RFUMS Summer Scholars Program

The LFC-RFU Summer Research Scholars Program is the original partnership activity that connected Lake Forest College and Rosalind Franklin University for Medicine and Science, located just 10 minutes away from campus by car or train.

Health Professions

About the Program

Since 2009, this unique and thriving summer research training program for our life science majors has trained over 150 lake Forest College students till date. Every summer, 15-20 undergraduates (from first year to senior thesis students) conduct up to 10 weeks of paid research as RFUMS summer scholars.

All participants have gained exceptional professional mentors among the faculty at this graduate health professions university. Each student works in specific medical school professor’s lab carrying out original medical research in the areas of cell and molecular pharmacology, neuroscience, cell biology and anatomy, biochemistry and molecular biology, pathology, microbiology and immunology, physiology and biophysics, psychology, medicinal chemistry, and more.

The student scholar receives a free Lake Forest College full course credit and a living stipend. The scholar is eligible to receive summer housing and participate in cafeteria meal plans at Lake Forest College, at a reduced cost.

2024 LFC-RFUMS Summer Scholars named

This summer, 18 Lake Forest College students are conducting medical research at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science (RFU) through our Lake Forest College - Rosalind Franklin University Summer Scholars Program, which began in 2010 as the original partnership effort between the College and RFU . Each Forester is paired with an RFU professor who will serve as a mentor during the 10-week program. Over 150 have completed the program to date. All students from this cohort plan to pursue careers in biomedical research or the health professions.

Martha Alatorre Martinez ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Robert Marr (Department of Neuroscience)
Arnav Bajpai ‘26, Mentor: Prof. William Frost (Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy)
Marcelo Camba Almazan ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Kaiwan Kam (Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy)
Margarida Carreira ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Joanna Dabrowska (Department of Cell and Molecular Pharmacology)
Michael Chapa ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Svetlana Dambaeva (Department of Microbiology and Immunology)
Cadence Dempsey ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Valerie Chai (Center of Genetic Diseases)
Sai Gaddam ’26, Mentor: Prof. EunJung Hwang (Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy)
Jasmine Mendez ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Holly Hunsberger (Department of Foundational Sciences and Humanities)
Minal Mohammed ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Joseph Reynolds (Department of Microbiology and Immunology)
Lejla Murati ’25, Mentor: Prof. EunJung Hwang  (Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy)
Aaron Oster ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Nancy Jao (Department of Psychology)
Anjani Padhiar ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Hongkyun Kim (Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy)
Ekaterine Priovolos ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Grace (Beth) Stuzman (Department of Neuroscience)
Trisyia Rahimi ‘26, Mentor: Prof. Holly Hunsberger (Department of Foundational Sciences and Humanities)
Hamzeh Arabiyat ‘27 , Mentor: Prof. Shawn Flanagan (College of Pediatric Medicine)
Michelle Soriano ‘25, Mentor: Prof. Amiel Rosenkranz (Department of Cell and Molecular Pharmacology)
Nabah Sultan ’25, Mentor: Prof. Neelam Sharma-Walia (Department of Microbiology and Immunology)
Jacob Wepman ‘25, Mentor: Prof. David Everly (Department of Microbiology and Immunology)

Outcomes

Alumnae of this program are successfully pursuing PhDs, medical school, physical therapy, optometry, and other health professions and scientific careers.

All scholars present their research at the college’s Robert B. Glassman Memorial Brain, Mind, and Behavior Symposium in fall or at the Steven P. Galovich Memorial Student Symposium in spring. Our scholars also regularly present and win honors for their work at national conferences such as the national Society for Neuroscience meeting and Chicago area scientific conferences, such the Chicago Society for Neuroscience Meeting and the Great Lakes Chapter of the American Society for Pharmaceutical and Experimental Therapeutics.

Several scholars have received undergraduate poster prizes at these scientific conferences. Some have also co-authored scientific manuscripts published in major journals.

How to Apply?

Contact Program Director Disque D. and Carol Gram Deane Professor of Biological Sciences (debburman@lakeforest.edu) for details.

Barry Kim ’22, a neuroscience student at Lake Forest College, spent this past summer working with Assistant Professor Neelam Sharma-Walia in the Department of Microbiology...

Mary Denichenko ’22 has a singular goal: to attend medical school and become a doctor. Research experience is a critical step in accomplishing this goal, and as a student...

Through the RFUMS Summer Scholars Program, Demetri Maglaras ’23 had the opportunity to clone a gene into a DNA plasmid while studying under Professor Joseph Reynolds at...