Medical students can participate in research projects under the direction of Orthopaedic Surgery Faculty.  Medical students should feel free to browse the department webpage for a list of faculty members who are currently conducting clinical and/or research projects and initiate contact with any of the faculty.

Students are encouraged to contact faculty by email to express their interest and attach a copy of their CV. Students are assigned to a research project(s) according to each student’s previous training, knowledge base, and research interests.

UC M1 Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Summer Research

The UC M1 Ortho Summer Research program consists of mentored research designed to introduce students who have completed their first year of medical school to orthopaedic surgery research.

Eligibility: UC medical students who will complete their first year are eligible to participate in this program.

Duration: 10 weeks, June to mid-August.  Many projects can be completed remotely/off campus and on the student’s own time (there is not a required number of hours per week).  Students can put in as many hours as possible, allowing for participation in other summer commitments. 

Merit Awards: In the fall we hold a research presentation day and prizes are awarded based on the work completed during the summer.  The top three awards are $2,500, $2,000 and $1,500.  Additional stipends will be awarded to those not receiving one of the top three awards.  The amount will be based on number of projects completed and availability of funds for the year.

Research productivity and effort will be monitored during the summer and this information will be a part of the rubric used to score and rank the fall presentations.  Although there is no guarantee that all projects will produce publication-worthy results, several projects are likely to lead to academic publications.  Regardless, the experience obtained by working on a project is extremely valuable and will inevitably increase the competitiveness of one’s residency application. 

Project Approval: During the first year of medical school, students should reach out to the department expressing an interest in working on an orthopaedic project.  Students do not need to come up with their own project ideas; there are a range of projects available across orthopaedic basic science, translational science, and clinical research.

Interested students should start by contacting Kim Hasselfeld hasselky@uc.edu to schedule time to meet with research fellows and faculty to determine a project to be worked on.  Students can start on projects before the summer if time permits during the M1 academic year.  Students are encouraged to contact us as soon in the first year as possible so projects can be defined, developed and necessary approvals obtained before the start of the summer.  This will greatly increase the ability of the student to have a robust presentation in the fall.

Projects must be pre-approved to be eligible for presentation in the fall.  A UC Orthopaedic Faculty member must be a mentor on the project.  Students should not apply for funding from the Office of Research to obtain a stipend to work on a project.  This program is designed to be one that students can participate with unfunded hours that they have available for the summer.

Questions: Contact Kim Hasselfeld, Clinical Research Manager, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, hasselky@uc.edu.

Status: Our position has been filled for the 2023-2024 academic year.  The position will open in February 2024 for the 2024-2025 academic year.

Positions: 1

Duration: 1 year

Who: US M3 medical student planning on applying to Orthopedic Surgery residency programs. Only USA medical school students will be considered.

Where: University of Cincinnati College of Medicine; Cincinnati, OH.

When: The position will open in February 2024 for the 2024-2025 academic year.

Salary: Paid 12-month position through the University of Cincinnati with full-time benefits.

Medical students may choose to take a “Gap-Year” during medical school training to do research and produce publications that improve their CV, and position as an applicant for highly competitive Orthopedic Surgery Residency Training Programs that consider research activity and publications an important part of the application process.

The position is focused on clinical research and involves retrospective studies, database studies, prospective studies, and randomized clinical trials – however, basic science and laboratory research is also possible. The successful applicant can expect to be involved in approximately twenty to thirty projects, the majority of which will progress to publication and presentation at regional and national meetings.

The student is well-integrated into the residency program, attending daily AM trauma rounds, educational conferences, Grand Rounds, and journal club in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.

For the self-directed, motivated individual, this can be a very productive year. The student should expect to have 10-20 publications/chapters/abstracts by the end of the research year.

We are looking for individuals with the following prerequisites and characteristics:

• Strong motivation for a career in Orthopaedic Surgery

• Interest in research

• MUST be extremely organized

• MUST be detail-oriented

• MUST be able to self-manage

• Strong academic record



Jorge Figueras BS, 2021-2022 Medical Student Research Scholar presenting poster at AAOS 2022 in Chicago.