My job is not to be easy on people. My job is to take these great people we have and to push them and make them even better.
Steve Jobs

One of the great privileges and joys of those in the mid-level or senior parts of their careers is mentoring medical students, residents, fellows, and colleagues. On a personal level, I’ve often cited training more than 30 fellows and their subsequent advancement as leaders in urology as my most rewarding academic experience.

Dr Aria Olumi, previous AUA Research Chair, and Dr Carolyn Best, previous Director of the Office of Research, created a novel mentoring program for urology researchers, the Urology Scientific Mentoring and Research Training (USMART) Academy. The program was first conceptualized in 2015 by the AUA Research Grants and Investigator Support Committee (RGISC) and was championed by Dr Natasha Kyprianou, a prominent urology researcher and colleague at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The RGISC identified a great need for additional external mentorship for young urology researchers outside of their home institutions, specifically as they transition to research independence. Therefore, the USMART mission was to foster creative and impactful mentorship of developing urology physician-scientists and researchers with established investigators with exemplary track records of leadership and mentorship. The program officially launched in 2017 at the Urology Care Foundation Research Honors Program and Reception, and the inaugural cohort was established in 2018 with 5 promising urology research mentees paired with 5 well-established mentors for a year of mentoring support.

The USMART Academy provides an additional mechanism for creative interactions across the AUA between the mentor and the mentee, thereby accelerating the mentee’s professional growth, research collaborations, and career building beyond their local environment. The objective is to generate not mentoring overlap, but complimentary and independent training support for the mentees to reach their full potential.

Since its inception, the USMART Academy has supported more than 30 mentees representing a range of research areas as they continue their transition to research independence. Mentees have consistently reported the value of their experiences in the program and its positive impact on their continued successes. Given the popularity and merit of the program, it has continued to grow by doubling the number of available mentee positions to 10 in 2022, and again increasing available positions to at least 15 for the 2024 USMART Cohort, which is currently undergoing selection.

I’d like to recognize the current and outgoing USMART lead, Dr Simon Kim, who has had incredible and tireless energy and passion while building this amazing program! In June 2024, Dr Kim will transfer the reins to one of our urologic research stars, Dr LaMonica Stewart, who will lead the USMART Academy into the future. We are always looking for enthusiastic and committed mentors for the USMART program. If you are interested in volunteering as a mentor, please contact the AUA Office of Research.

Each year the USMART Academy hosts a reception for mentors and mentees to meet and greet in person. This year’s event took place on Saturday, May 4, 2024, in conjunction with the Urology Care Foundation (UCF) Research Honors Program and Reception at the AUA Annual Meeting in San Antonio. The Research Honors Program is the premier research event at the AUA Annual Meeting, welcoming AUA and UCF leaders, UCF grant recipients, AUA Research Council and Committee members, and leaders of other urology research societies.

Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.
Benjamin Franklin