JABSOM Research Interest Group
JABSOM Research Interest Group (JRIG)
The John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) Research Interest Group (JRIG) was founded by Tom Sanford (Class of 2010) to promote medical student involvement in research at JABSOM. JRIG strives to act as a liaison between clinical faculty, researchers, and JABSOM students. We encourage medical students to begin developing a relationship with a JABSOM or clinical researcher early in their first year so that they may have an opportunity to make substantial contributions to the research projects prior to the rigorous clinical years of their medical education. We also aim to serve as a resource to connect students to researchers in a way that is mutually beneficial and support many other educational activities related to research (please see below).
Medical students are invited to join JRIG during orientation week and at other JRIG-organized meetings. Those interested in joining or learning more may contact the current faculty leaders, Dr. Russell Woo, Dr. David Horio, Dr. Rachel Boulay, or JRIG officers.
EVENTS
Generally 3 events are planned throughout the year:
- Primer to Clinical Research Event – provide a general introduction to the different types of research (retrospective chart review, case reports, systematic reviews, etc.)
- Monthly Q&A panels with Hawaii Residency Program Directors – opportunity to meet the residency program directors to better understand what is required for research and how research will factor into candidacy for residency
- MS4 Post-Match Research Panel – hear from MS4s who matched into various residency programs speak about their research experience, questions they were asked in residency interviews, how they think research affected their match results, etc.
- Journal Club – learn about something new and develop your research critical skills thinking with a resident; in collaboration with the Internal Medicine Interest Group (IMIG)
In addition, UH Residency and Fellowship Program Director events are scheduled monthly – TBD.
USEFUL RESOURCES
Learn about 4th year medical students who did and did not match in 2022 in Charting Outcomes in the Match:
- The Match: Senior Students of U.S. MD Medical Schools, Characteristics of U.S. MD Seniors Who Matched to Their Preferred Specialty in the 2022 Main Residency Match, 3rd Edition.
Learn How UH Residency Program Directors View Research
- UH Internal Medicine Residency Program Director Q&A
- UH Orthopedic Surgery Residency Program Director Q&A
Discover all the ways the JABSOM Health Sciences Library can help you
- How-To Guides on PubMed, citation managers such as EndNote and Zotero, Colandr for systematic reviews, and more
- How-To Videos on PubMed simple search, systematic reviews, Endnote basics workshop, and more
Apply for JABSOM Funding for Research
- Click “Travel Reimbursement for Research Presentations” ($500 travel research funding once every 12 months)
- Click “Student Publications Fund” ($500 for publication costs once per academic year)
Acquire guidance with statistics by the Biostatistics Core Facility for your research project
- Sign up for a consultation appointment
Sign up to write a case report in the Case Report Depository
- Email the attending listed and read the case report guidelines under the regulatory considerations
CURRENT YEAR OFFICERS

Edward Nguyen, MS3
Co-President

Krystin Wong, MS2
Co-President

Benjamin Lee, MS2
Co-Vice President

Kayti Luu, MS3
Co-Vice President

ZoeAnn Kon, MS2
Representative

Edward Weldon, MS2
Representative

Sarah Bellatti, MS1
Representative

Marissa Miyagi, MS1
Representative

Ryan Nakamura, MS1
Representative