The Professional Science Master’s (PSM) program is unique. Combining business and science, it makes students more marketable.

Instead of a thesis, students complete internship hours at local sites, like the Missouri Highway Patrol lab.

Dr. Kyoungtae Kim, associate dean of CNAS, toured CoxHealth and Clinvest to learn about internship opportunities. He brought along four PSM students:

• Mya Ly
• Vy Nguyen
• Karina Sewell
• Ryan Windish

Trip to CoxHealth

After a tour of the facilities, the MSU cohort learned about the research opportunities at Cox.The emphasis on cardiovascular and cancer research interested some of the students.

“It was very helpful for me as in international person,” Nguyen said. “It was my first time in an American hospital, and I could learn the structure.”

Windish and Sewell are on track to go to medical school after they graduate with their PSM. Sewell thought it was interesting to see physicians pose research questions.

“A lot of people see research as separate from the hospital, but combining those two — doing clinical research, makes a much more competitive application,” Sewell said.

Nguyen hopes to work in the pharmaceutical industry in regulatory affairs.

Ly is interested in FDA review and low-end regulation of drugs. She liked being able to see options and get an idea of where and what she would like to research.

Clinvest

Ryan Kady, a Missouri State alum, opened Clinvest, a clinical research facility in Springfield.

Students had the opportunity to visit there as well. The focus is different, the students said.

“There’s a family atmosphere,” Windish said. “I don’t think they do as big of research opportunities as Cox does, but there were opportunities for more hands-on research.”

Sewell echoed this sentiment.

“If you really want that patient care interaction, Clinvest is a better fit,” Sewell said.

Clinvest publishes many research studies, especially for a small business.

The PSM program has many different applications, as exemplified in these four students.