Internship Coordinator: Gabrielle Kokanos
About the Program
The Department of Biomedical Informatics (BMI) hosts an annual 12-week internship program each summer that provides graduating high school seniors and current undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to pursue research projects under the guidance of research and operational staff and renowned faculty mentors. The BMI Summer Internship is an in-person experience, interns are expected to be in-person Monday-Thursday with remote work possible on Fridays.
Participants learn useful tools and technologies used in biomedical and clinical research. Each intern will have access to weekly program sessions. The first is a skills development workshop or a module which will cover topics such as programming in python, AI, predictive modeling, statistical analysis, presentation skills or ethics. The second is a weekly fundamental knowledge lecture covering the breadth of biomedical informatics. Finally, on alternating weeks, the students will have career preparation panels and a journal club led by faculty within the department. Interns will also gain useful presentation abilities through regular lab and programmatic presentation opportunities, including an end-of-program poster session.
Many students who have participated in this program have gone on to pursue doctoral degrees in biomedicine, biomedical informatics, computer science and electrical engineering or to complete degrees in medicine and nursing.
All student internship positions in the Department of Biomedical Informatics are paid an hourly wage for up to 38 hours per week. OSU students enrolled in summer classes are limited to 28 hours per week. The exact wage is based on academic level and aligns with BMI hiring practices. Many positions have the ability to turn into academic year student employment opportunities.
Funding and Eligibility
Positions for the summer are funded by the National Library of Medicine and internal funding of investigators.
The Interdisciplinary Summer Research Experience (R25LM014223) in the Department of Biomedical Informatics (BMI), is focused on encouraging and supporting students, underrepresented in BMI and data science, to pursue graduate studies in these fields. We take a unique approach to the internship in two ways: First we focus on interdisciplinary, dual mentorship which means that each student will have two mentors from different fields and research backgrounds. The goal is to help the student gain a broader perspective of the field by exposure to different viewpoints. Second, we offer an artificial intelligence (AI) challenge competition as an optional, mentored experience. AI competitions can foster teamwork, creativity, and quick thinking. The overall goal of this program is to build a stronger and more diverse workforce in BMI and data science.
To be eligible for this R25 funding, students must be U.S. citizens and from an NIH defined, underrepresented group in data sciences. Internal funding is also available to support students who do not meet these criteria.
Summer 2025 Program
The application for Summer 2025 Will open January 13th and close on March 10, 2025 at 6pm EST. Applicants selected for an interview will be notified as the process moves forward.
The program dates for 2025 are May 19th to August 8th.
Information for 2025 will be updated in January 2025, below are examples from the 2024 application.
For questions, please contact: BMI.Education@osumc.edu