Internship program in Radiation Oncology at UPenn - SUPERS@PENN

I am writing this letter in my role as director of a summer undergraduate internship program in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine. The program, SUPERS@PENN, is designed for highly motivated undergraduates who are considering careers in academic medicine and specifically in biomedical research. This program is funded through an R25 award from the NCI and NIH. The aim of the program is to introduce bright and highly motivated students to diverse fields that study the effects of radiation in the treatment of cancer and in other biological systems. A second goal of the program, which is every bit as important, is to achieve diversity in the classes we recruit (with regard to race, ethnicity, sex and geography).

The program is designed to run for two consecutive summers, therefore we give preference to rising juniors in our first year class, who then have the option of returning as rising seniors for a second summer of training in our laboratories. More information about SUPERS@PENN can be viewed on our website www.med.upenn.edu/supers. Recently we completed the first summer of the program. 10 students from 9 different institutions scattered about the country participated. To underscore the types of individuals we are looking for: These 10 students came from biology, chemistry, biochemistry and bioengineering backgrounds. The mean GPA of this highly competitive group was 3.77 (with a high of 4.0 and a low of 3.42). More importantly their individual statements and letters of recommendation indicated their particular interest in pursuing a research career trajectory.

We would love to include Villanova in future mailings pertaining to the 2011 SUPERS@PENN program (the first of these will be sent out sometime in September). Please feel free to forward this e-mail the appropriate individual or individuals who are best suited to direct the appropriate students into the SUPERS@PENN program. Or you can send me their names directly to me, at this e-mail address.

Thank You, best and warmest regards,
Steve Tuttle

Stephen W. Tuttle, Ph.D., Program Director | SUPERS@PENN | tuttle@uphs.upenn.edu | 198 John Morgan, 3620 Hamilton Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104 | office phone 215-898-0064