disparities, and more. Additional specialty‑focused programs include the Robert A. Winn Clinical Investigator Pathway Program, the USC/UCLA Summer Oncology Research Fellowship, MD Anderson’s SOAR Program, and the American College of Radiology’s PIER Program, which introduces students to radiology and radiation oncology through mentored clinical and academic experiences.
These examples represent only a portion of the opportunities available to rising M2 students. With initiative and creativity, students can pursue experiences across the nation and around the world, or simply take time to rest, travel, and explore areas of personal interest while engaging in research or clinical work. If you are aware of additional opportunities not listed here, please share them – we are always glad to help connect students with meaningful summer experiences.