Start your summer off on the right foot
Any current Ohio State University medical student has the opportunity to participate in the Department of Family and Community Medicine Summer Externship, which is offered between the first and second year of medical school. Students can pursue either the Clinical Externship or the Clinical Research Externship.
Clinical Externship
The Clinical Externship is designed to promote interest in and understanding of family practice, especially in underserved areas. Students are matched with a rural or urban preceptor, spending time in the preceptor’s office. The students' experiences vary depending on the preceptor and student interests. Students learn in a variety of different settings including hospitals, outpatient and rehabilitation centers. They may engage with various healthcare providers in academic, rural, urban, private and/or public facilities.
- Gain an appreciation of family medicine as a satisfying and rewarding career
- Experience unique aspects of problem solving and medical decision-making
- Improve professional skills through hands-on experience
- Improve skills of patient interviewing
- Improve physical examination skills
This experience provides a stipend and each student selected into the program will be required to attend a welcome event and a culmination luncheon both during school session. Each student will complete a short project that is mutually agreed upon and will help the practice in some way. Last, students provide a written reflection about their experience in the program.
Any first-year Ohio State medical student is eligible to participate if they are in good standing. Those who wish to apply should complete the application below. The deadline to submit an application is in January (specific date is embedded in the application) for participation in Summer Externship the subsequent summer. Interviews will be conducted in February/March with final selections made by mid-April. For questions, please contact OSUFMMedicalEducation@osumc.edu.
Clinical Research Externship
The Clinical Research Externship is designed to promote interest in and understanding of primary care research. The student extern is matched with a family medicine faculty member to pursue a project developed by the student under the faculty member's supervision or to contribute to a faculty member's ongoing research. There are a variety of research activities with which the student can participate and qualify for funding. The program sometimes offers funding and students should seek MDSR funding as the first option.
- Understand the role of clinical research as it pertains to patient care
- Understand the major steps involved in clinical research
- Understand the role of the Institutional Review Board (IRB) in human subjects protection and the importance of informed consent and HIPAA as it relates to clinical research
- Understand the importance of careful planning and implementation of clinical research
By the start of Clinical Research Externship, students will need to have completed the requirements set up by the Office of Responsible Research Practices and the Office of Research Compliance for all who participate in the design, conduct and reporting of human subjects research at the institution. The training and reporting can be completed using the below links:
Current Ohio State University medical students interested in pursuing the Clinical Research Externship should contact Allison.Macerollo@osumc.edu by January 15th in order to identify a faculty supervisor and assess potential funding. Students interested in pursuing their own research are strongly encouraged to consider application to the Medical Student Research Scholarship through the College of Medicine.