Research is an important part of medical training, allowing students to keep up to date on best practices, encouraging them to pursue their passions, and providing the opportunity to impact patient populations beyond those they help in the exam room. 

Western University of Health Sciences’ College of Podiatric Medicine showcased student research at its annual Extremitas Research Symposium March 4, 2026, on the WesternU California campus. 

CPM publishes the Extremitas Journal of Lower Limb Medicine each year, with CPM students serving as editors. The publication is open to submissions from all WesternU students. The symposium provided students who published their research in Extremitas the opportunity to present 20 research posters to faculty, classmates and colleagues. 

“I am proud of the students who conducted and presented their research at the Extremitas Research Symposium. Their pursuit to conduct research and manage the student-led Extremitas journal demonstrates their passion for lifelong learning and dedication to improving how we care for our patients and communities,” said CPM Dean Jonathan Labovitz, DPM, FACFAS, CHCQM. “As Carl Sagan said, ‘Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.’ I look forward to seeing our students and alumni be the ones to find the incredible.” 

Click here to read the full story.

Western University of Health Sciences once again had a strong presence at the Western Medical Research Conference (aka Carmel meeting) organized by the Western Section of the American Federation of Medical Research and the Western Society for Pediatric Research. This meeting brings together more than 1,000 students, residents, faculty and program directors from medical programs across the western United States.

The Carmel meeting, held Jan. 15-17, 2026, accepted research papers authored by 76 WesternU College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific (COMP) students and 24 COMP-Northwest students. COMP and COMP-Northwest students gave 42 oral presentations and 23 poster presentations at the meeting – 51 abstracts from Pomona and 14 abstracts from Lebanon.

Also attending the meeting and supporting the students were COMP and COMP-Northwest Dean Lisa Warren, DO ’01, MBA, COMP Associate Professor Sébastien Fuchs, MD, PhD, COMP Professor Hendrik Szurmant, PhD, COMP Professor Anita Nelson, MD, COMP-Northwest Associate Professor Rakesh Tiwari, PhD, and COMP-Northwest Professor Brion Benninger, MD, MSc. Drs. Fuchs, Szurmant and Nelson also moderated several sessions throughout the meeting. Drs. Szurmant and Fuchs are councilors for the AFMR and Dr. Fuchs is the past chair for the Western Section of the AFMR.

Second-year COMP student Madison Dulkanchainun won the AFMR Subspecialty Award for Dermatology. Second-year COMP student Harshini Selvakumar won the AFMR Subspecialty Award for Endocrinology & Metabolism.

Click to view a list of the WesternU abstracts accepted into the Carmel meeting.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our WesternU Night with the Ontario Reign on March 6!

We are thrilled to share that we had nearly 300 attendees representing WesternU at the Toyota Arena, including students, staff, faculty, alumni, and their friends and family. The energy during the event was a testament to the incredible spirit of WesternU!

Marketing and Communications is holding an open studio portrait day in Pomona:

9 a.m. to 2:50 p.m. Wednesday, March 25

Please sign up for a timeslot that works for your schedule if you would like a new studio portrait.

We will schedule additional portrait days for those who cannot come to the studio on this day.