Evaluating the Impact of a Medical School Student-Run Research Organization on Scholarly Activity

Introduction The United States Medical Licensing Examination Step 1 change to Pass/Fail scoring has motivated medical students to pursue more research opportunities. To support students, a student-led organization was created at an allopathic medical school, offering initiatives such as workshops, mentorship, and research projects. Here, we evaluate its impact on medical student research. Methods An observational survey study was conducted to assess students' research involvement and productivity and their sense of support, confidence, and comfort in pursuing research at an institution during the first two years of medical school. These variables were compared between three contiguous classes of students and between club members and non-members. Analyses included t-tests, Chi-square tests, and ANOVA, among others. Results Findings revealed that organization membership was associated with an increased number of research projects. Club members (M= 4.49) reported a significantly greater number of projects compared to non-members (M= 4.49) (p= 0.002). Students who had access to the organization during their preclinical years (M= 4.38) reported significantly more projects compared to students whose preclinical years were before the organization's conception (M= 2.21) (p= 0.041). However, research productivity and feelings of support and confidence in research did not differ by class or club membership.  Conclusions Club members engaged in a greater number of research projects as compared to non-members and students who had access to the organization during their preclinical years. The implementation of similar organizations at every medical school can allow more students to engage in scholarly work.