MD/PhD Program

Modern medicine is rapidly evolving, driven by the emergence of insights at the crossroads of laboratory discovery and clinical application. Discovery science is accelerating, fueled by technologies, including "omics", cell-based therapies, systems biology, and informatics that provide previously unimagined insights into molecular pathophysiology. Integration of these emerging technologies is creating an essential paradigm for identifying mechanisms underlying physiological pathways which are corrupted in disease. Identification of these processes creates opportunities for diagnostics and therapeutics that are personally matched to individual patient pathophysiology-the right treatment for the right patient. In turn, these revolutionary opportunities create an unprecedented need for physician-scientists who can bridge the laboratory and clinic, translating molecular discoveries into improved health for patients and populations.

The MD/PhD program of Thomas Jefferson University provides training that integrates hypothesis-driven investigation with clinical observation and experience that drive the clinical translation of laboratory-based research discoveries. The program goal is to produce highly motivated physician investigators who will undertake life-long careers in biomedical research, translating fundamental discoveries into improved health care delivery, and serving as role models for the next generation of investigators. Our trainees acquire the skills to provide outstanding patient care, lead discovery in biomedical research, advocate for basic and translational research, and assume leadership roles in biomedical research.

Program objectives are achieved through a carefully designed curriculum that nurtures the development of intellectual and technical skills that form the basis for successful careers as leaders of basic research and translational investigation teams. Training is conducted in a challenging, interactive environment that integrates students and faculty, structured around program components that encourage individualized mentoring and the development of professional identity. The program anticipates the distinctive requirements of physician-scientists in training, integrating curricula, experiences, concepts, and practice across the continua of discovery-to-application and molecules-to-man-to-populations in all years, resulting in a program with a unique institutional identity. Integration of clinical and research training promotes the development of physician-scientists working across the bench-to-bedside continuum.

As Program Director, I look forward to working with each of you individually throughout your training, from application and interview, through graduation and career development. You have made a commitment to a career that offers unrivaled intellectual and professional satisfaction, and the potential for impact on a global scale. I stand prepared to guide you at each step of this exciting journey, to ensure that you, and your patients, maximally benefit from the experience.

As a student in our MD/PhD program, you are not considered simply alternating between being a medical student and a PhD student. Rather, you are a physician scientist-in-training during your entire time in the Program, with an administrative home, a strategically designed curriculum, and a unique peer group with similar career goals.