Design and Implementation of a Structured Summer Research Program to Integrate Mentoring and Professional Development in Dental Education

PURPOSE: Early exposure to research is essential for developing evidence-based practitioners and academic leaders in dentistry. To this end, University of Mississippi School of Dentistry established the Undergraduate and Professional Student Training in Advanced Research Techniques (UPSTART) program to integrate research, mentoring, and professional development. METHODS: Since 2008, the UPSTART program has provided a structured curriculum comprising team-science mentoring, hands-on laboratory research, professional development seminars, and oral research presentations. Program data from 2008 to 2022 were analyzed to evaluate outcomes related to student and mentor participation, skills provided by research projects, and after-graduation outcomes for the participant students. RESULTS: Over 15 years, 244 students (132 dental, 81 undergraduate, 31 postbaccalaureate) completed the UPSTART program. Out of the 194 projects conducted during that time, 37% projects were categorized as being "closer to clinic" and 63% projects were categorized as being "closer to bench." With continuous mentoring that involved teams of dental and undergraduate students mentored by graduate students and faculty, the UPSTART participants produced more than 50 peer-reviewed publications, 200 presentations, and received over 50 research awards. Among dental students, 65% successfully matched into postgraduate residency programs-more than double the rate of non-participants. Undergraduate alumni also demonstrated strong advancement into graduate (36%) and clinical (32%) programs. CONCLUSION: The UPSTART program demonstrates that structured research training with personalized mentoring and professional development enhances students' research engagement and postgraduate competitiveness. Such a program can serve as a scalable model for dental schools seeking to strengthen research scholarship and prepare future clinician-scientists.