Undergraduate Research Opportunity

We are thrilled to announce IMPACT— Innovative Minds Partnering to Advance Curative Therapies — for the 2019-2020 academic year. The Mayo Clinic Health System IMPACT program, in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, gives undergraduate students the opportunity to engage in novel hypothesis generation to address real-world health questions alongside Mayo Clinic and Mayo Clinic Health System scientists and physicians. We would like to invite you and your students to be part of this outstanding research opportunity! Over the past six years, the IMPACT program has engaged interdisciplinary teams of 850 undergraduate students from 35 private, public, technical, and community colleges.

This year’s IMPACT topic asks student researchers to investigate the following question:

What is the mechanistic link between binge alcohol drinking, addiction, and the function of the neuroimmune system? The IMPACT Team recommends “The Role of Neuroimmune Signaling in Alcoholism” as a reference article for student teams as they begin their hypothesis generation.

Student teams will present a poster at the 2020 Symposium, to be held March 7 at Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. In addition to the poster presentations, the top 10 teams (selected through review of written submissions) will give oral presentations. The IMPACT Symposium also offers students networking opportunities with physicians and scientists from Mayo Clinic and Mayo Clinic Health System. Each student on the winning team is awarded a $1,000 cash prize and a paid summer internship at Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

Each team will require one faculty mentor, and all faculty mentors are invited to attend the symposium as well. Teams of students from multiple disciplines are especially encouraged.

Please visit the IMPACT website for the specific challenge topic, deadline information, and submission guidelines. Each team must register online by November 22, 2019. Ongoing updates and reminders will be shared on the IMPACT Facebook page.

Faculty members, please share this opportunity with your students and contact us directly with any questions about the program.

Best wishes,

IMPACT – Innovative Minds Partnering to Advance Curative Therapies

Mayo Clinic Health System and University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire