Message from the Co-Directors

Steven Youngentob, PhD
Associate Dean,
College of Graduate Studies
Program Co-Director

Andras Perl, MD, PhD
Program Co-Director

Our MD/PhD Program at SUNY Upstate Medical University is committed to providing exceptional training in both clinical medicine and basic scientific investigation to prepare you for an exciting career as a physician-scientist.

This program is based on an integrated curriculum with opportunities to conduct research during the summers before and after the first year of medical school, and to attend and present research–in-progress seminars with faculty and fellow MD/PhD students. You will also take a research course based on the NIH Wednesday Afternoon Lecture Series, featuring prominent national speakers. As a second year medical student you will take a grant-writing course and gain experience in how to write and prepare a competitive grant application. In recent years, our students have been quite successful in obtaining NIH Pre-Doctoral Fellowship Awards in a number of different areas of research, including Immunology, Microbiology and Neuroscience.

Throughout your training here at Upstate you will participate in a course specifically designed for MD/PhD students, "MD/PhD Grand Rounds Course: Integrating Clinical Care with the Study of Disease". This course meets bi-weekly and affords students who are doing their dissertation research, continued exposure to clinical medicine.

Our students publish their work in peer-reviewed journals, are supported for travel to national and international meetings, and graduates are often accepted to their first choice Residency position.

SUNY Upstate Medical University employs approximately 7,000 people — professors, doctors, nurses, scientists, allied professionals — making it the largest employer in the Central New York region. Still, each student receives individual attention from the co-directors of the MD/PhD Program and other faculty members. One-on-one mentorship is an important component of our training. Students often point out the friendliness and supportive atmosphere at our institution.

Please feel free to contact either of us, or our Program Administrator, Joanne Ondrako, and we would be happy discuss our MD/PhD Program with you.

Phone: 315 464-7719 OR 866 388-3956
Email: MDPHD@upstate.edu