Mayo Clinic's Department of Surgery in Rochester, MN and Department of Artificial Intelligence and Informatics are recruiting for a Career Scientist position. The Career Scientist position is a tenure-equivalent position for a Principal Investigator to develop and run an independent research program with a joint appointment in the Departments of Surgery and Artificial Intelligence/Informatics. The primary focus of the Investigator’s research endeavors should be broadly within the field of artificial intelligence with a desire to translate findings into healthcare specific uses. Specialization/focus in any aspect of artificial intelligence will be considered. It is anticipated that in addition to an independent research program the successful candidate will assist in developing the strategies specific to discovery research and deploying AI approaches within the Department of Surgery.     

The successful candidate will be an emerging leader in the field of AI and will have expertise and experience to lead research projects to design, develop and enhance AI/ML algorithms and models using extensive healthcare data sets. The successful candidate will ensure models are interpretable, unbiased, and clinically valid. Success will be measured by securing extramural funding as PI; providing team-science leadership on impactful studies; building tools with practice impact; mentoring team members that include junior faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and allied health staff; leading national efforts such as scientific committees or national societies; and providing educational contributions within and outside of Mayo Clinic.

The Department of Surgery

The Department of Surgery in Rochester, MN is made up of over 100 surgeons across 10 clinical divisions performing more than 25,000 operations per year. This quaternary referral practice cares for the most complex and advanced cases in the country and world. In addition to the high-volume clinical practice the Department maintains robust educational and research programs. The educational programs include more than 50 surgical residents, numerous clinical fellows, and visiting research trainees. The research shield within the Department encompasses basic/discovery, translational, and clinical research. Support for investigators includes dedicated research administrators, research protocol specialists, clinical research coordinators, and administrative support. The Surgical Clinical Research Office maintains an active clinical trial portfolio of more than 80 trials, and recruits more than 900 patients annually to clinical trials. The Department has a robust data infrastructure to support the position including access to dozens of high quality, organized and manually validated, institutional and national datasets. The candidate will have access to structured and unstructured (e.g. text) clinical data, cross-sectional imaging data, patient photos, operative videos, clinical notes, and robotic/device data. In addition, the Department has a strong history of innovation and strongly supports commercialization opportunities. Dedicated server space and access to highly motivated trainees and collaborators is available. 

The Department of AI & Informatics (joint appointment)

Mayo Clinic's Department of Artificial Intelligence and Informatics includes clinical and research faculty, as well as operational staff who engage in the use of informatics and digital technology to improve human health.

The department promotes collaborative research for advancing the methods, applications and infrastructure in digital medicine with the emphasis on the synergy of people, processes and technology, representing a multidisciplinary unification based on biomedical, computational and social sciences. Research in the department is focused on topics including artificial intelligence modeling, clinical research informatics, knowledge induction and dissemination for clinical practice, precision medicine informatics, quantitative medicine and many more.

Mayo Clinic

Mayo Clinic is top-ranked in more specialties than any other care provider according to U.S. News & World Report. With a 73,000-person workforce, Mayo Clinic cares for more than 1.3 million people each year with serious or complex illnesses from all 50 U.S. states and 130 countries. Mayo Clinic is the largest not-for-profit, multidisciplinary academic medical center in the world with over 4,000 physicians and scientists in an integrated multi-campus system spanning the globe. 

The unified mission at Mayo Clinic is to provide the best patient care, backed by our expertise and supported by innovation in education, research and practice, to bring hope and healing in times of need. We embrace collegial relationships among campuses (Arizona, Florida and Minnesota) allowing for best practices and innovation to help solve the most serious complex medical challenges-one patient at a time. 

Scientists and physicians at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota conduct innovative research across the spectrum of medicine, translating their discoveries into new treatments that benefit patients. From basic science studies to clinical trials and beyond, researchers in laboratories, centers and programs collaborate to find answers to medicine’s most difficult questions. Knowing that this teamwork improves and speeds discovery, researchers collaborate with fellow scientists nationally and internationally as they mentor the next generation of researchers.

We support a vibrant and diverse research enterprise, with programs in basic, translational, clinical, population, and data sciences. In 2023, the institution received over $689 million in extramural research awards, supplemented with over $445 million of institutional support. Laboratories and shared resource facilities are state-of-the-art, including those for microscopy and imaging, cell and molecular biology, animal models, production of iPS cells and clinical grade MSCs, biomedical engineering and mathematics, materials testing, a Medical Genomics Facility, a Mouse Modeling Facility, Molecular and Microscopic Core Facilities, and unique Human Disease Tissue Banks. Mayo Clinic supports innovation and has a wealth of resources available – including an integrated health record and collaboration with top specialists.

The Research shield at Mayo Clinic is committed to creating an inclusive and equitable environment and recognizes that diverse research teams make better decisions; are more equipped to solve complex problems and adapt to change; and produce better outcomes.

Benefits at Mayo Clinic

As we work together to put the needs of the patient first, we are also dedicated to our employees, investing in a highly competitive compensation package with substantial long-term institutional and departmental support for salary, personnel, equipment, and travel as well as a competitive startup package all designed to ensure immediate and continued success. Additional benefits for faculty at Mayo Clinic include intramural funding opportunities for research and innovation. We provide an outstanding, comprehensive benefits package that includes plenty of options for medical, dental and vision care; flexible spending accounts; life insurance; short- and long-term disability coverage; travel allowance; generous time away; and more! We are proud to be among the few U.S. companies to provide a pension benefit at no cost to employees plus you can add the Mayo 403(b) plan which features an employer match.

Rochester, Minnesota

Mayo Clinic is located in the heart of downtown Rochester, Minnesota, a dynamic city just 75 minutes south of the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. The city is consistently ranked among the best places to live in the United States because of its affordable cost of living, healthy lifestyle, excellent school systems and exceptionally high quality of life. Rochester is changing to become the world’s premier destination medical center as new buildings fill the skyline that pave the way for initiatives that are unleashing fresh possibilities and make the city a fantastic place to learn, live and play. Distinguished by its culture of caring, spirit of innovation, and fascinating history, Rochester is renowned for its scenic beauty, relaxing pace, and abundant dining, shopping, and entertainment options.

Candidates must have a PhD, MD or equivalent degree in their respective disciplines with a strong quantitative science background. We are recruiting for mid-stage, or established investigators with expertise in natural language processing, biomedical data processing, and data analysis.  Early stage candidates should have demonstrated scientific productivity and evidence of successful external funding (e.g. R21, R00). Middle or senior level candidates should have national leadership and strong extramural funding records.

The ideal candidate will have a demonstrated history of extramural funding including NIH or NIH-equivalent and a strong promise for meritorious, competitive extramural funding. They will also value collaborative team science endeavors and will be an active participant in the Department of Surgery. Candidates are expected to have extensive experience in cutting edge AI technologies and their applications in healthcare.

Applications should include a full CV/Bibliography, statement of research interests, statement of contributions to equity/inclusion/diversity, and the names/contact information of five references. 

As an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer Mayo Clinic is committed to creating an inclusive environment that values the diversity of its employees and does not discriminate against any employee or candidate. Women, minorities, veterans, people from the LGBTQ communities and people with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply to join our teams. Reasonable accommodations to access job openings or to apply for a job are available.