Program History

The Discovery to Cure High School Internship Program was established in 2003 by Dr. Gil Mor, former Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences, with the goal of exposing talented students from local high schools to Yale's biomedical laboratories to open their minds to future career opportunities in science and medicine.

The initial program enrolled four students from two local high schools with the participation of two laboratories at the Department of Obstetrics Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences. Since then, the program has grown to include over 41 schools from throughout the country with the number of applications exceeding 200 per year for 25 available slots. The program is highly competitive (less than 12% acceptance) and since its inception a total of over 300 high school students, undergraduates and high school teachers have successfully completed the Program.

Several interns have presented their research work at science fairs, including the Connecticut Junior Science and Humanities Symposium at UCONN, the National JSHS, Pfizer Life Science Award, Connecticut State Science Fair, International Science and Engineering Fair and the Siemens Westinghouse Science and Technology Competition, achieving semifinalist, finalist and first place status. Approximately 20% of the students have published their findings in peer-reviewed scientific journals.