This is a new 12-week research program designed exclusively for Ohio State University medical students, providing foundational training and research opportunities in immunology and virology. The program is supported by 38 outstanding faculty mentors, including 21 physician scientists, across four domains: Transplant Immunology, Immuno-Oncology, Virology, and Autoimmune Disease. Ohio State is one of only six institutions nationwide to be awarded an NIH T35 program through the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
The program aims to expand the immunology and virology trained physician and surgeon scientist pipeline by enhancing:
- immunology and/or virology knowledge, skillset, and research experience,
- exposure to impactful mentors leading cutting-edge immunology and virology research,
- access to physician scientist role models, and
- peer mentorship by MD-PhD students, residents, and fellows pursuing medical research careers.
The program offers a competitive stipend, travel funds, and summer tuition support. Additionally, up to two students may continue their research through a funded one-year research leave of absence.
2026 NIH STRIVE T35 Cohort with Primary Investigators
For more information, please read our news article on the New NIH-supported training program.
Program overview
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- Slots available: 8
- Stipend: $7,197 for 12 weeks for summer 2025 (subject to change based on annual NIH predoctotal stipend amount)
- Travel Stipend: $1,000
- Required interview with program leaders, then you will be matched with a preceptor with similar interests after applying
- Only in the areas of Immunology and Virology (Cancer Immunology, Transplant Immunology, Autoimmunity, and Virology).
- Limited to the 38 pre-identified mentors
- Primarily Basic and Translational Research
- Required Training of 8 hours, including Responsible Conduct of Research, Research Rigor and reproducibility, Immunology seminars, and Physician Scientist Career development
- Required 4 hours of Clinical Experiences
- Students who apply for the T35, but are not selected, will automatically be considered for the MDSR program
- Program Milestones:
- Kick-off at the beginning of May 2025
- Checkpoint surveys and compliance with research ethics and ethics training
- Final research report in September 2025
- Participation in the final Research Symposium
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- Provide STRIVE trainees with short-term research training and experiences that increase medical student exposure to impactful mentors leading cutting-edge immunology and virology research and their clinical applications
- Enhance medical student awareness of the diversity of medical research careers.
- Expose STRIVE trainees to OSUCOM physician scientist role models
- Facilitate peer mentoring of STRIVE trainees by MSTP students and residents and fellows in COM research training programs(PSTP, SSTP and MMSP)
- Inspire medical students to pursue more in-depth immunology and virology research training during medical school, residency, and/or fellowships
- Increase the number and diversity of medical students who pursue immunology and virology related physician scientist careers
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STRIVE T35 training elements Timeline and number of experiences required Number of hours Instructors Pre-training preparation
(Mentor supervised T35 application including mini-grant proposal, development of individualized training goals/plan)Before summer research training begins Varies, Estimated 6–10 hrs T35 PDs: Kaffenberger, Oestreich; T35 Faculty Mentors STRIVE-T35 Orientation
(Mentor/Mentee Preparation, Program Overview & Expectations)Before summer research training begins 1 T35 PDs: Kaffenberger, Oestreich, Bumgardner Mentored Laboratory Experience
(Immunology/Virology Concepts, Lab Techniques & Skills, Data Analysis, Interpretation & Presentation, Applied Biostatistics)
