Ask yourself…
- Would you want your physician to be up-to-date regarding the latest advancements in research, medicine and clinical practices?
- Should medical doctors know about the rarest diseases and treatment options in their field?
- Should they be able to filter “fake news” and understand why their patients might ask questions regarding such “fake news”?
In the curriculum for medical students, there is barely any space for scientific research, reading scientific articles, understanding experiments or designing them. The Utrecht Student Journal wants to spark an interest in scientific research that not only improves chances of finding a residency position, but also creates better medical professionals.
With this in mind, former Utrecht University medical students Anna Vera Verschuur MD and Avin Ghedri MD started the Utrecht Student Journal (USJ) in 2018 with the support from and financed by the UMC Utrecht. Nowadays, the journal is run by a team of enthusiastic medical, biomedical and business students, organized into a board, marketing and design team. Together, we have produced 5 editions to-date.
Every edition is divided into rubrics with different themes. There you find Dutch summaries of current scientific research – produced at the UMC Utrecht – alongside articles that shine light on science beyond research, for example, in art. Additionally, we give students the opportunity to publish their thesis and give elaborate feedback and guidance in making their thesis publishable. Moreover, we address the impact of science on society and interview prominent people in the field.
Highlights include interviews with world-class researchers Hans Clevers, Jeffrey Beekman, and former manager of the Wilhelmina Children’s hospital Jan Kimpen, media collaborations with the Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde (ntvg), instagram queen Heleen Lameijer and fake-news advocates Dokter Media, as well as recent collaborations with other medical student journals such as RAMS (Nijmegen) and AMSj (Amsterdam). The USJ itself was interviewed by the ntvg (Dutch, 2018) – check it out!
Apart from curating the journal, the team behind the USJ enjoys regular dinners and fun activities together. Collaborating with people from different fields and with different perspectives continues to improve our teamwork and induces personal growth 🙂