2025 Summer Training Program

The Center for Children's Health Research (CCHR) welcomes you to the website for the Strong Children’s Research Center (SCRC) Summer Training Program. We offer a competitive 10-week summer training program for students who are entering their junior or senior years of undergraduate college, completing their first year of medical school, recent graduates, and students taking a gap year. The goal of the program is to expose students to an academic pediatric environment to foster their interest and preparation for future careers in research, pediatrics, and academic medicine. For 34 years, we have paired students with mentors in clinical, basic, and translational research from a variety of pediatric disciplines. In addition to participation in an in-depth, mentored research project, students also attend classes on a variety of academic topics and actively participate in journal clubs on contemporary pediatric research topics. At the end of the summer, students present the results of their research projects at a poster session for the whole Department of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester Medical Center. Many students become co-authors on manuscripts incorporating their research and create lasting relationships with their mentors. We encourage you to explore our website and apply for our program if you are considering a career in academic medicine, pediatrics, or clinical/basic/translational research.

Thank you for your interest in the Strong Children’s Research Center Summer Program! As one of this year’s co-directors, I welcome your interest in learning more about and potentially applying for our program. I can attest to the value of a dedicated research experience as a student, as similar experiences shaped my own career trajectory. I participated in a summer research experience for undergraduates program at Princeton as a prelude to enrolling in the Medical Scientist (MD/PhD) Training Program here at URMC, where I subsequently completed my training in Pediatrics and Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine. I went on to join the faculty at Brown University where, in addition to caring for patients in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), I led a laboratory-based research program devoted to infectious disease in premature infants. I also participated in clinical/translational research related to infections and nutrition in the NICU. I returned to URMC in 2023 where I continue to care for infants in the NICU and serve as the Director of Clinical Research for the division of Neonatology. I look forward to this summer’s program and the opportunity to help ensure a positive and productive experience for our students!  – Joseph Bliss, M.D., Ph.D.

Research is something that everyone can do, and everyone should be doing it. It is as simple as collecting information and thinking about it. As someone interested in a research program during summer break, you are already on your way to a career in research. And as the co-director of one of the oldest summer research internship programs, I appreciate your interest in the Strong Children’s Research Center Summer program. Being a past mentor in the program I have witnessed the participants grow in their career, and life, and I have been told that their experience in the program has played a role in their success. I have been a researcher for over 20 years studying lung development and diseases, and also serve as an educator in both undergraduate and graduate programs. My goal as the co-director of the summer research program is to carry forward the rich legacy of this program, and I am looking forward to another successful iteration in summer of 2025. – Soumyaroop Bhattacharya, M.S., Ed.D.

About the Summer Program

In 2025, the Center for Children's Health Research will support the SCRC Summer Training Program for the 35th year. This summer research training program is the ideal opportunity for outstanding medical, graduate and undergraduate students who plan to pursue a career in biomedical or clinical research. This program is created to develop fundamental skills in various research methodologies in a defined project, leading to an end-of-summer poster presentation.

The program provides trainees with extensive contact with research mentors, their staffs of investigators and supporting personnel who guide the research project and serve as role models and provide career direction. Faculty members are either from the Department of Pediatrics or partners who are engaged in research relevant to childhood diseases and developmental biology.

Student trainees participate in research seminars where emphasis is placed on scientific material appropriate to their level of understanding. Seminars are informative sessions providing participants with an overview of the types of research, career options in research and discussions involving the individual career paths of successful investigators.

The primary focus of the Summer Program is to connect outstanding students with research opportunities and research mentorship.  In addition, the program will try to accommodate students who are interested in limited clinical shadowing experiences, as time and availability allows. However, clinical shadowing is not a specific mission of the program and shadowing is not a guaranteed element of each student’s experience.

At the completion of the program, students are required to produce an abstract and present the results of their research at the Annual Poster Session held on the final day of the program. View a list of recent research topics.

Participating students are paid a stipend of $3000 for the ten-week program. In addition, the program provides housing, free of charge, to out-of-area program participants at a residential life facility with full bath and kitchen. Students living on campus could incur nominal expenses to cover fees such as mailbox rental and parking. Travel costs are to be paid by the student.

Program details may be subject to change.

The 2025 SCRC Summer Training Program Application is now live!

To begin the application process, please visit How to Apply.

Contact Us

Joseph LaPenna, Department Coordinator
University of Rochester Medical Center, Center for Children's Health Research
Strong Children's Research Center Summer Program
601 Elmwood Avenue, PO Box 850
Rochester, NY 14642
Phone: (585) 275-4053
Email: scrc@urmc.rochester.edu