Weeks 1 through 12 12 weeks (38–40 hrs/wk) T35 Faculty Mentor Responsible Conduct of Research Weeks 2–3 (2 small group discussions) 2 Dana Howard, PhD Research Rigor & Reproducibility Weeks 6–7 (2 small group discussions) 2 T35 PDs: Kaffenberger, Oestreich, Bumgardner & MSTP/PSTP faculty & trainees Immunology/Virology Seminars & Conferences Weeks 8–9 (2 research conferences) 2 Ohio State University Faculty and Visiting Professors Immunology/Virology related Clinical Experiences Weeks 9–10 (2 required, 2 hours each) 4 T35 Faculty Physician Scientist Career Development Weeks 5 and 11 (2 - T35 lunch discussions) 2 T35 PDs: Kaffenberger, Bumgardner, and other T35 Faculty STRIVE T35 Program Wrap-Up, Exit Interviews and Survey Week 12 (1 in-lab hr) 1 T35 PDs meet with mentors and trainees in lab: Kaffenberger, Oestreich, Bumgardner STRIVE-T35 Final Research Symposium with Lunch After summer research ends 4 T35 PDs, Mentors, and Trainees Total number of summer training hours that occur out of the lab: 12
How to apply and requirements
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- Complete Phase 1 Application by November 30th 2026
- Participate in program/mentor interviews in December 17th-21th 2026
- Complete Phase 2 Application (with matched T35 mentor) by January 12th 2027
- Award Notifications in early April 2027
- Kick Off May 10, 2026
Questions? Please contact Jessica Almikhi T35 Program Manager at Research.Education@osumc.edu
Primary Investigators
Ginny L. Bumgardner, MD, PhD, FACS
- Professor of Surgery Comprehensive Transplant Center Associate Dean for Research Education Director, Masters of Medical Science Program Director, Dept. Surgery Research Training Program Co-Program Director STRIVE T35
Benjamin Kaffenberger, MD, MS, FAAD
- Associate Professor of Dermatology Director, Medical Student Research Program Vice-Chair Research, Department of Dermatology Co-Program Director STRIVE T35
Ken Oestreich, PhD
- Associate Professor of Microbial Infection & Immunity Director Immunology and Immunotherapeutics Graduate Program Co-Program Director STRIVE T35
Mentors by specialty
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Joshua Englert, MD
Associate Professor
Acute respiratory distress syndrome, ventilator induced lung injuryLatha Ganesan, PhD
Associate Professor
FC-gamma receptor biology/immunology, liver cell immunity, kidney immunopathologyKymberly M. Gowdy, MS, PhD
Associate Professor
Environmental exposures, lung disease, innate immunity, lipid metabolismWilla Hsueh, MD
Professor
Microbial infection and immunity, diabetes mellitus; complications and diabetic mellitus; hypertensionWael Jarjour, MD
Professor
AutoimmunityBenjamin Kaffenberger, MD, MS
Associate Professor
AutoimmunityPei-Hui Lin, PhD
Associate Professor
Immune modulation in tissue injury and repairRama K. Mallampalli, MD
Professor
Ubiquitin mediated proteolysis, inflammation, acute lung injuryPhillip Popovich, PhD
Professor
Neuroimmunology and spinal cord injury, neural regeneration and plasticity, neuropathic pain, multiple sclerosis and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitisSakma Smith, MD
Associate Professor
Cardio-oncology, myocyte biologyBenjamin Segal, MD
Professor
NeuroimmunologyYutong Zhao, MD, PhD
Professor
Acute lunch injury, pulmonary fibrosis, sepsis -
Irina Artsimotvitch, PhD
Professor
Mechanisms of bacterial and viral RNA polymerasesRobert Baiocchi, MD, PhD
Professor
Lymphoma biology and experimental therapeuticsAharon Freud, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
Human innate lymphocyteHazem Ghoneim, PhD
Assistant Professor
Cancer BiologyZihai Li, MD, PhD
Professor
Immunology and immuno-oncologyBethany Mundy-Bosse, PhD
Associate Professor
Translational tumor immunologyKenneth Oestreich, PhD
Associate Professor
T cell biology -
Jesse J. Kwiek, PhD
Associate Professor
Virology, public healthXuefeng Liu, MD
Professor
Stem cells, cancer, virusesYohannes Mebratu, DVM, MS, PhD
Assistant Professor
Respiratory VirologyStefan Niewiesk, DVM, PhD
Professor
Antiviral immunityEugene Oltz, PhD
Professor
Gene regulation in immune cellsLinda Saif, PhD
Professor
Virology, viral zoonoses and pathogenesis, mucosal immunity and vaccinesAbhay Satoskar, MBBS, MD, PhD
Professor
Immunology and infectious diseasesJon Wisler, MD, MS
Assistant Professor
Sepsis epigenetic, clinical trialsJacob Yount, PhD
Associate Professor
Viral immunology -
Sylvester Black, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
Ischemia reperfusion injuryGinny L. Bumgardner, MD, PhD
Professor
Transplant immunologyAustin Schenk, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
Transplant ImmunologyAlan Bryan Whitson, MD, PhD
Professor
Transplantation, ex vivo organ perfusionHua Zhu, PhD
Professor
Organ injury, repair and regeneration, stem cell research -
Amal Amer, MD, PhD
Professor
Innate immunity in health and diseaseMaria Ariza, PhD
Assistant Professor
Viral pathogensNicholas Funderburg, PhD
Professor
HIV and cardiovascular diseasePatrick Green, PhD
