Research and Scholarly Advancement Fellowship (RSAF)
Important Dates and Information
Program Dates: May 19 - July 25, 2025
Application Deadline: January 15, 2025
Acceptance Notice: February 28, 2025 (Tentative)
2025 RSAF Guidelines
(Instructions for Completing Project Information Form: Open Link, Under Edit Document, Select Open in Desktop App, then save a local copy)
About the Research and Scholarly Advancement Fellowship (RSAF) Program
All Heritage College students who will successfully complete the Year 1 medical school curriculum by the end of the spring semester immediately preceding the summer RSAF program are invited to apply. Students must be in good academic and professional standing, with no Code of Professional Standards violations on record. Students from all three Heritage College campuses are encouraged to apply.
Under the guidance of the research mentor, students conduct intensive short-term (10-week) research projects in selected areas of biomedical/basic, social-behavioral medicine, primary care, medical education, or clinical investigation. Students will participate in a core curriculum consisting of seminars on broad topics in medical research. They will complete an oral and/or poster presentation describing their research, to be presented in person on the Athens campus during the last week of the summer program.
The objectives of the RSAF program are to provide a valuable experience for highly motivated and talented medical students to participate in a defined research project; to acquaint students with scientific methodology; to enhance their analytic and laboratory skills; and to provide an opportunity to improve their presentation and writing skills. The program provides foundational skills for future physicians to use scientific evidence as a basis in their clinical decision making and to consider the possibility of pursing research as physician-scientists dedicated to enhancing health care.
The fellowship pays $3,000 to assist fellows with living expenses.
Students are expected to review the current program guidelines carefully as they contain very important information and details related to the program. Students must submit proposals according to the current program guidelines in order to be considered for funding.
Questions?
For additional information, please contact:
The Heritage College Office of Research and Grants, Nadine Borovicka, program manager, or Jessica Wingett, director of research administration and student research and RSAF program director
RSAF Class of 2024
| Student Name | Project Title | Primary Mentor |
|---|---|---|
| Ghazal Adibi | LGBTQ+ Medical Student Experiences During Clinical Education | Melissa Thomas, PhD |
| Caleb Bell | Metformin Improves Insulin Sensitivity Via FSP27 | Vishwajeet Puri, PhD, MS |
| Farrah Brown | Investigating Fibrosis in Young Bovine Growth Hormone (bGH) Transgenic Mice: Implications for Acromegaly-Associated Tissue Dysfunction | Darlene Berryman, PhD, RD, LD |
| Kameron Clinton | Pediatric Moderate to Severe Traumatic Brain Injury by Hospital Designation, 1997-2019 | Henry Xiang, MD, MPH, PhD, MBA (Nationwide Children's Hospital) |
| Robert Guard | Socioeconomic Effects on Intrinsic Capacity | Graciela Muniz Terrera, PhD |
| Jessica McGrath | Regulatory Role of FSP27 in VEGF-A Expression in Endothelium - Blood Vessel Formation | Vishwajeet Puri, PhD, MS |
| Maham Naviwala | Comparison of Cardiometabolic Risk Factors of School Children in In-school and Out-of-school Settings | Emily Hill Guseman, PhD |
| Ishika Puri | Patients with High Sex Hormone Binding Globulin (SHBG) Levels Provide Strong Evidence of the Free Hormone Hypothesis | Bijinu Balakrishnan, PhD |
| Shashank Reddy | Increased lymphatic markers found in longest lived laboratory mouse. | Shigeru (Nick) Okada, PhD |
| Amisha Saini | How Does Your Diet Affect Brain Health? | Graciela Muniz-Terrera, PhD |
| Sydney Shaffer | Distance, waitlists, and finding caregivers: Parent-identified barriersto care for children with disabilities living in Appalachian Ohio | Ally Hughes, PhD |
| Benjamin Trenka | Elevated lean body mass in young obese individuals: Impact on muscle strength and insulin sensitivity | Leslie Consitt, PhD |
| Jerome Walsh | Increased GH Action Affects the Expression of Lymphatic-Specific Markers in a Tissue-Dependent Manner | John Kopchick, PhD |