Think scientifically
You learn to frame a question, choose the study design, read the literature critically and interpret evidence — a skill that sets you apart on exams and in clinical practice.
In Brazil, undergraduate research — iniciação científica (IC) — teaches you to think scientifically, strengthens your CV, scores in medical residency selection, and opens the door to a master's and a doctorate — often with a FAPESP or PIBIC/CNPq scholarship. Here is why it is worth it and how to start.
Undergraduate research (IC) is an undergraduate student taking part in a research project under the guidance of a researcher. More than a line on a CV, it is where you learn to turn a clinical doubt into a research question, to collect and analyze data, and to communicate results. Those gains compound:
You learn to frame a question, choose the study design, read the literature critically and interpret evidence — a skill that sets you apart on exams and in clinical practice.
Undergraduate research, publications and conference presentations add points in the CV review of many medical residency selection processes — an edge you build years in advance.
IC is the natural gateway to a master's and a doctorate, and familiarizes you with the methodology and statistics you will need in graduate study and an academic career.
A solid IC project becomes a conference abstract and a scientific article — output that stays on your record and follows you throughout your academic life.
In most Brazilian medical residency selection processes, beyond the written exam there is a CV review stage (also called the titles exam or curricular analysis). It is usually structured and objective: each item is worth a score defined in advance in the official call (edital) — and scholarly output is one of the categories that add the most.
The CV review usually carries a defined weight in the total score (in many calls, around 10%) — enough to change where you land on the ranked list.
Undergraduate research, teaching assistantships, academic leagues, journal publications and conference presentations (oral or poster) are among the items typically scored.
Each board (USP/FUVEST, UNIFESP, Einstein, SUS-SP, AMRIGS, ENARE and others) sets its own items, weights and caps. Always check the official call of the process you plan to apply to.
There are scholarships that pay a monthly stipend to the undergraduate student during IC. The two main ones for those doing research in São Paulo are the FAPESP scholarship and PIBIC/CNPq. In both, the request comes from the supervisor and you are tied to a research project.
Describe your research question and your project. We support the study design, the sample size, the data analysis and the figures — so you can write, present and publish your undergraduate research on solid ground.