The Hawaiʻi Pre-Health Career Corps (PHCC) is a free year-round program for high school and college students who are interested in pursuing careers in health. Its purpose is to increase awareness about health careers by providing mentoring, physician shadowing, and research experiences. Workshops for SAT preparation and other college and career guidance are provided, as well as individual essay writing and interview assistance. Many students work with the program over the years and receive recommendation letters as well. Dr. Kelley Withy leads this initiative out of the Hawaiʻi/Pacific Basic Area Health Education Center.
Visit the PHCC website for more information.
Contact: Kelley Withy, MD, PhD | phcc@hawaii.edu | (808) 692-1060
The mission of INBRE is to involve students in biomedical research from the beginning of their college experience. INBRE is a statewide program involving most of our undergraduate-based institutions and nearly all of our community colleges. Biomedical research across the state includes: Cancer research, Neuroscience research, Immune System research, Natural Product Development, Drug Development, Toxicology, Parasitology, Virology, Cell Stress, Analytical Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, and Monoclonal Antibody Production. Contact your INBRE campus coordinator. For a listing of campus coordinators and a description of each research site, visit the Student Research Experience page.
Visit the INBRE website for more information.
Contact: Dr. Peter Hoffmann | peterrh@hawaii.edu | (808) 692-1568
The mission of MARC-Hawaiʻi is to provide training in biological research for a diverse group of UHM students, who are underrepresented in the sciences including Hawaiian/Part Hawaiian, other Pacific Islanders (Samoan, Tongan, Micronesian, Guamanian/Chamorro, mixed Pacific Islander), Filipino, Hispanic, African American; other Asians (e.g., Cambodian, Vietnamese, Laotian); iii) those from disadvantaged backgrounds, including low socioeconomic status and residents of rural outer islands, iv) gender diversity (LGBTQ), and v) students with apparent and non-apparent disabilities.
The Minority Health and Health Disparities International Research Training (MHIRT) Program, based in the Department of Tropical Medicine, Medical Microbiology & Pharmacology, provides exciting opportunities for UH Manoa students to perform research projects in international locations. Program benefits include: quality experience in research, roundtrip airfare and paid living expenses abroad, life changing research and cultural experience, and the opportunity to earn up to 10 credits of directed research courses.
Visit the MHIRT website for more information.
Contact: Dr. Vivek Nerurkar | nerurkar@hawaii.edu | (808) 692-1668
The Department of Native Hawaiian Health’s Summer Research Internship (SRI) Program provides a limited number of college and university students the opportunity to participate in a clinical, community-based, or translational research study, and a medical curriculum organized by the Research Division of the Department of Native Hawaiian Health. Interns present their work at a poster symposium at the end of the summer.
Visit the DNHH SRI website for more information.
Contact: 808-692-1078 | dnhhsri@hawaii.edu
This program partners the experience of conducting a clinical research study with a structured medical curriculum highlighted by the “life cycle of research” curriculum, “careers in medicine” talks with physicians, and visits to medical facilities and hospitals. Throughout the 8-week program, students are given the opportunity to pursue optional activities (shadowing physicians and observing surgeries) based on their individual areas of interest in medicine.
Visit the HPH Summer Student Research website for more information.
Contact: conference@hawaiipacifichealth.org
This summer program is a collaborative partnership between The Queen’s Medical Center, Office of Research & Development and the University of Hawaiʻi John A. Burns School of Medicine, Department of Native Hawaiian Health. Summer Interns under the guidance of faculty mentors develop research questions about pressing health concerns in Hawaiʻi and use registry and databases to find answers to their questions. Their work helps to improve the health of our local citizens.
Visit the QMC Summer Research Internship website for more information.
Contact: Dr. Todd Seto | SRI@queens.org | (808) 691-4843
The highly competitive STEP-UP Program provides hands-on summer research experiences for high school and undergraduate students interested in exploring research careers. In addition to mentoring and other perks, students receive an all-paid trip to the National Institutes of Health’s main campus in Bethesda, Maryland to present their work. Dr. George Hui leds the Pacific STEP-UP program inspiring students from American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaiʻi, Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.
Visit the STEP-UP Program website for more information.
Contact: Dr. George Hui | ghui@hawaii.edu | (808) 692-1609