Professor
Molecular pathogenesis of retroviruses (transcriptional and post transcriptional control)Tamar Gur, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor
Microbiome, inflammation, prenatal stressCourtney Hebert, MD, MS
Assistant Professor
Hospital epidemiology, predictive modeling, clinical informatics, secondary use of electronic record dataWilla Hsueh, MD
Professor
Microbial infection and immunity, diabetes mellitus; complications and diabetic mellitus; hypertension
Participants
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Andy Gao
Dermatology Electronic Consults to Maintain Chemotherapy and Immunotherapy Continuity
Mentor: Ben Kaffenberger, MD, MS MPI NIH T35, Autoimmunity and InflammationTryton Keller
Differential Expression of Stabilin Receptors in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Mentor: Latha Ganesan, PhD, Autoimmunity and InflammationMia Loposser
Cancer Therapy-Related Cardiac Dysfunction in Pembrolizumab-Treated Patients: Incidence, Predictors, and Impact of Cardioprotective Therapy
Mentor: Sakima Smith, MD, Autoimmunity and InflammationNigel Miller
Inhibition of CD38 as a Senolytic to Prevent Lung Transplantation Primary Graft Dysfunction
Mentor: Bryan Whitson, MD, PhD, Transplant ImmunologyMaya Neidhart
Investigating the Impact of Stress During Pregnancy on Placental Immune Responses to Viral Mimetic Exposure
Mentor: Tamar Gur, MD, PhD, Virology and Microbial Immune ResponseCara Noel
Exploring EBV Thymidine kinase promoter methylation as an indicator of antiviral treatment response in EBV-driven lymphoma
Mentor: Robert Baiocchi, MD, PhD, Immune OncologyJamaluddin Pracha
Investigating the Independent Role of Bik in Regulating SARS-CoV-2 Replication and Inflammation Across Epithelial Cells, Mice, and Human Cohorts
Mentor: Yohannes Mebratu, DVM, MS, PhD, Microbial Infection and ImmunityShane Walters
Investigation of the Transcription Factor Aiolos on the Development and Cytotoxic Effector Phenotype of Antibody-Suppressor CXCR5+CD8+T Cells
Mentor: Ginny Bumgardner, MD, PhD MPI NIH T35, Transplant Immunology -
Aimee Gershberg
DHA derived metabolites as Modulators of Ozone-induced susceptibility to Pulmonary Infections
Mentor: Kym Gowdy, PhD, Autoimmunity and InflammationAmber Roberts
Evaluation of platelet safety and anti-tumor activity of Anti-GARP/CD3 Bispecific T Cell Engager 2H4
Mentor: Zihai Li, MD, PhD, Immune OncologyCade Lyons-Ewald
Exploring the Role of IL-3 in Human Natural Killer Cell Development and Function
Mentor: Aharon Freud, MD, PhD, Immune OncologyDavid Kim
Defining the temporality of Caspase-4/11 activation and downstream inflammatory cascades following SARS-CoV-2 exposure
Mentor: Amal Amer, MD, PhD, Virology and Microbial Immune ResponseDylan Riley
The role of Aiolos in CD8 T cell exhaustion: A potential novel immunotherapeutic for anti-tumor immunity
Mentor: Ken Oestreich, PhD MPI NIH T35, Immune OncologyEleanor Bashian
Defining the role of CD22 as a glycoimmune checkpoint in CD8 T cells
Mentor: Hazem Ghoneim, PhD, Immune OncologyHelena Li
Implication of SRSF2 Knockout Within NK Cells Against Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Mentor: Bethany Mundy-Bosse, PhD, Immune OncologyMegan Stewart
Immune and Epigenetic Determinants of Epstein-Barr Virus-Driven Post-Transplant Lymphoproliferative Disorder
Mentor: Robert Baiocchi, MD, PhD, Immune OncologyMia Uzcategui
Failure analysis of the organ assessment and decision-making process during normothermic liver perfusion
Mentor: Sylvester Black, MD, PhD, Transplant ImmunologyMohammed Aidja
Utilizing Real-World Data to Identify Incident Cardiovascular Risks and Toxicities of TKIs and PD-1 Inhibitors
Mentor: Sakima Smith, MD, Autoimmunity and InflammationNader Maarouf
Reporting of Acute Generalized Exanthematous Pustulosis from 2012–2025 in the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS)
Mentor: Ben Kaffenberger, MD, MS MPI NIH T35, Autoimmunity and InflammationSelamawit Alebachew
Generation of a Neuroprotective Neutrophil Capable of Promoting Axon Regeneration through Repurposing of Underutilized FDA-Approved Drugs
Mentor: Benjamin Segal, MD, Autoimmunity and InflammationTrisha Sikder
Prenatal stress alters microglial phagocytic behavior and abundance during fetal brain development
Mentor: Tamar Gur, MD, PhD, Virology and Microbial Immune ResponseZachery Lewald
mTORC1 Signaling in Lung Macrophages During Acute Lung Injury
Mentor: Joshua Englert, MD, Autoimmunity and Inflammation