As a pre-med student at Indiana University Indianapolis, Daniella Lopes had her sights set on a career in medicine. When her advisor encouraged her to apply to the Medical Neuroscience Summer Undergraduate Research Program at Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, she thought it would be a great opportunity to include lab experience on medical school applications.
But soon after Lopes started her summer internship in 2022 and learned more about the breadth of research at the Indiana University School of Medicine, her perspective started to shift.
“It wasn’t until I participated in the Stark Summer Science Symposium that I realized I wanted a career in research,” said Lopes, who is now a PhD student in the Medical Neuroscience Graduate Program. “Hearing different perspectives and experiences during the presentations made me realize that I thoroughly enjoyed what I was doing, as well as listening to others’ discoveries.”
Lopes is one of hundreds of trainees at the IU School of Medicine who have participated in the annual Stark Summer Science Symposium. The event first began in 2019 and provides a platform for predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees to present research through oral talks and poster presentations, exchange ideas and network.
The 2026 symposium, set for July 29-30 at University Tower and Hine Hall on the IU Indianapolis campus, will feature Andy Tsai, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University and a 2022 graduate of the Medical Neuroscience Graduate Program, as its keynote speaker.
“For many trainees, the symposium is a turning point,” said Adrian Oblak, PhD, co-director of the Medical Neuroscience Graduate Program. “It offers their first real opportunity to connect with other researchers, get feedback on projects and gain the confidence that comes from presenting their work to a supportive audience.”
Anna Remes, a PhD student in medical neuroscience, first took part in the symposium in 2022 through the summer undergraduate research program. Remes was studying at Purdue University and wanted to learn about different fields of research; it was through the program that she settled on studying addiction in graduate school.
“The summer research program helped me develop skills essential to being a scientist and gave me confidence that I could succeed in higher education,” Remes said. “I consider participation in the Medical Neuroscience Graduate Program as a training opportunity where I can practice and develop better leadership and communication skills.”
In addition to oral presentations and poster presentations, trainees can participate in breakout and networking sessions where they learn more about careers in research, professional development opportunities and scientific advocacy.
As a rising senior at Carmel High School, Jihoon Kwon was introduced to Stark through the SEED/STEM summer program offered through the Indiana Clinical Translational Sciences Institute. The program pairs Indiana high school students with research faculty at the IU School of Medicine, IU Indianapolis and the Indiana Biosciences Research Institute who mentor them through an immersive summer research project.
Kwon, who later joined the summer undergraduate research program in 2025 and conducted a research project testing a novel drug in development for Alzheimer’s disease, said his experience at Stark was the catalyst to him studying neuroscience and behavioral biology as an undergraduate student at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Kwon also works part-time performing imaging analysis for the MODEL-AD center at the IU School of Medicine.
“While I mainly focused on Alzheimer’s disease research, there were lots of other labs working on solving vital medical issues like traumatic brain injuries, Parkinson’s disease, neuro-ophthalmology research and more,” Kwon said. “Seeing this range of translational science was an incredible experience; the program showed me that the research going on at Stark is truly multidisciplinary and cutting-edge.”
