2027 Application Information

PROPEL Scholars 2025-26
PROPEL Scholars 2025–2026 (7 of 8 pictured) and Program Staff

Program Description

OHSU PROPEL, formerly PREP, is a postbaccalaureate program designed to broaden access to careers in biomedical research. We are dedicated to reducing obstacles in graduate education. We foster safe, supportive, and inclusive communities where postbacs can engage in meaningful research experiences and receive mentorship that helps guide their development as scientists.

We appreciate the interest of applicants pursuing careers in biomedical research. Our application will open on Dec 1, 2026.

Eligibility Criteria

OHSU PROPEL is partially funded through research labs and partially funded by the NIH. All scholars must meet the PROPEL eligibility criteria. A subset of our cohort also meet the additional eligibility criteria, as required by the NIH. 

To be eligible to apply to OHSU PROPEL, all applicants must:

  • Have earned an undergraduate degree from an accredited U.S. college or university in a biomedically relevant discipline
  • Work full-time as a research assistant in the lab of an OHSU faculty member
    • OR be hired as a research assistant by July 2027
  • Plan to pursue a doctoral degree in biomedical science (PhD or MD-PhD)
  • Commit to participating in program events for at least one academic year

To be considered for NIH funding, applicants will be asked to verify additional eligibility criteria, listed below:

  • Have earned a bachelor's degree < 36 months prior to applying to the program
  • Not be currently enrolled in a degree-granting program
  • Have status as a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or permanent resident 

Application Information

Applications are submitted through the Competitive Application Portal (CAP), powered by InfoReady. You will need to create a new account or log in with your OHSU credentials to access the application. 

You will be able to save your application and return to it at a later date if you do not want to fill it all out in one sitting. 

When ready to apply, you will be asked to provide responses to questions and upload certain documents to your online application as PDFs. See more details below.

There are five short answer questions:

  1. What are your career goals and motivations to obtain a PhD (or MD-PhD)?
  2. What research experience has most shaped your development as a scientist? Share with us how you were involved in the project(s) and what excited you about the research. Research experiences may include coursework, summer internships, volunteering, etc.
  3. How have you made the most out of the opportunities available to you at your undergraduate institution? What was missing from that experience that the postbac could provide?
  4. Name the skill(s) you’d most like to develop during your postbac to be successful as a graduate student, and why?
  5. What are your ideas to help broaden access to opportunities in research? You can speak from personal experiences or your ideas as a future leader in science.

The maximum character count for each response is 1500 characters.

When applicable, applicants will be asked to specify 3-5 research faculty that interest you. These names will be used for the research mentor-matching process of selected scholars, including rotations. To identify faculty, applicants can review our list of participating research mentors or the "Find a Lab" OHSU page. 

An updated curriculum vitae or resume. This document should contain details of your research experiences (if applicable). 

Be sure to include the following sections:

  1. Education
  2. Research Experience (if any)
  3. Work or Professional Experience (non-research related)
  4. Awards and/or Honors
  5. Leadership and/or Volunteer Experience
  6. Clinical or Shadowing Experience (applicable to those interested in applying to MD-PhD dual degree programs). Please format this section to include:
    1. Your role
    2. The location of your experience
    3. The total number of hours accrued in each activity

Other sections such as Presentations or Publications can be included, as needed.

Remember to list your participation in any programs that provide access to undergraduate research experiences (e.g., LSAMP, McNair, REU, SURP, MARC, etc.). For all the Experience-related sections, report dates of involvement in month-year format (e.g., May 2023 - July 2023) .

Copy of your unofficial transcript(s) submitted electronically. For students who are currently enrolled please provide transcripts with grades through the end of winter term and your current enrollment for spring term, if applicable.  For students who have completed a bachelor's degree, please include your final transcript.

If you are a transfer student, please include any other transcripts from previous institutions. Be sure to merge your documents into a single PDF for upload. Include any transcripts from courses taken post-bachelor's degree, if applicable.

For your application to be considered complete, you will need to submit two letters. Your letters should be written by a trusted mentor who can speak to your potential for research such as a research mentor, course instructor, or professor.

You will need to enter the email address of your two recommenders.

You are strongly encouraged to use the notification feature to send your recommenders an email with instructions on how to submit their letter. When you click "Send Letter Request" on a saved draft application in InfoReady, your letter writers will receive an automated email containing a unique link to upload their letters, even while you continue working on your draft. If you choose to not send them a notification, your recommenders will only receive a submission link once you submit the entire application, so be sure to complete the application well ahead of the deadline to give your recommenders adequate time to submit their letters.

If your recommender did not receive a link or you have questions about this step, please contact OHSU PROPEL at preptograd@ohsu.edu

Other information we request as part of the application includes:

  • Contact information
  • Responses to multiple-choice questions about your past research experiences (if any), graduate programs of interest, and preparation for the GRE or MCAT
  • Qualtrics code (received when you complete the form that collects anonymous demographic information—this is not tied to your PROPEL application)
  • Other transferable work experiences (not research-related)

Information for Letter Writers

Thank you for agreeing to write a letter for your PROPEL applicant. Below you will find guidance for writing a letter of recommendation.

For the letter of recommendation, please address the following:

  • Your relationship to the applicant, including how long you have known the applicant.
  • An evaluation of the applicant’s strengths, weaknesses, and their potential for success in a research-focused doctoral degree program or MD-PhD program, if applicable.
  • How the applicant may contribute to the PROPEL postbac community.
  • If Applicable: If you are the PI/supervisor responsible for the daily activities of the OHSU RA, please provide your confirmation that the applicant will be have out-of-lab time to attend PROPEL program activities.

For priority applications, please submit your letter by March 1, 2027 at 11:59 pm. The final deadline for all application materials will be May 1 at 11:59 pm.

Application Deadline

Priority Application Deadline: March 1, 2027 11:59 PM

If you are not currently employed at OHSU or are interested in completing lab rotations through a NIH-funded PROPEL position, you are strongly encouraged to apply by the priority deadline.

Final Application Deadline: May 1, 2027 11:59 PM

Applicants who are currently employed at OHSU and plan to continue conducting research in their current lab may apply by the final deadline of May 1.

Questions?

Have questions as your begin preparing your application? Contact us at preptograd@ohsu.edu