Stanford Population Health Summer Research Program

Statement of Purpose (maximum 500 words). Please discuss what drives your interest in the program, what you hope to learn, and your near-term career goals (e.g., type of job after graduating from college, graduate school). Use of AI to compose your personal statement is prohibited.

Note: Please do not include any additional materials, such as CVs and letters of recommendation. They will not be reviewed, and your application may be disqualified.

• 7-week on campus summer research experience from Monday, June 23 - Friday, August 8, 2025
• Compensation: $7,000 
• On campus housing, meal plan, airfare or equivalent transportation to/from Stanford provided
• Course modules
  • Introduction to population and public health, epidemiology, statistics and health policy research
  • Principles of study design and data analysis
  • Introduction to statistical programming in R 
  • Approaches to community engagement in research
• Research activities
  • Approximately 20 hours/week of research experience with a faculty mentor
  • Contributions to lab group research while also developing independent research interests and skills
  • Projects include literature reviews, data preparation, data analysis, writing research reports
• Professional development opportunities
  • Near-peer mentoring from Stanford graduate students and postdoctoral fellows
  • Weekly professional development meetings (e.g., resume writing, networking, mentor relationships, how to give a research talk, graduate school preparation)

Will this program be virtual or in-person? Is it a full-time experience?

• For 2025, our program will be an in-person experience at the Stanford University campus. The programming (i.e., training and professional development sessions) and research activities will be scheduled during business hours in Pacific Time, coordinated and arranged with your faculty mentor. We aim to provide a competitive stipend in order to allow interns to participate in this program as a full-time experience (training plus research).

What is “proof of college status”?

• We will notify students who are accepted to the program in March 2025. At that time, to confirm your participation in AHEaD, we will ask for documentation of your university enrollment (e.g., transcript confirming you have completed at least two years of undergraduate work by June 23, 2025, and are enrolled in a degree program).

I am graduating (or graduated) before summer 2025, am I eligible?

• Current students (U.S. citizens or permanent residents) who have completed at least two years at a U.S.-based undergraduate institution by June 23, 2025, and are not yet graduated by the start of our program on June 23, 2025, are welcome to apply. Graduate and medical school students are not eligible at this time.

I am an international student, am I eligible?

• US citizenship, permanent residency, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA with active employment authorization card [EAD]), or Temporary Protected Status (TPS with EAD) is required to be employed by Stanford for the summer.
• I am a community college student. Am I eligible?
  
  Community college students who have completed 2-years of and the equivalent to the institution’s AA degree (e.g., 60 units) AND have an offer of admission to a bachelor’s-level degree program by January 13 are eligible for AHEaD. A copy of the offer of admission and acceptance will be required as part of the "proof of college" requirement.
• I’m having problems uploading my statement or submitting my application. What should I do?

• We have learned that some browsers work better than others for the application submission. If you are having trouble, please try again with Chrome or Safari. If you are still having problems, please e-mail stanfordahead@stanford.edu.

What research projects are available this year? 

• AHEaD is in the process of identifying ongoing research projects that are appropriate for research trainees. Please do not contact faculty directly at this time.

When will I hear back about my application?

• Applications are due on January 13, 2025. We aim to notify students who are accepted to the program by March 2025.

Is there a waitlist? 

• Yes, we will have a short waitlist. Waitlisted candidates will be notified that they have been placed on the waitlist at the same time as those who are admitted and not admitted.

Can I receive feedback about my application?

• We receive a high volume of applications, and, thus, are unable to give individualized feedback to each applicant. Every single submission is read carefully. The main component in assessing applications is the submitted statement of purpose. We look for demonstrated interest in attending AHEaD as well as how our program will help meet your learning goals and contribute to the next stage of your career. Please apply! Your unique perspective and background is important and valued.

• Stanford Scope Blog 9/24/21 
• Stanford Today 9/1/21
• FlintSide story featuring AHEaD Scholar April LaGrone 7/6/21
• Stanford Health Policy News 10/18/22
• IAPHS blog post by AHEaD Scholar Karrington Hendrix 10/20/22
• Women in Data Science Video 2023