USF Cardiovascular Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships (SURF) Sponsored by the American Heart Association

The USF Health Cardiovascular Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Program is supported by a grant from the American Heart Association to the Morsani College of Medicine’s Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology. 

The goal of this program is to expose students to active research and education programs in the cardiovascular sciences. This program provides support for undergraduate students to spend 10 weeks in a cardiovascular research laboratory. The students participating in the SURF program will engage in weekly career development workshops and research seminars. Students will have opportunities to interact with both basic science researchers and clinicians focused on cardiovascular diseases. After the summer, the students will present their research findings at a national meeting, such as AHA Scientific Sessions.

Program Details

• Application Deadline: February 5, 2025, 5:00 PM Eastern Time
• Dates of Fellowship: May 19 – July 30, 2025
• Number of Positions Available: 5
• Stipend: Up to $6,000
• Travel expenses (up to $3000) to a national scientific meeting supported by the program.

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants must be in their junior or senior academic undergraduate year of study. 
• Good academic standing is required.
• The program is open to United States Citizens and Foreign Nationals holding student, exchange, or permanent resident visas, including F1, H1, H1B, PR, TC, or TN visas. Awardees must meet American Heart Association citizenship criteria throughout the entire duration of the fellowship.
• Applicants must be eligible to receive payments prior to May 19, 2025.
• This is a full-time fellowship, and the fellows may not take other classes while enrolled in this program. 

Program Faculty

• Jerome W. Breslin, PhD
• Ruisheng Liu, MD, PhD
• Sami F. Noujaim, PhD
• Hana Totary-Jain, PhD
• Sarah Y. Yuan, MD, PhD

For more information, please contact:

Dr. Jerome Breslin
Program Director
breslin@usf.edu

Application Preparation

Before starting your application, please prepare the following, so you may copy and paste them into your application form:

1. A description of your future career goals (maximum 200 words)
2. A description of your previous research experience (maximum 200 words)