Frequently Asked Questions

SRTP is an interaction between medical students and faculty at the Schulich Medicine & Dentistry. Therefore, all SRTP projects are either based in London, Windsor, or in a community served by a Distributed Medical Education site.

SRTP funding only supports projects in the London area, Windsor, and in communities served through Distributed Medical Education sites, for students to work under the supervision of Schulich Medicine & Dentistry faculty.

No, participation in SRTP is limited to medical students enrolled in the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. This includes medical students at both the London and Windsor sites.

No, participation in SRTP is limited to medical students enrolled in the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry.

Some support for undergraduate research experiences is available via targeted competitions in specific areas of interest (for example, the Canadian Liver Foundation studentship, Banting and Best Diabetes Centre, etc.). If you are interested in applying for funding on your own, you will need to explore your options as early as possible. Many programs have early deadlines. A good starting point for finding information on funding opportunities is the Community of Science database.

You may also wish to contact a potential supervisor directly. Some researchers may have some funding for summer students through their grants.

In researching other universities' summer programs, we haven't come across any formal programs with such opportunities. Nevertheless, SRTP is specifically designed to be an interaction between students and researchers within the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry community.

No. Funding is limited. Students and supervisors will be notified in March whether or not their SRTP application was successful for funding.

SRTP is strictly a research program. However, SRTP does support clinical research projects.  

SRTP is a 10-week program and you will be expected to work on this project for the full 10 week duration during the summer. This is a program requirement, and not negotiable. The program dates are set by the program. Your hours of work are also to be determined between you and your supervisor. Students must attend the in person SRTP Seminar Series 

You will be expected to work on your SRTP project for a full 10 weeks in the summer(s). Please consider carefully whether this fits in with your other interests. It may not be feasible to fit everything into a summer.

No, you will not be paid for two full-time positions held for the same period.  SRTP requires a student to work on a project for 10 weeks full-time during the summer.  You can only be paid for one full-time summer position at any given time through the university. 

SRTP is a two summer program.

SRTP is not available on a part-time basis. SRTP is intended as a full-time commitment for the summer.  You will be expected to work on your SRTP for a full 10 weeks over two summers. 

Only first year medical students are eligible to apply.

Talk to the professor, and then contact the Schulich Medicine & Dentistry Research Office. It is possible that something can be arranged.  

Research projects in both clinical and basic areas may be supported through SRTP, as are projects across the full range of disciplines within Schulich. This includes laboratory research in any of the basic science departments, clinical and population health research, health services research, and research on medical education.

Contact the Schulich Medicine & Dentistry Research Office to discuss your situation.

Please direct this question to the UME Office (undergraduate.medicine@schulich.uwo.ca).

As you read the SRTP project summaries and meet with potential supervisors, you should consider:

• Does the project have a clear hypothesis to test;
• Is the student's role in the project clear;
• What skills will the student acquire by working on this project;
• Is the project feasible to complete over two summers;
• Are the necessary preliminary steps are in place - e.g. ethics approvals for clinical projects, major methodologies established for bench projects, etc.; and
• How accessible is the supervisor.
• Projects that depend upon patient recruitment for results may run into a number of challenges secondary to unintended poor recruitment. If the project depends on patient recruitment, what is the likelihood that sufficient patients will be available during the specified time period? Does the supervisor have "contingency" objectives for the student in case patient recruitment does not proceed as planned.

You will also want to consider:

• Your personal and career interests and preferences;
• Your motivation to do a project;
• The personality fit between you and the supervisor, and with the other students and personnel in the lab; and
• The general research environment of the lab and collaborating labs.
• Will you be one of a large team, or will you be working in a smaller lab.
• Other considerations such as lab location might seem more trivial but need to be considered.

All research involving humans and/or animals conducted by faculty, staff or students at Western University or its affiliated hospitals or research institutes must be approved by a UWO-sanctioned review board. This includes SRTP projects.

The Office of Research Ethics, on behalf of the Western University Research Ethics Boards (REB), manages the approval and monitoring process for the use of humans in research at Western University and its affiliated hospitals and research institutes. For more information on requirements for ethics approval, see the Research Western website.

In discussing projects with prospective supervisors, students should inquire about the status of REB approval, and confirm that it will be in place prior to the start of your summer research experience. If REB approval has not been obtained, projects can be held up or cancelled, leading to an unsatisfactory SRTP experience.

Although the SRTP Committee acknowledges the potential value of writing an REB application for the student, the short time frame usually does not allow the student to accomplish any significant research when REB approvals are pending. The committee therefore has an expectation that REB approval will be obtained prior to the start of the project.