Render James A, Mkonyi Ever, Langford Ashley, Qua Kelli, Junk Damian J
Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA.
Center for Medical Education, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA.
Med Res Arch. 2025 Apr;13(4). doi: 10.18103/mra.v13i4.6432. Epub 2025 Apr 30.
The Case Comprehensive Cancer Center's Youth Enjoy Science (YES) Program is funded by the National Cancer Institute to promote broad interest in pursuing a career in biomedical research via early intervention strategies that inspire student interest, help envision research as a career path, and strengthen practical research and career skills. A major aspect of the YES program is an 8-week immersion into cancer center faculty laboratories to conduct a cancer research project over the summer. The overall goal is to excite students to consider a future career in biomedical research or healthcare to enhance the future cancer-focused workforce. To ensure the YES program is meeting its goals and providing an exceptional experience for students, an external evaluation team performs an annual evaluation that incorporates a mixed methods approach combining mechanisms for formal and informal feedback. The team shares key insights with program leadership, faculty, and student representatives to ensure that all feedback directly informs program adjustments. This approach emphasizes actionable results rather than passive data collection, reinforcing the program's commitment to continuous quality improvement. Formal surveys suggest the program has been consistently meeting its goals of increasing student understanding of cancer biology and research. However, a recent reduction in survey response rates makes it challenging to determine whether survey respondents are primarily those with the most positive experiences. Integrating both formal and informal feedback mechanisms in program evaluation is essential for capturing the full range of student experiences. Thus, it is critical that training programs provide a channel for informal discussions. The YES program coordinator maintains close relationships with all stakeholders and is deeply familiar with student participants, from the application process to ongoing program activities. As an approachable and engaged leader, the coordinator effectively gathers feedback and implements changes to enhance program performance. In response to formal and informal feedback, the YES program curriculum has been modified to enhance not only student and mentor experiences but also the process for soliciting feedback in the future.
凯斯综合癌症中心的“青年热爱科学（YES）计划”由美国国立癌症研究所资助，旨在通过早期干预策略激发学生兴趣、帮助他们将科研视为一种职业道路并强化实践科研和职业技能，从而促进学生对从事生物医学研究职业产生广泛兴趣。YES计划的一个主要方面是让学生在癌症中心教员的实验室里进行为期8周的沉浸式学习，以便在暑期开展一个癌症研究项目。总体目标是激发学生考虑未来从事生物医学研究或医疗保健职业，以壮大未来专注于癌症领域的劳动力队伍。为确保YES计划实现其目标并为学生提供卓越体验，一个外部评估团队进行年度评估，采用混合方法，将正式和非正式反馈机制结合起来。该团队与项目负责人、教员和学生代表分享关键见解，以确保所有反馈都能直接为项目调整提供依据。这种方法强调可采取行动的结果而非被动的数据收集，强化了该项目对持续质量改进的承诺。正式调查表明，该项目一直实现其目标，即增强学生对癌症生物学和研究的理解。然而，最近调查回复率的下降使得难以确定调查对象是否主要是那些有最积极体验的学生。在项目评估中整合正式和非正式反馈机制对于全面了解学生体验至关重要。因此，培训项目提供一个进行非正式讨论的渠道至关重要。YES计划协调员与所有利益相关者保持密切关系，并且从申请过程到项目的持续活动都非常熟悉学生参与者。作为一位平易近人且积极参与的领导者，协调员有效地收集反馈并实施变革以提升项目表现。针对正式和非正式反馈，YES计划课程已进行修改，不仅增强了学生和导师的体验，还改进了未来征求反馈的流程。
