StARR-BRITE Clinician-Scientist Development Program

• Up to 2 residents may join the program before clinical ophthalmology post graduate training begins, spending 1-2 years in full-time, immersive research with Kellogg’s labs  and partners.  

• Salary support will be provided at National Institute of Health postdoctoral fellowship levels, along with research support through a budget developed in collaboration with the primary mentor.  

• During your residency, you’ll transition into a tailored, longitudinal research curriculum with protected research blocks.  

• In addition to dedicated research time, you will receive a research budget and partial technician support commensurate with anticipated research activities.  

• Participate in diverse projects spanning basic science, clinical trials, health services, AI/data science, and product development.  

• Structured curriculum on research skills, writing, data science, leadership, and grant development.  

• Formal mentoring and career development support.  

• Hands-on experience in Michigan’s advanced vision labs, data cores, and clinical trial centers.  

• Receive annual feedback and guidance from an external advisory committee of renowned clinician-scientists.  

• Participate in metric-driven evaluations to ensure your progress toward independent research.  

Applicants interested in a research-intensive pathway are encouraged to also apply through the standard ophthalmology residency application, as this allows simultaneous consideration for Track 2 (OPTICS) if interests, timing, or fit evolve during the selection process. 

OPTICS (Track 2) offers a research‑heavy residency with expanded protected research time and some research funding support integrated throughout residency, without pre‑residency research years or a larger research budget that comes to StARR-BRITE candidates.  

StARR‑BRITE (Track 3) is a highly intensive clinician‑scientist pathway that includes pre‑residency research years, protected research time throughout residency, a substantial research budget and potential technician support, and structured career development for residents pursuing research‑dominant, independently funded academic careers. 

Yes. Applicants are not required to secure a confirmed mentor at the time of application. While many applicants identify potential mentors or areas of interest, final mentor matching is an iterative process that occurs during interviews and early program engagement after the application is submitted. We do require you, however, to identify a list of potential mentors at the time of initial application, even if follow-up dialogue determines those mentors are not good fits for your research project(s). 

Yes. Cross‑departmental and interdisciplinary research collaborations are encouraged, and applicants may work with or be co‑mentored by faculty outside the Department. Each trainee will also have a primary mentor within the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences to ensure alignment with residency training and program goals. 

Applicants apply through the standard ophthalmology residency application process and should indicate their interest in Track 2 (OPTICS) in their personal statement and career plans. Entry into Track 2 requires a competitive internal application submitted during the PGY‑1 (internal medicine) year, which includes a research proposal and plan, a proposed research budget, and identification of a faculty mentor. See Track 2: Optics on the Resident Research page for detailed requirements. 

No. Entry into Track 2 (OPTICS) is competitive and dependent on available resources, the strength of the proposed research plan, mentor alignment, and overall fit. Residents apply during their PGY‑1 year, and selection is based on the quality and feasibility of the application rather than guaranteed placement. 

A research budget is developed with the candidate’s mentor and submitted annually to departmental leadership. Supply requests are supported if adequate progress is made on prior research goals. For StARR‑BITE applicants, partial technician support during residency may be provided case‑by‑case based on research progress. 

If applying to both programs, only submit one preference signal to the program you are most interested in. A preference signal to StARR-BRITE, will be interpreted as interested in Track 2 (OPTICS), unless explicitly stated otherwise in the application.