# Expanding program evaluation capacity and enhancing training programs through alumni perspectives

> **NIH NIH T32** · UNIVERSITY OF IOWA · 2022 · $86,400

## Abstract

SUMMARY
The Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) at the University of Iowa is an established physician-
scientist training program that has been continuously funded by NIH since 1977. The mission of the Iowa
MSTP is to promote the development of inquisitive, creative and rigorous scientists, whose leadership
and discoveries advance the science of medicine and its translation into clinical practice. At Iowa, the
MSTP has led innovation in T32 training that includes building a unique culture that weaves program
evaluation into program design. These efforts have benefitted from the recent recruitment of a dedicated
faculty program evaluator (Dr. Hoffmann) who has developed methods to assess effectiveness of
training, including annual surveys, targeted interviews, and focus groups that assess special topics or
cohort experiences within the MSTP. Through this work, leadership within the MSTP has identified key
instructional elements needed to advance trainee confidence and satisfaction in their personal growth
during their MD-PhD years. This experience had also built a recognition that continued success towards
training career physician-scientists depends upon an understanding of the current landscape challenging
trainees as they embark on careers as physician-scientists. This includes important influences on career
choices between working in industry or academia or leaving the academic enterprise to enter private
practice. We know that the academic job market is rapidly changing, and we suspect that careers for
physician-scientists are also in flux. This is exemplified by increased interest of our graduates in medical
specialties that are not traditionally associated with MD/PhD training backgrounds such as the surgical
specialties. Our current program evaluation model leans heavily on insights from current students, staff
and faculty, and is well-suited to evaluate the internal workings of the program. We now propose to
develop a platform to explore what happens after the MSTP by integrating a different population into our
program evaluation strategy – our program alumni. This evaluation platform will be piloted with our MSTP
alumni with the expectation that it will expand our institutional evaluation capacity not only for the MSTP
but also for other T32-funded training programs on campus.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10592969
- **Project number:** 3T32GM139776-02S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF IOWA
- **Principal Investigator:** PAMELA K. GEYER
- **Activity code:** T32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $86,400
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2021-07-01 → 2026-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10592969

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10592969, Expanding program evaluation capacity and enhancing training programs through alumni perspectives (3T32GM139776-02S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-28 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10592969. Licensed CC0.

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