Following a year of intensive clinical activity, fellows are expected to pursue research activities within the field and gain experience in either clinical or basic science arenas.
We offer an extensive program in basic research. Research interests of the faculty are descibed below. Formal graduate training leading to a PhD is available for fellows interested in basic science research.
We also offer a program in clinical research and in epidemiology/health services research for fellows primarily interested in clinical nephrology. For trainees interested in pursuing a masters degree in areas related to clinical or epidemiology/health services research, the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine offers a core curriculum specifically tailored to the needs of MD fellows interested in clinical research methodology. The core curriculum includes courses in (1) Epidemiology and Research Methods; (2) Biostatistics; (3) Clinical Trial Design and Analysis; (4) Measurements in Clinical Research; (5) Ethics and Regulations of Clinical Research; and (6) Grantsmanship and Biomedical Writing. In addition, with the completion of an expanded curriculum and thesis a Masters of Science in Clinical Investigation may be obtained in one of these six specialty tracks. The School of Medicine also offers an intensive one-month summer course designed for MD trainees in (1) Biostatistics (2) Introduction to Clinical Epidemiology and (3) Computer Methods. Renal fellows may matriculate in the Department of Epidemiology of the Graduate School of Public Health for an MPH, MS, DrPH, or PhD degree.