About the programme
BRIDGE – a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in translational medicine
The BRIDGE – Translational Excellence Programme offers a few selected graduated PhDs a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in translational medicine.
A BRIDGE fellowship is a unique postdoctoral programme consisting of three core elements: education, mentoring and research.
In the matrix between these three elements, fellows will be trained and educated in how to apply new discoveries and technologies from biomedical research to the clinical environment and/or the life science industry, to the benefit of patient health. The fellows bridge the gap between research and medical treatment thereby fulfilling the vision of BRIDGE: to establish a translational clinical academic ecosystem in which scientists and physicians interact, so that basic biomedical discoveries can be studied in humans and translated into routine medical therapy.
Need for translational researchers
Translational researchers are needed. Innovative techniques and technological developments in biomedical science must be translated into the clinical realm to improve medical treatment.
The BRIDGE programme enables gaining insights on the scientific content of translational medicine, acquisition of the knowledge and skills to manage the essential collaboration between disciplines, and translation and back-translation between clinical and basic science.
"…. I think the BRIDGE programme is a gateway to a successful future career. The combination of clinical and basic research and the exceptionally professional courses will create some very attractive candidates with a wide-ranging skill set." Associate Professor and BRIDGE-mentor Cristina Legido-Quigley
Becoming a BRIDGE fellow is a unique career opportunity for those wishing to become pioneering leaders in the field of translational medicine.
Practical information
As a postdoc candidate you must apply for a BRIDGE fellowship in cooperation with a Mentor Team. You may find a suitable Mentor Team listed on this website or you may contact relevant scientists at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, UCPH, and at a hospital/from the life science industry and suggest that they form a Mentor Team and collaborate with you on an application for the BRIDGE – Translational Excellence Programme.
The duration of fellowships is two years.
All courses are taught in English and take place at the Panum Institute, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, UCPH. The fellow’s individual research will take place at the lab(s) made available by the fellow's mentors.
Mentors from a basic biomedical science environment must be at the level of Associate Professor or Professor with at least a 50% appointment at University of Copenhagen.
Mentors from a clinical oriented environment must have the following qualifications:
Approved titles
- Clinical Professor (in Danish: Klinisk professor)
- Clinical Research Associate Professor (in Danish: Klinisk forskningslektor)
Conditionally approved titles
- Clinical associate professor (in Danish: Klinisk lektor (A-B-C))
- Postgraduate clinical associate professor (in Danish: Postgraduat klinisk lektor)
- Employed in a research relevant position in healthcare or life science industry (in Danish: Forskningsrelevant beskæftigelse på hospitaler eller i life science industri)
Each fellow will team up with a Mentor Team who will provide lab facilities and mentor the fellow.
A Mentor Team must consist of one mentor from a basic biomedical science environment at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, UCPH. The second mentor must be a clinical mentor who is either appointed at a hospital in Region Zealand or at the Capital Region. The second mentor may also be from the life science industry.
Another option is to create a Mentor Team combing mentors from both a basic biomedical science environment at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, UCPH, a hospital in the Capital Region/Region Zealand and the life science industry.
Please note that incorporating a mentor from a basic biomedical science environment at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, UCPH, into the Mentor Team is mandatory.
The lab(s) of the Mentor Team will host the BRIDGE postdoc fellow during the two-year period of the fellowship and guarantee the necessary running costs to successfully carry out the fellow's research project as well as provide access to support staff, training, equipment and advice from members of the mentors’ institutions.
Read more about mentor commitments and responsibilities under Become a mentor.
Mentors or partners from the life science industry are highly appreciated and need to have scientific competences equivalent to those of mentors from a clinical oriented environment and active in research.
Life science industry collaboration may materialise in the form of:
- a second mentor in a Mentor Team with a mentor from basic sciences,
- as a third supplementary mentor to a basic and a clinical mentor, or
- as a third partner to a basic and clinical Mentor Team, assisting with life science industry knowledge-sharing, networking, skills acquisition, technological insights, or likewise.
Life science industry mentors, partners or collaborators are highly encouraged and appreciated in the BRIDGE programme.
Fellows will dedicate 20% of their time to educational activities. The remaining 80% is dedicated to an individual research project in the field of translational medicine.
Courses are planned and coordinated by the BRIDGE administration. The fellow's research is conducted in the lab(s) of the Mentor Team who will assist the fellow in developing the research plans.
Fellows' salary will be provided by the BRIDGE – Translational Excellence Programme for the two-year fellowship period.
In addition to the salary, the fellow will also have access to an annual sum of DKK 50.000 during the two-year employment to cover costs for computer equipment, travel, participation in meetings and conferences, language courses and activities not offered within the programme.
The funds does not cover expenses from consumables.