For many students interested in health care careers, breaking into research can be one of the biggest hurdles. At the University of South Florida, a student-led initiative is helping undergraduates gain the experience they need to take that first step with confidence.
Honors students Shivanshu Kumar and Elaine Pan created Florida MedConnect after seeing that many pre-med and health-focused students wanted to pursue research but didn’t yet have the experience required to secure faculty-led positions. Their organization introduces students to the research world through mentorship, poster development, lab placements, and community-driven volunteer initiatives.
Create the Student Org You Want to Join
Kumar and Pan chose USF because of the range of labs and volunteering opportunities available to pre-medical students. Coming into her first year at USF, Pan knew the dream was health care, and that USF could help her get there.
“I wanted a career that would be both satisfying and gratifying for me, and I felt like health care offered that,” said Pan. “When I was researching USF’s 7-year B.S./M.D. program, I found it was such an amazing place for pre-med students — you can really make it your own.”
Kumar discovered USF to be a place where students could customize their own journeys and find like-minded peers.
“What makes it great here is that any type of idea you have, you can find at least 100 students who will also like it,” Kumar said.
Kumar and Pan crossed paths early in their first year at USF. Both lived in the Honors Living Learning Community in Juniper-Poplar Hall and were enrolled in the same Honors Foundations course, a Judy Genshaft Honors College program that helps first-year students connect with the university and discover new opportunities. A class assignment revealed they shared a common goal: getting involved in research early in their academic careers.
Though both hoped to gain laboratory and hands-on experience, Kumar and Pan didn’t know where to start as first-year students. They often heard, “Come back and apply once you have more experience.” And when they finally found a lab that accepted first-year students, they still had to determine whether the work aligned with their long-term goals.
“My biggest struggle was finding the perfect lab, and I think that’s the biggest difficulty pre-med students struggle with,” said Pan.
“Labs, especially outside of USF require a lot of experience before getting in. As a first-year, how are we supposed to get experience in just a few months?” said Kumar as he explained how the idea for Florida MedConnect began. “So we started thinking, what if we could offer a package that helps people get into the research field and labs down the line?”
Despite the rigor of pre-medical coursework, studying for the MCAT, and working in research labs themselves, Kumar and Pan made time to launch Florida MedConnect during their second year at USF.
Growing Florida MedConnect
Their first cohort included just 20 members, a group that marked the start of a now-thriving organization. With Kumar as the sole mentor, he helped prepare the students to create and present their very first research posters at USF’s Undergraduate Research Conference.
Research posters proved to be an accessible bridge point for students who wanted to complete medical research but had no prior experience.
“We wanted something to give a platform for students to help them make that jump between having no research experience to becoming a researcher,” Pan said. “The way we did that was through research posters.”
Since the poster program began last fall, both membership and the number of student mentors have grown significantly. Their most recent cohort included 200 students. Kumar credits Florida MedConnect’s rapid expansion to social media outreach and offering services that pre-health students need.
“One of our most successful ad campaigns that we ran on our Instagram included us reaching out to professors for lab positions and offering them to students, because we know how hard those positions can be to get,” said Kumar. “We got 10 positions and advertised them on our Instagram — the first one had 150 applicants, and the last one had nearly 400.”
Beyond research, Florida MedConnect also offers volunteer opportunities that provide services like translations, reading materials, activities and mentoring for communities in need. These efforts are housed within the organization’s health literacy program, which includes Health in Your Language, Pages of Comfort, Health Literacy for Seniors, and a new initiative called the Mind to Matter Challenge. Kumar and Pan formed these partnerships by calling representatives, scheduling meetings and staying in regular communication with organizations such as Tampa Bay Street Medicine, Radiant Hands, St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital, senior living communities, and local high schools.
Leaving a Legacy
Florida MedConnect is reshaping how students prepare for careers in health care and engage with USF’s research resources. As Kumar and Pan pursue medical school and their professional paths, their legacy will continue through the support programs they created and the pathways they built for undergraduates to explore their interests beyond the classroom.
For students who want to build a community to meet a need at USF, Kumar advises starting early — and listening closely to the people they hope to serve.
“You can grow an audience as you grow and improve your organization,” said Kumar. “And remember, when creating a new student organization, it’s about offering the best value to the students.”
If you are interested in being a part of Florida MedConnect, follow their Instagram or join via BullsConnect.