Think you have what it takes to live on Mars? Springfield emergency medicine physician Dr. Nathan Jones thought he did. And now he knows for certain. Late one night in 2023, Jones clicked a link on his computer and "went down a rabbit hole" that led to a year-long simulation experiment with NASA. The SIU School of Medicine alumnus was selected to serve as the mission medical officer, living in a tightly monitored 1,700-square-foot module dubbed Mars Dune Alpha at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. He will share stories about the out-of-this-world endurance test at a special presentation at

Think you have what it takes to live on Mars? Springfield emergency medicine physician Dr. Nathan Jones thought he did. And now he knows for certain. Late one night in 2023, Jones clicked a link on his computer and "went down a rabbit hole" that led to a year-long simulation experiment with NASA. The SIU School of Medicine alumnus was selected to serve as the mission medical officer, living in a tightly monitored 1,700-square-foot module dubbed Mars Dune Alpha at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. He will share stories about the out-of-this-world endurance test at a special presentation at

Kaylan Kandra, MD, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at SIU School of Medicine, has earned the Illinois Psychiatric Society's 2024 Educator of the Year award. "Dr. Kandra is passionate about academic psychiatry and is dedicated to training the future generation of psychiatrists," the Illinois Psychiatry Society writes. "He loves teaching and aims to shape the future of mental health care through education." Kandra completed a psychiatry residency at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in 2019, following medical school training at J.J.M. Medical College in India. Learn more

Kaylan Kandra, MD, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at SIU School of Medicine, has earned the Illinois Psychiatric Society's 2024 Educator of the Year award. "Dr. Kandra is passionate about academic psychiatry and is dedicated to training the future generation of psychiatrists," the Illinois Psychiatry Society writes. "He loves teaching and aims to shape the future of mental health care through education." Kandra completed a psychiatry residency at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in 2019, following medical school training at J.J.M. Medical College in India. Learn more

Kaylan Kandra, MD, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at SIU School of Medicine, has earned the Illinois Psychiatric Society's 2024 Educator of the Year award. "Dr. Kandra is passionate about academic psychiatry and is dedicated to training the future generation of psychiatrists," the Illinois Psychiatry Society writes. "He loves teaching and aims to shape the future of mental health care through education." Kandra completed a psychiatry residency at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in 2019, following medical school training at J.J.M. Medical College in India. Learn more

Kaylan Kandra, MD, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at SIU School of Medicine, has earned the Illinois Psychiatric Society's 2024 Educator of the Year award. "Dr. Kandra is passionate about academic psychiatry and is dedicated to training the future generation of psychiatrists," the Illinois Psychiatry Society writes. "He loves teaching and aims to shape the future of mental health care through education." Kandra completed a psychiatry residency at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in 2019, following medical school training at J.J.M. Medical College in India. Learn more

Contact Anneke M. Metz, Ph.D., Director, BMS Email: ametz@siumed.edu Phone: 618-453-1462

About Applying to the BMS Application Instructions The application for the BMS is online via the SIUC Graduate Admissions portal . Apply via Domestic Admissions (we unfortunately cannot accept international applications for the BMS; visit the MBBS program main page for concentrations that accept international student applications). Summer Admission : Summer admission to the BMS is only available through the MEDPREP post-baccalaureate program. Applicants interested in the BMS with MEDPREP Option must apply to, and be accepted by, the MEDPREP program first. For additional information, visit the

About the Carbondale Area Where is Carbondale, Illinois? Carbondale is a city of 25,000 near the southern tip of Illinois, in a beautiful region known as “Little Egypt” – close to the Mississippi River and on the edge of the Shawnee National Forest. It is the home of the flagship campus of Southern Illinois University. Carbondale is NOT near Chicago. It is located approximately 100 miles southeast of St. Louis, 330 miles south of Chicago, 200 miles north of Memphis, and 200 miles northwest of Nashville. Explore the town of Carbondale, IL What public transportation is available in Carbondale