The Mass General Brigham Department of Dermatology is proud to announce its Annual Medical Student Virtual Research Symposium taking place on Wednesday, May 20, 2026 from 11 AM to 3 PM EST. This is the sixth year of our virtual symposium, which was launched under the Department of Dermatology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in 2021, and is now being continued through our integrated Department of Dermatology spanning both Brigham and Women’s and Mass General Hospitals!
Our department has a longstanding tradition of supporting inquiry, investigation, and innovation in dermatology and is recognized as among the largest departments of dermatology in the country and a leader in the field internationally. We are pleased to host this unique Virtual Research Symposium, now in its 6th year, exclusively dedicated to highlighting medical student research accomplishments in dermatology in a national forum. We welcome submissions from a broad variety of research topics and look forward to showcasing your accomplishments.
Submissions are due Friday, April 10, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST.
Questions? Email dermsymposium@mgb.org.
What: A 4-hour Virtual Research Symposium dedicated to medical student research in dermatology. See full agenda below; the day will include research plenary sessions, breakout poster sessions, and short spotlight talks from select MGB Dermatology Faculty aimed at medical students with a clinical interest in dermatology.
Research categories include:
Types of research that will be considered include laboratory-based investigations, epidemiologic studies, quality improvement work, medical education projects, or any other scholarly projects. Based on the number of submissions, certain categories may be combined.
Additionally, we will have a separate category for Case Reports/Case Series.
All submissions will be reviewed by a committee including members of the MGB Dermatology Faculty, Fellows and Harvard Dermatology Residents. Up to 10 of the highest rated submissions will be selected for plenary oral presentation. We anticipate research investigations will be the majority of plenary presentations.
Please Note: Medical students may serve as the first author on only *1* submission for the Symposium. They may serve as co-authors on any number of other submissions.
Who: Any current medical student engaged in dermatology-related research is eligible to submit projects for consideration. Trainees who have already completed medical school by the time of the project submission are not eligible to participate.
When: Wednesday, May 20, 2026 -- 11 AM to 3 PM EST. Abstract submissions are due by Friday, April 10 at 11:59 PM EST.
Why: To highlight the multifaceted scholarly accomplishments made during the course of the 2025-26 academic year by medical students dedicated to research in dermatology.
Subject to Change
11:00 AM: Welcome and Introductory Remarks
11:05 AM: 5 Plenary Talks by Outstanding Research Abstracts winners
12:00 Noon: Interactive Poster Session - grouped by Research Category
1:05 PM: MGB Derm Faculty Presentations with Audience Q&A
2:00 PM: 5 Plenary Talks by Outstanding Research Abstracts winners
2:55 PM: Closing Remarks
Interested in registering and submitting an abstract for the symposium? Review the following abstract requirements, and then click on the link below to submit!
*All abstracts must use the required template, which can be downloaded here as an editable Word document and converted to PDF.*
All abstracts must be submitted by Friday, April 10 at 11:59 PM EST.
Link to Register and Submit Abstracts: https://redcap.partners.org/redcap/surveys/?s=XFT4DXRF7EHPLLX3
Thanks so much for your interest! Feel free to spread the word!
Questions? Email dermsymposium@mgb.org.
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