This information is intended only for current Harvard Medical School (HMS) MD students applying to the HST Medical Engineering and Medical Physics (MEMP) PhD Program.

There is a long and distinguished history of Harvard MD-PhD students earning two HST degrees - MD and MEMP PhD - and HST acknowledges the many ways these students strengthen bonds between the individual degree programs and enrich our community.  At the same time, the key purpose of MEMP is to train engineers and scientists who are fluent in the language and culture of medicine and who will impact human health by developing innovations to prevent, diagnose, and treat disease - without needing to become clinicians themselves. MEMP provides a unique interdisciplinary curriculum that combines training in engineering or a physical/quantitative science discipline with classes in biomedical sciences and clinical experiences. As a result, the MEMP admissions process generally favors candidates who would benefit from both elements of the training over those candidates who already hold a medical degree or are enrolled in medical school.

Due to these considerations, as well as limited funding specifically earmarked for MD students interested in MEMP, we anticipate admitting at most two HMS MD-PhD students per year.

HMS MD students applying to the MEMP PhD program via MIT should follow the instructions below. Applications to the MEMP PhD program via Harvard should be submitted by following the instructions found here.

General advice

  • HMS MD-PhD students should register with the Harvard/MIT MD-PhD Program prior to applying to PhD programs.  Note: Cycle 1 students are enrolled as MD-PhD students at the time of matriculation at HMS so no additional action is needed.
  • Applications are typically submitted during the second year of medical school.
  • As a current HMS MD student, your statement of purpose should specifically address the rationale for your proposed training in MEMP - as opposed to traditional science or engineering PhD program.  How will the MEMP curriculum enhance your career path, given that you have already obtained biomedical sciences training and deep clinical perspectives?
  • Please coordinate with HMS MD-PhD program staff to have evaluations from any research rotations, as part of the MD-PhD program, sent to Laurie Ward at hst-phd-admissions [at] mit.edu (hst-phd-admissions[at]mit[dot]edu).
  • Selected letters of recommendation from your original application to HMS may be uploaded to your application by the MD-PhD program. You may reuse no more than one or two previous letters; we recommend that you ask for at least one new letter reflecting more recent activities.

Curriculum

All of the MEMP biomedical sciences and clinical requirements are waived for any student who has successfully completed the preclinical elements of one of the HMS MD curricula – either HST or Pathways.

Funding

Each admitted MEMP candidate, including those currently enrolled at HMS, will receive an offer letter identifying the source of funding for their first academic year in the MEMP program (September thru May). This is typically an HST-funded fellowship, although in some cases an MD-PhD student may receive a PI-funded research assistantship for their first academic year in MEMP. (Unlike most applicants to MEMP, current HMS MD students have had ample time to engage in research rotations prior to the start of their PhD program.) Starting with the first summer after enrollment in MEMP, students receive financial support from a combination of research assistantships (RAs), teaching assistantships, and fellowships as described here.