William D. Steers Urology Research Fellowship

The UVA Department of Urology is offering a one-year paid mentored research fellowship specifically targeted towards a diverse group of medical students between their 3rd and 4th years of schooling or those 4th year students who have gone unmatched in the Urology Match process, who want an intensive research experience before applying for urology residency. The research fellowship is directed by Noah Schenkman, MD and Sumit Isharwal, MD, core faculty members in the department.

The program is named for our past Chair of Urology, William Steers who led the department from 1995 until his untimely passing in 2015. Dr. Steers was a tremendous proponent of improving diversity in the urologic community and dedicated himself to academic excellence and innovative research. The program is designed to enhance the research capabilities and portfolio for fellows with the goal of matching into their desired residency position the following year.

For more information and to apply, please contact Meghan Rover. Applications are considered on a rolling basis and one research fellow is accepted per year.

First preference will be given to current University of Virginia students, but all interested students are encouraged to apply. Competitive applicants should finish their 3rd year by June 2024 and have demonstrated academic excellence, strong leadership and a variety of extracurricular experience. Students should be strongly motivated to pursue a career in Urology. The program is open to a diverse pool of applicants including those who are first generation medical school attendees, socioeconomically disadvantaged students, individuals who have overcome substantial educational or economic obstacles or students who come from backgrounds underrepresented in medicine (Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian, Asian/Pacific Islander, and Alaskan Native).

Research fellows work primarily in IRB approved RedCAP database management and analysis, with the main focus on endourology (kidney stone) and urologic oncology. The fellow will be responsible for entering and maintaining the data in these databases for the year they work in our department. Fellows will have the opportunity to become involved with projects in andrology, female and pelvic medicine, global health, pediatric urology, and other urologic subspecialties. The majority of the projects are clinical or epidemiologic-based outcomes studies. Fellows will assist with all aspects of the research process, from idea generation, IRB approval, data acquisition and analysis, and manuscript preparation.

The fellow’s responsibilities are project-dependent and include submission of IRB applications, monitoring clinical studies in progress, data management and analysis, manuscript preparation and submission, and presentation of the data at regional and national meetings. Fellows will assist with grant writing opportunities. Fellows will attend the Mid-Atlantic Section of the AUA conference, the AUA Annual Meeting and other subspecialty meetings that are specific to their research projects.

Fellows will have the opportunity to help define their own individual goals for the year at the fellowship’s outset. Regular meetings will be set with the research faculty, and the research fellows will attend all scheduled research conferences.

In addition to research opportunities, UVA offers courses and instruction in database management, statistical analysis, and research methodology. The fellow will be encouraged to enhance their skill set with these offerings.

Fellows are expected to participate in all regular department academic meetings and conferences. An important aspect of the fellowship is clinical correlation achieved by working with faculty and trainees in the clinic and operating room.

The UVA faculty and residents are committed to helping the research fellow match successfully in the Urology program of their choice. We will assist with application review, decision making about where to apply, mock interviews and interview coaching live and through Zoom, rank list review, and letters of support.

UVA Urology has a storied history, led in the past by innovators such as Samuel Vest, Jay Gillenwater, and William Steers. Under our current chair, Kirsten Greene, we have increased our faculty by 50%, with a concomitant increase in clinical workload, surgical caseload, and research. We have a research infrastructure with established and growing databases, that ensures success and new opportunities to work with regional research consortiums. The clinical research division, under the guidance of David Rapp, has 2 full time clinical research coordinators inside our department as well as an abundance of shared research resources expected at a major academic center. The research experience will allow you to work one-on-one with our faculty and residents, developing relationships that will likely last your whole career.

For those who have not visited, Charlottesville is a wonderful location, with cultural opportunities available through the university, a wonderful local food, wine, and beer scene, and the Blue Ridge Mountains in our backyard. Our location, within an easy drive to Richmond and Washington, D.C., assure that you will be able to fill up your free time with great experiences.

• The position will review applications on a rolling basis starting October 2023.
• This is a 12 month employment with a negotiable starting date in May-July 2024.
• The following documents are required to apply:
  • Curriculum vitae
  • Medical School transcript
  • Brief cover letter describing yourself, your interest in the position and your future goals.
  • Two letters of recommendation, one of which should be from the Chair/Chief of Urology or Program Director of the Urology Residency at your school. For those without a home Urology Department or Division, a letter of recommendation from your closest Urology mentor is acceptable. More than two letters of recommendation is acceptable but not required.
•  Please direct all application materials as well as any questions to Andrew Christie or Meghan Rover.