Project Summary/Abstract Kidney disease constitutes a significant, increasing burden on the United States healthcare system. Although kidney disease related research has made significant advances on our understanding of the various conditions that lead to acute or chronic renal insufficiency, little progress has been made towards finding cures. Focused, concerted efforts by researchers need to be implemented to advance current knowledge towards translational goals. Such efforts will be aided by recruiting the best and brightest minds into this field. The UTSW Summer Undergraduate Research Institute for the Study of Kidney Diseases (SURISKD) strives to introduce undergraduate students with an interest in biomedical research to the exciting field of kidney research. Participants spend 10 weeks learning about the kidney and kidney disease by taking courses from and performing kidney disease-related research in the labs of some of the leading kidney disease researchers in the world. This program seeks to expose, educate, train and recruit the future generation of kidney disease researchers.