Table 1_Avenues for medical student research at an institution without a home residency program.docx

Introduction<p>The goal of this study is to explore the strategies and challenges in obtaining research experiences among medical students pursuing ophthalmology, other surgical subspecialties (OSS), and non-surgical specialties (NSS) at an institution without a home residency for these specialties.</p>Methods<p>A 20-question confidential survey was distributed to Drexel University College of Medicine medical students spanning 1st year to 4th year and descriptive analyses were utilized to convey our results.</p>Results<p>Of 93 respondents, there were 22 (33.3%) in ophthalmology, 32 (48.5%) in OSS, and 12 (18.2%) in NSS, while 27 students had incomplete responses or did not specify a specialty preference.

Sixty-one respondents (92.4%) were from the Philadelphia campus. The mean confidence in having sufficient research experience to be a competitive applicant was comparable across groups (ophthalmology: 2.76; OSS: 2.67; NSS: 3.50; p = 0.219). Cold emailing was the most common method of securing initial research (ophthalmology: 52%; OSS: 38%; NSS: 55%), while DUCOM faculty, pathway directors, or alumni connections were underutilized.