Shashwat T
- Research Program Mentor

MD/PhD candidate at Northwestern University

Expertise

Neurosurgery, Neuro-Oncology, Neurology, Medical Imaging

Bio

I am a current medical student in Northwestern's MSTP (M.D./Ph.D.) program. Prior to coming to Northwestern, I obtained degrees in Mathematics and Neuroscience from UT Austin. My prior research focuses on the development of novel intraoperative neuro-monitoring and mapping techniques including infrared thermal imaging (ITI), electrocorticography (ECoG), and MRI. My career goals include being a neurosurgeon-scientist who treats patients with epilepsy and brain tumors and to develop techniques to treat patients with functional deficits. In my free time, which isn't much in medical school, I love to workout, bike, play tennis and cook. I live right next to the lake in Chicago so there are some great bike routes nearby. I love to cook fusion food and my current favorite chef is Ottolenghi. Over quarantine, I have been able to nearly perfect my sourdough.

Project ideas

Project ideas are meant to help inspire student thinking about their own project. Students are in the driver seat of their research and are free to use any or none of the ideas shared by their mentors.

Imaging Techniques for Brain Tumors

Distinguishing between Tumor Progression and Necrosis is a extremely difficult task for radiologists/neurosurgeons. There are several potential projects in this area, ranging from review papers to survey data analysis.

Improvements in the Chemotherapy experience of Patients

Quality Improvement (QI) project regarding the experience of chemotherapy patients.

Mild Cognitive Impairment

Analysis of factors leading to MCI or other memory loss conditions with focus on both causes and prevention/treatment.

Changing in the Workforce in Medicine

Analysis of AAMC data regarding changes in the workforce over the last 20 years. Trends in gender, race, location, and number would be analyzed.

Coding skills

python, MATLAB, C++

Teaching experience

During my time at UT Austin, I had several teaching roles on campus including TA for Calculus I and II and Peer Mentor in the Freshman Research Initiative (FRI). I also oversaw the calculus lab, a designated calculus help desk on campus, once a week. Through my position as a peer mentor in FRI, I mentored 4-5 students through research projects in biological engineering every semester.