FAQ
The SMURRF program is open to all first year medical students who are US citizens or green card holders. Successful completion of the first year of medical is required by the time the SMURRF program begins. An application is required for selection and the program is competitive.
No. The SMURRF program is federally supported from The National Institute of Health (NIH) and students are expected to work full-time on their research projects or related academic pursuits. Exceptions are rarely granted and approval in writing needs to be obtained before applying to the SMURRF position.
The stipend is paid out to you electronically once every two weeks through direct deposit. Clocking in and out daily calculates the hours worked. By the end of the program if you have not earned the full amount of the stipend a final payment is sent to you in a check after the conclusion of the program.
Since the Stipend is being earned at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital it would not be tax free since we are not an educational institution. Generally, stipends are issued as tax free if they are issued by a University to pay for an educational purpose (tuition or books).
We encourage students to take time off during the summer. However, the NIH requires a minimum of eight weeks participation. Therefore, if your summer break is nine weeks, we can only approve one week of vacation. All vacation should be communicated in advance to the mentor and Mary Kay Lang (coordinator).
The weekly lectures are provided typically every Friday. Unless you are on vacation, we request students attend all lectures in person. Currently, there is no virtual option for our lectures.
No, only non-University of Cincinnati medical students are required to complete the "Letter of Intent".
We encourage students to work on campus during the summer to be integrated with their mentor and the Cincinnati Children's experience. However, students may work on projects at home for part of the summer provided this is cleared or encouraged by their mentor and students are able to remain productive.
Everyone will work Monday – Friday with a typical day shift (ie: 8am-4:30pm). Clocking in and out daily will be required for everyone (whether remote or in person).
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