Applications for the 2025 Fordham-Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center (MECCC) Undergraduate Research Program closed recently. The program is an eight-week comprehensive summer enrichment series designed to expose students to biomedical laboratory research at a top-rated New York City medical institution as undergraduates. Applications for the MECCC program at Montefiore-Einstein closed on March 17.
Students are paid for their experience and receive a stipend as part of the program’s collaborative manual. Those who take part in MECCC must either be enrolled in Fordham University at Rose Hill or Lincoln Center or one of the CUNY institutions.
“The Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Undergraduate Research Program was made available to Fordham University students through the generous sponsorship of Dr. Ron DePhino, a distinguished alumnus of both Fordham University and Einstein Medical School,” said Kristina Ames, Ph.D., assistant director of cancer research training and education coordination at Montefiore-Einstein.
DePhino is currently employed with the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. He graduated from Fordham College at Rose Hill in 1977 with a bachelor’s in biological sciences and attended Einstein Medical School for his medical doctorate.
Ames noted how students are able to participate in hypothesis-driven research under the supervision of experienced researchers at Einstein, which gives students exposure to realistic medical investigation. “Additionally, students benefit from workshops aimed at expanding their scientific knowledge and communication skills, participate in career development sessions, attend networking events, and gain exposure to advanced research tools through facility tours at Einstein,” said Ames.
Students are also required to deliver a pitch presentation near the end of the program, which consists of a research poster and an oral presentation.
“The program was first made available to Fordham students in summer 2024,” said Robert Beer, Ph.D., associate dean for STEM & pre-health education at Rose Hill. “We hope the students will gain not only research experience but a comprehensive view of how medical research is carried out by attending seminars, meeting and working with investigators and their staff and learning scientific communication skills in a medical school setting,” he said.
Some students who were previously part of the program had already engaged in medical research, including Diana Plaza, FCRH ’27, who was part of the “Beyond Albert” program with Einstein Hospital in high school. “I researched leukemia in high school, using zebrafish as a model organism,” said Plaza when asked about her prior experience. “I was excited to research a different cancer, so last summer, I studied the effects of a certain air pollutant [PM2.5] on lung cancer,” she said.
Similar to some of her peers, Plaza has a personal connection to cancer diagnosis. “I applied for the MECCC program because one of my relatives was diagnosed with cancer and recently re-diagnosed with a different cancer, so I felt a strong personal connection to study in this particular field of scientific research,” she noted.
Her interest in oncological research prompted her to return to Einstein for the MECCC program. Plaza also noted how Einstein’s program is one of the few of its kind in the Bronx.
“During my time in the program, I did learn essential lab techniques such as cell culture, cell dosing and immunoblotting,” she said. “I wanted a competitive program for my resume since my career goal is to earn a Ph.D in Cancer Biology and create my research project, and this program did teach me how to write strong scientific papers, presentations and posters,” she said.
Plaza also described the opportunities students gain to explore specific types of oncological research.
Participants in the MECCC program should also have a strong science background and interest in pursuing scientific research for the complete eight weeks. The program is set to take place from June 16 to August 8.
