The application will ask for:

• Basic demographic information
• Personal statement (2 pages, single spaced) answering the following prompts:
  • How has the applicant’s background, experiences, and academic journey prepared them for a career in science? Or: How has the applicant’s background, experiences, and academic journey shaped their aspirations to pursue a science career?
  • What do the applicant expect to get from the MSK Bridge program and research experience?
  • How does MSK Bridge fit into the applicant’s career journey?
• Curriculum vitae (CV) or resume (3 pages maximum), include: articles, theses, books, other published materials, patented inventions, academic honors, prizes, scholarships and leadership activities, etc. Information about previous work experience is also welcomed on the CV.
• Unofficial transcripts must be submitted with the application. Upon acceptance, official transcript from each of the Scholar’s college or university(s) will be required. For every school that the applicants list in their application, they must provide an unofficial transcript. If there are discrepancies between the official and unofficial transcripts, the program will rescind the acceptance.
• The names and emails of two faculty members or employers who are familiar with the applicant’s credentials related to laboratory research or relevant work experience will be requested as the recommenders. They will be sent a link and must provide a letter of recommendation by the application deadline. (Please note recommendations from family members or friends are not appropriate.)
• GRE scores are not required, but candidates who have taken the MCAT should indicate their score on their application. 

Applicants to MSK Bridge must be about to complete or must have a baccalaureate in a biomedically relevant science discipline from an accredited college or university awarded no more than 36 months prior to applying and must not be currently enrolled in a terminal degree program. Those who have completed master’s degrees are eligible to apply if they are within 36 months of the completion of their bachelor’s (or equivalent) degree. If the undergraduate degree was not in the life or physical sciences, candidates can still apply, but must demonstrate fluency in biology/ biochemistry/ engineering/ computational biology.

Parental or medical leave is not included in the 3-year eligibility limit, nor is national service (e.g., Peace Corps, or service in the National Guard or Armed Forces Reserves). Applicants can check with the MSK Bridge leadership in advance of applying if they have questions about eligibility ([email protected]). MSK Bridge Scholars should intend to apply to research-focused biomedical doctoral degree programs (PhD or MD-PhD) during or immediately following completion of MSK Bridge. This program is not intended for those applying for medical, dental, nursing, or veterinary school.

Applicant will also need to provide the names and emails of two recommenders who are familiar with their credentials related to academic trajectory, laboratory research, or relevant work experience — they will be sent a link to upload their letter of recommendation for the applicant. If the applicant has not yet engaged in any research experience, they can provide the names of professors and/or academic advisors who can write about their potential for succeeding in such a program. Please note recommendations recommendation letters from family members or friends are not appropriate. After the applicant enters the recommenders’ email addresses, the application will prompt an email to the recommender to submit the letter of recommendation directly; applicants cannot upload their own recommendation letters.

Requests for each recommendation letter will be sent to the recommender only after the applicant submits their application.

Applicant can change a recommender in the application form, only if they have not formally submitted their application. After the application has been submitted, the applicant cannot make any changes. If the applicant needs to replace an existing recommender, they can email us at [email protected] with the new name and email, and also notify the original recommender that they are no longer require to submit a letter. The new name and email will have to be manually entered by our team.

The potential reasons for why the recommender(s) may not have received the system-generated email request for a letter of recommendation.

• Recommender email is misspelled: Applicant must log on to the application system and check that the email address is the correct one, then the applicant can resend a request for a letter.
• Letter request is in the junk/spam folder: Applicant should advise the recommender(s) to check their SPAM or Junk folder.

If the email message is still not received after trying the steps listed above and the applicant suspects that there is a technical problem, then send us an email at [email protected].

It is the applicant responsibility to ensure that the recommendation letters are received by the program deadline. If the recommender is having issues uploading the letter, please have them email the letters in PDF format directly to the Bridge Leadership at [email protected].

All letters must be received by the deadline in that given year (usually in late February).

Yes, request for recommendation letter(s) will be sent to the recommender once the applicant submits their application. Applicants should submit their application as soon as they have completed all the required elements to allow their recommenders enough time to submit their letter(s) by the deadline.

No, after the applicants have submitted an application, they cannot make any changes. If there are any issues or questions, email us at [email protected].

Applicants will receive an email confirming that their application is complete when all elements have been received including their letters of recommendation. Note: Applications that remain incomplete after the deadline will not be reviewed.

Everyone who submitted a completed application by the deadline will receive a notification by the end of March.

If the applicant encounters a message: “Application with this email address is not found,” it is likely that they are logging in with an email that is different from the one the program has on record. Applicants with two accounts risk having application documents logged in two different places and risk the application not marked as complete. Email [email protected] for additional help.

