Biomedical Leadership Fellow

Title: Biomedical Leadership Fellow

Sponsored by Penn HealthX, Fajgenbaum Lab at Penn, the Castleman Disease Collaborative Network (CDCN), and Every Cure

Location: Primarily in office at 3535 Market Street | Philadelphia, PA 19104 with some flexibility for remote work

Biomedical Leadership Fellowship Objectives and Goals:

Improve the speed with which projects go from concept to results by working with Dr. Fajgenbaum to improve organizational efficiency and by turning around tasks as quickly as possible
Establish and execute a clear Project Management strategy
Assist with all organizational operations, including executive-level advising and strategic planning
Co-author at least one (hopefully more) article in a peer-reviewed journal

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Position Summary

The Fajgenbaum Lab at Penn, Castleman Disease Collaborative Network (CDCN), and Every Cure are looking for an entrepreneurial medical student to take a year-out between MS3 and MS4 to serve as the next Biomedical Leadership Fellow (BLF) to help advance in their shared goal to uncover the utility of existing drugs in every human disease, with the intent of translating therapies to patients with unmet medical needs. The Fellowship winner will work directly with Dr. David Fajgenbaum, MD, MBA, MSc, a physician-scientist at Penn and international leader in drug development and repurposing, on all aspects of their leadership, project management, overseeing strategic initiatives, from development through execution. Like the previous 6 Fellows who have made a transformative impact through this program, this year’s Fellow will work with expert researchers and physicians around the world and in the FDA, NIH, ARPA-H, pharmaceutical companies, tech companies like Google, foundations like the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Clinton Global Initiative, Audacious Project/TED, patients, and volunteers who all share a common goal of advancing treatments for devastating diseases. The skills gained from this fellowship are highly transferable to any career choice or field of specialty.

Responsibilities

The Biomedical Leadership Fellow, sponsored by Penn HealthX, CDCN, and Every Cure plays an essential role in helping to accelerate research for drug repurposing. We are looking for an MS3 to take a year out between 3rd and 4th year to work full time (and get paid $50,000 for the year) on the following combination of a) task execution, b) project management, c) strategic planning across divisions, and d) serving as a liaison with internal and external stakeholders.

1. The BLF will serve as the “right hand person” and chief of staff that acts as an extension of David Fajgenbaum. Dr. Fajgenbaum is an Associate Professor of Medicine at UPenn, Associate Director of the Penn Orphan Disease Center, and Director and Principal Investigator of the Center for Cytokine Storm Treatment & Laboratory [CSTL]at UPenn, co-Founder & President of the CDCN, and co-Founder & President of Every Cure. The Biomedical Leadership Fellow will participate in meetings on behalf of Dr. Fajgenbaum, consult frequently with Dr. Fajgenbaum on strategic decisions and organizational priorities, and take on projects while Dr. Fajgenbaum is working on other projects.
2. The BLF will work with Dr. Fajgenbaum and the CDCN leadership team to think strategically about future projects/initiatives as well as internal projects to improve efficiency. This strategic thinking and execution spans across major areas of engagement: Research, Physician Engagement, Patient Engagement, Fundraising, and Communications.
3. Based on interests, experiences, and availability, the BLF may conduct translational research, clinical, or epidemiological research, or conduct research into ways to improve the translational research process for rare diseases.

Key characteristics for success

Interest and passion in translating research into life-saving treatments
Critical thinker and strong problem solver
Serious attention to detail
Highly conscientious and very organized
Self-starter and interest in entrepreneurial pursuits
Strong at finishing tasks
Quick turn around time for email communications
Is a Penn Med student

Funding

$50,000 over 1 year for MS3s
MS3s would be expected to take a year off from Penn Med to work full-time on this fellowship and research with Dr. Fajgenbaum

How to Apply

Fill out the Biomedical Leadership Fellowship application
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis from January 1, 2024 until the end of the year; early applications strongly preferred, and the winning BLF may be selected before the deadline
Fajgenbaum will conduct interviews on a rolling basis
Start date is flexible.
Contact Amber Vas (amber.vas@pennmedicine.upenn.edu) with questions