CREMS Summer Research Program

The Comprehensive Research Experience for Medical Students (CREMS) Summer Research Program provides opportunities each year for medical students enrolled at the University of Toronto to participate in a full-time summer research project between their first and second year, or second and third year of medical school, under the supervision of a faculty mentor. The CREMS Program is only open to current University of Toronto students.

Duration

The CREMS Summer Research Program runs for 10 to 12 weeks from late May/early June to mid/late August. Students will work on the research project on a full-time basis with one week granted for holidays. Students are to arrange holidays with their supervisor directly.

Stipend

A stipend of $5,500 is included; CREMS will contribute $2,750 and the supervisor will be responsible for $2,750. The supervisor is also responsible for any extraneous study or travel expenses.

The application process is now complete for the 2023 CREMS Summer Program.

Check back for next year's project catalogue in March 2024

Please note that CREMS will not support any pre-determined student/supervisor pairings. Supervisors must agree to open their projects to all students who apply and interview all students that are interested.

Faculty submissions for the 2023 CREMS Summer Research Program are due February 17, 2023. The CREMS 2022 Supervisor and Project Information Form can be found here: CREMS 2023 - Supervisor and Project Information Form

Projects must be remote-capable (in case of new restrictions) or have an alternative remote option outlined.  “The decision about where the project occurs (remote or in a lab) will be decided by the supervisor based on the policies in place at the supervisor’s institution during the time of the placement, and the specific circumstances of the lab.”
Interested faculty should complete a CREMS 2023 - Supervisor and Project Information Form email it to crems.programs@utoronto.ca by  February 17, 2023.
Submitted projects will be reviewed and scored by the CREMS adjudication committee. We typically receive 100-120 applications and can fund around 40-50 projects. CREMS positions will be offered to the supervisor/projects with the highest scores. We expect to complete the adjudication process by mid to late March.
Accepted projects will then be posted below on the CREMS website and medical students will be invited to apply directly to the supervisors. Supervisors should interview at least 5 interested applicants and select one student to work with. In the interest of fairness, we require that supervisors do not pre-select a student to work with. Supervisors are required to list all the students that were interviewed along with the name of the selected student.
We only allow ONE student per project. Once the selection is made you will notify the CREMS office by May 1, 2023.
If a project is selected, the supervisor is agreeing to cover half of the student stipend.  Students will receive a total of $5,500 for the 10–12-week period.  Half of this ($2,750) is paid by CREMS, and the remaining half ($2,750) will be paid by the supervisor.
Write to us at crems.programs@utoronto.ca if you have any questions or require further details.

Application Process

Step 1

Call for projects goes out to all University of Toronto Faculty (late January 2023).  If a faculty member does not typically receive these invitations, please contact Lisa crems.programs@utoronto.ca to be added to the distribution list. 

Step 2

Project submissions are due February 17, 2023 by email to crems.programs@utoronto.ca.

Step 3

Submitted projects will be reviewed and scored by the adjudication committee. CREMS positions will be offered to the supervisor/projects with the highest scores. We expect to complete the adjudication process by early April

Step 4

CREMS will then notify all supervisors to let them know if their project has been selected for the program. On Monday, April 3, 2023, successful projects will be posted to the CREMS website and students will be notified via email that they can now apply to the projects listed.

Step 5

As of April 3, 2023, students can begin to contact supervisors of the project(s) that they are interested in. We ask that supervisors meet with at least 5 interested students and select which student they feel is most suitable for the project. Interviews should be conducted after April 6, 2023, to enable students time to review the projects and contact potential supervisors.

Step 6

Once a student is selected, supervisors must advise CREMS by email (crems.programs@utoronto.ca) of their student selection by May 1, 2023. Supervisors must also submit a list of all students who were interviewed for the project.

Step 7

Supervisors will be sent a Mentor Agreement form to be signed by both the supervisor and student which outlines that the supervisor and student agree to work with each other, and that the supervisor agrees to pay half of the total CREMS stipend ($2,750). This completed form is due May 19, 2023

Step 8

The CREMS Summer Research Program begins early to mid-June.

Requirements for successful completion

Upon completion of the Summer Program, students will be required to submit via email to Lisa at crems.programs@utoronto.ca. A call for these deliverables will go out the first week of September and will be due the first week of October.

Formal Project Abstract fit for publication
Supervisor and CREMS Program Evaluation Form
One-page Informal Report outlining the student’s research experience

A call for these deliverables will go out in September

Students are required to participate in the annual Medical Student Research Day held in February of the following year, by submitting an abstract and presenting a poster of their findings. Successful completion of the Summer Program will be evaluated by the CREMS Program Director and Coordinator.