Some of these issues can be solved by switching browsers (Chrome, Firefox), clearing the browser cache, and disabling pop-up blockers. For further issues, please contact us immediately at [email protected].

Yes, applicants that remain eligible (see the Eligibility section above), are welcome to reapply to Bridge.

The MSK Bridge program will take place in person at the research buildings of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in the Upper East Side of New York City. Scholars will be hosted by one of the MSK labs listed on the MSK Bridge program website.

Yes, MSK Bridge Scholars will receive a stipend of $47,741 per year for the 2025 - 2027 academic years, paid on a bi-weekly basis.

MSK offers a wide range of benefits for MSK Bridge Scholars, which includes health coverage (medical, prescription, vision, and dental), Care information and referral service, as well as an employee discount program.

Scholars also have access to the MSK Emergency Hardship Fund. This fund offers financial support to enrolled scientific trainees who are facing sudden and temporary financial challenges resulting from personal or family emergencies but cannot resolve these difficulties through alternative measures (fellowships, loans, or personal resources). We understand that such financial emergencies can add stress that negatively impacts academic progress. The MSK Emergency Hardship Fund aims to help scientific trainees experiencing such emergencies, alleviating the sudden burden and allowing them to return on track with their academic and scientific progress. 

Yes, Bridge Scholars will be available to rent in the same buildings as other MSK trainees. Housing may be shared accommodation with a same-sex Scholar.

Yes, relocation expenses will be covered. Accepted Scholars will receive the guidelines and limits about relocation expenses upon acceptance. 

The MSK Bridge program is intended to be a two-year commitment to a lab and to the courses paced across a 24 month stay. Scholars cannot be extended under the Bridge program after 2 years. 

The MSK Bridge program is intended to be a two-year commitment to a lab and to the courses paced across a 24 month stay. 

In the first year of the program, MSK Bridge Scholars will take a course modeled after the Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School (GSK) cancer biology core course and facilitated by an MSK faculty or a postdoc.

Year 1:

• Summer: Arriving MSK Bridge Scholars will join summer interns in a variety of professional development, poster sessions, and educational lectures. Scholars will also take the required lab safety training courses as follows: Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR), Biosafety and Fire Safety, Radiation Safety, Animal use and care, and C-14 laboratory certification.
• Fall: The Fall semester will have multiple scientific skills-building workshops which include, but may not be limited to, proteomics, animal models, imaging handling & analysis, and computational biology.
• Winter: Scholars will take a modified version of the 10-week Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School (GSK) cancer biology core course mentored by GSK upper class students.
• Spring: The spring semester will be dominated by professional development coursework: communication, networking, presenting at conferences, conflict resolution, and grantsmanship.

Year 2:

• MSK Bridge Scholars will start year two in the program working with incoming Bridge Scholars, leading the journal club that was established in year 1, and identifying schools to which they will apply.
• Fall: Scholars will participate in an intensive three-day Demystifying the Graduate School Application Process event, as well as other application submission and interview prep workshops.
• One on one mentorship will be provided related to personal statements and other application materials.

Further coursework will be at the Scholar’s discretion.

Once an applicant is accepted into the MSK Bridge program, the program leadership will match the accepted Scholar with a potential principal investigator (PI) from among those listed on the program website. The matching will be determined based on applicant’s qualifications and research interests that align with the PI’s. All Bridge-specific PIs have pledged a commitment to hosting and providing mentoring to Bridge Scholars to build a strong foundation in biomedical wet-lab and/or computational research. Information about the scientific focus of participating labs can be found by visiting their respective web pages as noted above in the program faculty webpages. MSK Bridge program leadership will take an active role in working with each accepted applicant to find a scientific home.

Participation in the MSK Bridge program does not guarantee admissions into Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSK), the Weill Cornell Graduate School, or the Tri-Institutional PhD Programs in Chemical Biology (TPCB), Computational Biology and Medicine (CBM), or MD-PhD Program. MSK Bridge Scholars interested in graduate programs at MSK would need to apply to the programs during their second year in the MSK Bridge program. However, during the program, Scholars will have ample opportunities to interact with deans, directors, faculty, and those on admissions committees, which may improve their chances of admissions into the graduate program(s).

Scholars will receive extensive individual academic and professional guidance. This will include individual monthly meetings with their PI; oversight by a day-to-day mentor (postdoc, grad student and/or other lab member), and quarterly meetings with the Office of Scientific Education & Training (OSET) team and MSK Bridge program’s leadership.

MSK Bridge Scholars that are committed to applying to MD-PhD programs will be matched to a physician for shadowing experience in the winter/spring of their first year as a Scholar.

MSK Bridge Scholars that are committed to applying to MD-PhD programs will receive up to $2,000 to cover MCAT preparation expenses. Scholars will be able to choose the materials or course of their preference.