Department of
Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine

Research Training

Our nationally and internationally prominent investigators are diverse in their interests, experienced as mentors, collaborative, and utilize ample funding resources, resulting in a research training environment that is outstanding and highly supportive. An overarching goal is to train both basic and clinical scientists to investigate problems and questions faced every day by practitioners in anesthesiology, perioperative care, pain medicine and critical care medicine. 

We are committed to training a diverse new generation of physician scientists to think beyond the confines of the traditional provision of anesthesia, lead the future intellectual development in modern anesthesiology, and bridge the gap between experiments on the benchtop and the betterment of patient care at the bedside.

Trainees interested in research opportunities in our department should complete the Trainee Research Application Form.

 

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Undergraduates

Motivated undergraduate students from the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, and other nearby universities and colleges are welcome to inquire about opportunities for participation in research. This can take the form of dedicated summer research and longitudinal participation as a volunteer, paid employee, or for course credit. 

The Summer Undergraduate Research Program provides an exceptional environment for students to gain research experience under the guidance of internationally recognized scientists.

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Post-Baccalaureate Positions

Though not considered part of a training program, valuable experience can be obtained with a full-time paid post-baccalaureate clinical research positions.  Opportunities to work as a research associate are also commonly available in our department. Such staff positions can be found by searching the Pitt and UPMC HR sites and applying to any open listings.

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Predoctoral

Graduate students from many degree programs at the University of Pittsburgh commonly perform their thesis or dissertation research while working with investigators in our department. 

Our predoctoral T32 program, hosted by the Pittsburgh Center for Pain Research, aims to recruit and train the best graduate students in advanced theory, cutting-edge techniques, and novel research strategies, preparing them to lead the next generation of pain researchers.

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Postdoctoral and Clinical Fellows

Postdoctoral research training opportunities in the department include two robust NIH T32 Research Fellowship programs. These opportunities are available for candidates who have completed either an MD or PhD degree and seek additional research training and experience with the goal to become an independent investigator.

Research opportunities are available for all clinical fellows training in our department. Clinical fellow projects are intended to be highly-relevant to the clinical subspecialty and are typically initiated early in the training year. To ensure timely completion, fellow research projects are completed while working closely with subspecialty division research faculty in coordination with fellowship program directors.

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Residents

Within our Residency Program, opportunities for resident-driven research are numerous and broad, as we are active in training the next generation of top researchers. The residency program also offers the Pittsburgh ANesTHEsiology Research (PANTHER) Track, an integrated training program for qualified residency applicants interested in pursuing an academic research career as a physician-scientist.

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Medical Students

Medical students in our department are eligible to apply for competitive research fellowships and medical scientist training programs.


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Early-Stage Anesthesia Scholars

We encourage any trainee or junior faculty member interested in academic anesthesiology to join the organization Early-Stage Anesthesia Scholars, a nascent community led by trainees, for trainees.