A dozen undergraduate students from universities throughout the country, and even internationally, received an introduction to the pharmaceutical sciences during the Summer Undergraduate Research at Florida, or SURF, program. Hosted by the University of Florida College of Pharmacy, the program pairs undergraduate students with a faculty advisor and a Ph.D. student mentor.
The 2021 program was delivered in a hybrid format. For four weeks, the students participated in virtual sessions, with the final week featuring on-campus activities, including shadowing their Ph.D. student mentor in the college’s research labs.
“SURF is a research-intensive program and provides a great introduction to the pharmaceutical sciences as well as life as a graduate student at a top 5-ranked pharmacy college,” said Maureen Keller-Wood, associate dean for research and graduate education in the UF College of Pharmacy and lead organizer of the SURF program. “We hope SURF makes a strong impression upon many of these students, and they are motivated to apply to a graduate program in the pharmaceutical sciences.”
The UF College of Pharmacy currently has five former SURF students from the 2017-19 programs enrolled in its Ph.D. graduate program.
