Clerkships and Acting Internships
Third- and fourth-year medical students are exposed to general surgery and the surgical subspecialties through our clerkship and acting internship programs. Our goal is to provide students an opportunity to become an integral part of a care team and to help them decide whether they want to pursue a surgical career while acquiring core clinical knowledge around surgery-related diseases and surgery-related skills that are applicable to a number of disciplines.
Visiting Students
The UAB Department of Surgery encourages U.S.-based medical students and international medical students to complete an away elective at UAB by applying through the Visiting Student Learning Opportunities (VSLO) program. Visiting medical students from underrepresented minority groups can also apply for the UAB Visiting Elective Scholarship Program, which provides up to $1,000 for students to use to cover the expenses associated with completing a four-week elective in general surgery at UAB.
Short-Term Research Experiences Advancing Medical Students (STREAMS)
The Department of Surgery encourages medical students to enhance their training through research experience. Mentored research opportunities are available through the STREAMS program in basic science, translational, clinical, outcomes and education research. Students participating in summer research in the Department of Surgery can also apply for summer stipend funding through the MSSRP Common Application.
Research Travel Reimbursement
The Department of Surgery urges students to conduct research under the mentorship of our faculty and submit the results of that research to regional or national meetings. Mentored UAB students who have a first-authored abstract accepted for oral or poster presentation at a regional or national meeting, are eligible for up to $1,000 in travel reimbursement from the Department of Surgery with prior approval for travel.
Awards
Thanks to the generosity of two former faculty members, the UAB Department of Surgery awards two outstanding medical students with the Robert J. Cerfolio Award for Outstanding Medical Student in General Surgery and the Mary T. Hawn Award for Outstanding Woman Medical Student, every spring at the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Birmingham campus awards’ luncheon.