Research Education and Training Programs
Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF)

Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Program at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center offers undergraduates the chance to explore clinical, translational, and basic science research in laboratories in the Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. The primary goal is to provide students with a foundation for making career choices in the biomedical sciences. Students have the opportunity to work with one of more than 700 faculty members at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, many of whom have active research programs that cover all areas of pediatric medicine, including the study of developmental biology, congenital disorders, genetic diseases, cancer, cardiology, neurology and immunology.

The program is 10 weeks long. Students work 40 hours per week in person and are paid a salary of $13 per hour. Students start the program on either May 28 or May 31, depending on their availability and the approval of their mentor. In addition to hands-on laboratory experience, students participate in various academic and social activities with students from other summer programs at the University of Cincinnati. The SURF Program includes a mentoring workshop, two scientific writing classes, an ethics in research seminar, an introduction to surgery, an introduction to pathology and a career day. At the end of the summer, students have an opportunity to present their research in a poster session, and a lecture is presented by a distinguished keynote speaker.

Program Director
Sherry Thornton, PhD

Research Mentors

More than 700 faculty members conduct research in the Department of Pediatrics at Cincinnati Children’s.

Please note, if you contact faculty about possibly working with them in the summer, we ask that you reach out to no more than 1-2 faculty members.

Learn More About Research Conducted at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital

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A student presents a research poster to interested onlookers.

How to Apply

The online application will open on November 1. 2024 application Learn How To Apply