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Newly Funded Postdoctoral Training Program Focuses on SGM Health and HIV

April 18, 2022

The Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing (ISGMH) will offer a robust new postdoctoral training program in sexual minority health and HIV beginning Fall 2022. 

The program is funded by a T32 grant from the National Institutes of Health and will allow ISGMH to enroll three postdoctoral fellows each year for the next five years. Fellowships are two-year appointments and include primary and secondary mentorship from faculty at ISGMH and Feinberg School of Medicine, as well as across Northwestern University. 

“ISGMH has always done a wonderful job of training the next generation of scholars. This T32 will allow us to deepen our commitment to training early career researchers and, through engaging with mentors located in departments across Northwestern, to expand the scope of health topics on which trainees can build a program of research,” said Michael Newcomb. Ph.D., director of ISGMH’s THRIVE Center and postdoctoral training programs. 

With a unique focus on translational research, the Training Program in Translational Science, HIV, and Sexual Minority Health (NU-THRIVE) builds on the goals of the THRIVE Center itself. 

“Our postdocs will learn to be successful translational scientists. That means having training in each of the domains of translational science from basic science discovery, including qualitative and quantitative research methods; to taking the data from those studies to develop interventions; to then eventual implementation of interventions into the community. Postdocs will come out of the NU-THRIVE training program with knowledge of the whole translational science spectrum and will have the opportunity to specialize in two translational domains,” said Newcomb. 

Postdoctoral fellows in the NU-THRIVE program will gain knowledge and skills in the following core competencies: 

  1. Translational science in HIV and SGM health 
  2. Biopsychosocial drivers of HIV, mental health, and associated comorbidities 
  3. Developmental lifespan & environmental influences on HIV, mental health, and comorbidities 
  4. Team science skills 
  5. Ethics and responsible conduct of research 
  6. Writing, dissemination, and grantsmanship 
  7. Professional and career development. 

“Our training program seeks equip the next generation of scholars to understand and mitigate health disparities impacting sexual minority people. Sexual minorities experience vast health inequities, including in HIV, mental health, substance use, and physical health outcomes. To rapidly address these issues, we need skilled translational scientists who can delineate the mechanistic processes driving disparities, translate findings into interventions, and implement programs with communities,” said Newcomb.