The Renaissance School of Medicine (RSOM) at Stony Brook University has secured a five-year, $5.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support its Medical Science Training Program (MSTP). The funding will run through June 30, 2030.
The MSTP was established by the NIH to help students interested in scientific research and clinical care pursue careers as physician-scientists without being discouraged by educational debt. The NIH grant covers tuition, health insurance, and provides a stipend for participating students.
RSOM’s MSTP offers an integrated curriculum that combines translational science with clinical training, resulting in both MD and PhD degrees upon graduation. The program has received continuous NIH funding since 1992 and has expanded over the past four decades.
Additional financial support for the MSTP comes from RSOM itself, faculty mentors overseeing trainees’ PhD work, and fellowships obtained by students from both the NIH and private foundations.
Michael Frohman, MD, Distinguished SUNY Professor and chair of the Department of Pharmacological Sciences who has directed the MSTP for 22 years, commented on the program’s approach: “The landscape for training students to become the next-generation’s physician-scientists is ever evolving and the program maximizes their education and capabilities during this period of accelerated discovery. The key driving force is to instill in them the importance of being able to identify unmet clinical needs and translate research findings based on them into improved medical practice.”
Frohman also noted that graduates typically complete eight years of study before entering residency programs equipped with skills for both clinical work and research. Around 150 graduates have completed RSOM’s MSTP so far, moving on to roles at academic medical centers, federal health agencies, and biotechnology companies.
Currently about 75 students are enrolled in the program. With this new grant, nine new students can be recruited each year. The previous NIH grant awarded in 2020 provided $3.7 million over five years.
