Health Data Research UK (HDR UK) launched its Health Data Science Black Internship Programme for 2022, on Friday 1 July, helping to tackle the underrepresentation of Black people within science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers.
The Alan Turing Institute is one of the dozens of host organisations taking part in the programme which is run in partnership with the UK Health Data Research Alliance and 10,000 Black Interns.
The internship programme helps to kick-start the careers of recently graduated Black data scientists by providing opportunities for them to work on health data science projects within some of the UK’s leading health, research and academic organisations.
The UK has an urgent need for new health data scientists in this rapidly expanding field which has the potential to transform the future of health and care for all. A report commissioned by The Royal Society states that for the years spanning 2007/08 to 2018/19, just 3.5% of Black STEM academic staff held a professor post compared to 6.6% of Asian staff and 11.9% of White staff.
Dr Camila Rangel Smith , Senior Research Data Scientist at The Alan Turing Institute, said: “At the Turing, we’re very excited to welcome our first intern this summer in the Research Engineering Team and we look forward to collaborating with them on our health-related projects.”
Dr Federico Nanni , Senior Research Data Scientist at The Alan Turing Institute, said: “We hope the participation of the national institute of data science and AI in this programme will create a visible opportunity for early-career Black data scientists who are heavily underrepresented in this area, to enter these exciting fields and gain experience.”
This programme is just one of HDR UK’s initiatives that supports the belief that health data science should be as effective as possible in serving and reflecting the needs of the entire UK population.
From Monday 4 July 2022, 81 interns will start their eight-week placement with over 40 host organisations. The host organisations offer interns the opportunity to learn about health data science in action and also carry out their own clearly defined research projects.
Tammy Palmer, Head of People at HDR UK, said: "Following the success of last year's programme, we are thrilled to welcome this year's cohort of talented Interns. It is incredibly exciting to once again be supporting the next generation of health data scientists. A huge thank you to all of our Host Organisations for their support and commitment to helping ensure the programme's success again this year."
HDR UK’s Black Internship Programme is aimed at Black people who are either studying an undergraduate degree or who have recently graduated from any UK university.
Expressions of interest from interns and host organisations are now being accepted for the class of 2023. More information here.
Top Image: HDR UK
