Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Training (MHRT) Program at the University of Hawaii

The objective of the Minority Health Research Training (MHRT) program at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (UHM) is to encourage students from underrepresented (including minority) backgrounds to pursue careers in science; and expose students to biomedical, clinical, and behavioral health research and global health issues that relate to health disparities. The program also aims to enable collaborations between colleges/universities and out-of-state research programs. Funded by the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), National Institutes of Health (NIH), the UHM MHRT program is in its ninth year. The MHRT program is a short-term research training opportunity offered to undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, and pre-doctoral students from under-represented backgrounds. MHRT students are from various academic disciplines at UH and have diverse ethnic backgrounds. To date, the MHRT program has trained eight (8) cohorts of students totaling 85 students. Selected students learn to conduct research during the spring semester and spend 8-9 weeks during the summer at their international training sites under the guidance of their assigned in-country mentor and their UH mentor. In addition to life-changing research and cultural experiences, program benefits include up to10 credits of directed research courses in the spring and summer semesters, and while abroad students are provided with a stipend, travel, and living expenses.NIMHD/NIH-T37MD008636-0