A Summer of Success: 2026 ASPIRE Cohort Showcases Their Research

The Advanced Summer Program for Investigation and Research Education (ASPIRE) spans just eight weeks, and for the 2026 ASPIRE students, the summer program has already come to an end. In that short time, however, this exceptional group of researchers developed new skills, deepened their passion for medical research, and made a lasting impact.

This year’s ASPIRE cohort included students from 14 institutions, including WashU, Mizzou, SLU, University of Michigan, University of Southern California, and Emory University. For the first time, the cohort was a blend of undergraduate (18) and predoctoral (6) students. Over the course of the program, the students received instruction in research design, statistics, and research ethics, and they worked alongside WashU faculty experts and research teams to gain hands-on experience in conducting research experiments. We couldn’t be happier with the program’s outcomes.

Students left the program demonstrating high proficiency in collaborating efficiently with their mentors to navigate and enhance their professional growth, explaining the results and translational impact of their study to a lay audience, managing ethical concerns in a research project, and ensuring data collection is rigorous and reproducible. We are incredibly thankful to ASPIRE Director Jay Piccirillo, MD, FACS, Course Director Dorina Kallogjeri, MD, MPH, and Teaching Assistant Sandra Dimitri, MD, MPH.

Additionally, we couldn’t achieve such great program success without the support of our mentors and their research teams. This summer our students worked with researchers in the Departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, Neurology, Obstetrics & Gynecology, Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, Pathology & Immunology, Radiation Oncology, Surgery, Psychological & Brain Sciences, the Program in Occupational Therapy, and the Program in Physical Therapy.

ASPIRE student Juhi Arora gave us an inside look at her lab, the Systems Neuroscience and Rehabilitation Lab, where she worked closely with Principal Investigator Laura McPherson, PT, DPT, PhD, and Staff Scientist Daniel Free, PhD. In their project “Subclinical Pathophysiology of Motor Processing in People with Multiple Sclerosis,” they have been combining research in neuroscience and physical therapy to assess motor unit firing patterns in order to track the progression of multiple sclerosis. She gained hands-on experience in statistical analysis, coding, and chart review, while also working alongside study participants to place electrodes and ensure testing conditions were fair and consistent.

Although we didn’t get to visit every student’s lab, we had the opportunity to learn about their research during ASPIRE Final Presentations. This occasion gathered the ASPIRE students, their mentors, and lab members in one space for a day filled with outstanding presentations. Our students showed up dressed to impress and effectively provided background on their area of research, outlined the project design and research methods, showcased data that was used to inform their research, and engaged in discourse following the conclusion of their presentation. When not presenting, the students actively participated as audience members, asking thought-provoking questions on the data and study design.

This eight-week program flies by, but each year our students are able to leave with invaluable skills and develop long-lasting relationships with their mentors and peers. We are so proud of this summer’s ASPIRE cohort and are excited for their continued growth as medical researchers, as well as the future of the program.

A huge thanks to the 2026 ASPIRE cohort: