Post-Doctoral Fellowships in Biomedical Informatics

The design of our program reflects our belief that the evolution of the field of biomedical informatics, the need for trained informatics professionals, and the unique opportunities available at Columbia make it incumbent upon us to accept a wide range of responsibilities for training students in this area. Our decision to require formal degree programs of almost all trainees reflects a philosophical commitment to the development of biomedical informatics as a scholarly academic discipline as well as a field of practical importance in biomedicine. We believe that research leaders in the field will require broad formal course exposure in addition to intense research training.

Individuals who wish informatics training and who have a doctorate in one of the health professions should apply both for a post-doctoral fellowship and for one of our degree programs (see description of degree programs). Note that such individuals should apply for both post-doctoral and degree programs only if they are US citizens or permanent residents (and are thus eligible for post-doctoral fellowship support from our NLM/NIDCR training grant). Physicians and other health professional doctorates from other countries should apply only for the MA or PhD degree programs. We generally do not consider physicians, dentists, doctoral nurses, or other doctoral health professionals for postdoctoral positions unless they are also degree candidates at either the MA or PhD level.

We do offer non-degree postdoctoral training for individuals who have an earned PhD (or equivalent) in biobiomedical informatics or a closely related field (such as computer science, psychology, cognitive science, biomedical engineering, and the like). An individual faculty member with whom the trainee has established a relationship proposes such individuals for post-doctoral training. Thus, unlike degree candidates, postdoctoral applicants should apply in conjunction with a specific faculty member with whom they wish to work and who has agreed to be their sponsor. Such postdoctoral trainees generally remain at the DBMI for 2-3 years, concentrating on research and taking a few courses to enhance their training in biobiomedical informatics. If they are US citizens or have permanent resident status, they may also be eligible for postdoctoral support from our National Library of Medicine training grant.