Last updated: June 2026
1. Our standard
MD Scholars follows the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) authorship criteria. To qualify as an author on any work that comes out of our program, an individual must meet all four of the following:
- Substantial contribution to conception, design, data acquisition, or analysis/interpretation.
- Drafting or substantively revising the work for important intellectual content.
- Final approval of the version to be published.
- Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work.
2. Scholar authorship
Scholars who complete the analytic and writing components of their assigned project — including running statistical analyses, generating figures, drafting manuscript sections, and incorporating feedback — earn first-author credit on the work product. We do not add names of staff or mentors who did not contribute substantively.
3. Mentor authorship
Faculty mentors typically meet ICMJE criteria 2–4 through substantive intellectual revision and accountability. Whether they meet criterion 1 depends on their role — if they conceived the project, provided data, or contributed analytic decisions, they qualify; otherwise they are listed in the Acknowledgments section.
4. Co-author ordering
For multi-scholar group projects, ordering reflects relative contribution. Scholars who did equal lead work are listed as co-first authors with the standard footnote ("These authors contributed equally"). The senior physician mentor is typically last author.
5. What does NOT qualify
- Paying tuition or enrolling in MD Scholars does not, by itself, earn authorship on any specific paper.
- Light editorial review without substantive intellectual contribution.
- Providing access to data without contributing to design or interpretation.
- General supervision of a research group without project-specific intellectual contribution.
Individuals in these categories are recognized in the Acknowledgments section, not the author list.
6. Disputes
If you believe authorship has been incorrectly assigned on a work that came out of MD Scholars, email contact@mdscholars.com with subject "Authorship Dispute." We will review the contributions of all parties against the ICMJE criteria and provide a written decision within 14 days. Decisions may be appealed once.
7. Misconduct
Fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, or undisclosed conflicts of interest in any work produced through MD Scholars will result in (a) retraction or withdrawal of the work, (b) removal from the program without refund, and (c) notification of relevant institutions if appropriate.
8. Acknowledgments
All papers, posters, and abstracts produced through MD Scholars should include an Acknowledgments line: "The author(s) thank the MD Scholars Research Mentorship Program for project support and mentorship."
9. ICMJE and MD Scholars completion certificates
ICMJE — the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors — publishes recommendations for authorship and reporting on medical journal papers. Its scope is journal manuscripts, not certificates. There is no "ICMJE approval" or accreditation process for program completion certificates, and no organization in medicine issues one.
Our completion certificate documents what you did in our program: which track you completed, when, and under whose mentorship. It is not a journal publication credit, a university degree, or a CME certificate — and it does not claim to be. It is analogous to a completion certificate from a structured research training course.
Where ICMJE actually applies to our work is on the research outputs you produce during and after the program — posters, abstracts, manuscripts submitted to journals. Every one of those outputs follows the ICMJE authorship criteria detailed in sections 1–4 above. Our curriculum explicitly teaches the four ICMJE criteria and the difference between authorship and acknowledgment; scholars leave the program knowing how to apply them.
In short:
- Certificate: proves you completed the program. Tamper-proof via SHA-256 hash and QR verification at mdscholars.com/verify. Does not need ICMJE "approval" — that concept does not exist for certificates.
- Papers, abstracts, posters you produce with us: follow ICMJE authorship criteria strictly, disputes resolved per section 6.
10. Certificate authenticity
Each MD Scholars completion certificate carries:
- A unique certificate ID in the format
MDS-{semester}-{year}-{track code}-{serial}(e.g.MDS-FA-2026-HS-0001). - A SHA-256 hash covering the certificate ID, recipient name, program track, completion date, and cohort label. Any change to the certificate breaks the hash.
- A QR code encoding the ID and hash, scannable from a phone.
- Independent verification at mdscholars.com/verify. Anyone (employer, medical school admissions committee, residency program) can confirm authenticity without contacting us.
Because verification is public and cryptographic, forging or altering a certificate is not practically possible.
Questions about this policy? Email contact@mdscholars.com.