A major boost for the Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology

For Martin R. Prince, MD ’85, the Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology (HST) was where he learned to think differently about medicine—and about his own potential as a physician-scientist. The program gave him unusual independence as a student and the chance to tackle ambitious questions alongside leading scientists and clinicians.

“During my HST experience, I had a fellowship that enabled me to find the best professors and labs to solve problems without being locked into any specific lab or group,” he recalls. “This independence opened doors and garnered rich collaborations throughout the medical system, which helped me to be successful.”

Since its inception, HST has combined the technical rigor of MIT’s curriculum with the clinical and biomedical expertise of HMS faculty.

Now a professor of radiology at Weill Cornell Medical College and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Prince is honoring that formative experience with a $2.5 million gift to establish the Martin R. Prince Director and Advisory Dean of the London Society Fund. “During this time of recruiting a new director and advisory dean of the London Society, it makes sense to enrich this appointment with an endowed fund,” Prince says. 

The London Society is one of Harvard Medical School’s academic societies and the one to which all HST students belong. The society’s director and advisory dean, who also serves as the HMS director of HST, plays a central role in mentoring students and fostering community.

“This position is so key to the development of our stellar HST students,” says HMS Dean George Q. Daley, AB ’82, MD ’91, PhD, himself an HST alumnus. “Martin’s gift will give this role greater capacity to shape an HST experience that is both rigorous and deeply supportive.”

Founded in 1970, HST unites HMS, Harvard University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in a tight-knit community where engineers, scientists, and clinicians learn side by side. HST students take courses at both Harvard and MIT, immersing themselves in biomedical science and engineering while applying that knowledge to real clinical problems and building the skills to tackle complex human health challenges. 

An inside look at physician-scientist training

“The inquisitive, quantitative, forward-thinking approach to medicine I learned in HST helped me to pioneer new techniques in MRI, and I hope it will help future HST students succeed as well,” Prince says. 

Looking ahead, Prince believes HST-trained physician-scientists will be well prepared to lead at the frontiers of medicine and technology. “Artificial intelligence is a vast uncharted opportunity for expanding the quality and impact of medical care while reducing costs and barriers to access,” he says. He hopes HST students will use AI and other technologies “to make healthy living more universal, to identify disease or pre-disease conditions early when they are easily curable, and to help get people on the path of continuous health maintenance to avoid periodic health crises.”

Bernard S. Chang, AB ’93, MD, MMSc ’05, HMS dean for medical education, says Prince’s gift strengthens a program that already draws exceptionally curious and creative students. “Because of Martin’s support, HST students will continue to thrive as they push the boundaries of science and medicine in service of human health.”