Careers and Training
Health data science is a rapidly emerging sector, offering rewarding careers at the forefront of medical and healthcare research. We are committed to ensuring that health data scientists have the education and training they need for a flourishing future and that the next generation are equipped for the exciting challenges ahead.
Nurturing talent and providing training are also essential to filling the national data skills gap and to building the workforce needed to fulfil HDR UK’s mission to improve health and care by realising the potential of large-scale data.
What we offer
Our Talent and Training Team is working in partnership with a wide range of national and international organisations to provide:
- Expert-led bite-sized video-based CPD training courses via the HDR UK Futures virtual learning platform
- Workshops, webinars and seminars
- Internships – including the Black Internship Programme
- MSc-equivalent apprenticeships
- Online courses in areas from longevity medicine to data analysis
- MSc courses
- A prestigious PhD programme
- Research fellowships.
We have a T-shaped strategy aimed at offering breadth and depth of learning. Our aims include attracting new people from diverse social, academic and professional backgrounds into health data research.
We are also striving to ensure that researchers, at all stages of their careers, have access to skills and knowledge that will keep them at the cutting edge of the field. In the years ahead the HDR UK Talent and Training Team will be rapidly expanding the number and range of training and learning opportunities it provides.

HDRUK-Wellcome Biomedical Vacation Scholarships in Health Data Research
Health Data Research UK is launching a new Wellcome-funded undergraduate scholarship programme to provide UK-wide summer vacation work placements.

HDR UK Futures

Continued Professional Development
The world of health data science is constantly evolving. Our growing portfolio of CPD courses will provide you with the skills and insights needed to keep up to date with the latest developments.

Work Experience
As the UK’s national institute for health data science, we are working to help transform the prospects of, and provide opportunities for, early career health data scientists.

Higher Education
Our masters, PHD and apprenticeship programmes aim to upskill early career data scientists, provide the best possible foundation for a career in health data science and to develop future leaders in health data science.

Community and Partners
We are striving to build a community of skilled and motivated health data scientists to position the UK as a leader in the use of data to make lasting improvements to the health of the public.

Scholarship presents exciting challenge in predicting patient outcomes
The HDRUK-Wellcome Biomedical Vacation Scholarships allow undergraduates to gain insights into life as a researcher and gain invaluable experience that could set them on the road to an exciting...

Take Part in the Great UK Data Science PhD Survey
A survey is underway to find out why students have chosen to take a data science PhD. The online survey takes around 10-15 minutes and you can find full details here. It’s taking place because...

More careers events to follow after 100 attend first ever online session
The first-ever online careers event run by HDR UK proved a real success with around 100 people taking part. They were able to hear from experts and insiders about health data research...

First Biomedical Vacation Scholarship programme is up and running
A joint HDR UK and Wellcome initiative to promote interest in, and broaden access to, careers in health data research has recruited its first cohort of six interns, and one project is already...

Join the new HDR UK Alumni Community
HDR UK has set up a new online community for the growing number of people who have been part of its internships and postgraduate education programme. The LinkedIn-based HDR UK Alumni Community...

AstraZeneca PhD Immersion Week
Immersion weeks form a key component of the HDRUK-Turing Wellcome PhD programme. Below, Programme Director Chris Yau and participant Richard Moulange write about the most recent, which was hosted...

HEALTH INFORMATICS: Hon. Professor Phil Quinlan – the reluctant academic
As someone with a senior university post, and who is closely involved with HDR UK, it may seem surprising that Phil Quinlan is a reluctant academic. More broadly he argues that research, and the...

RESEARCH: Professor Emily Jefferson – pushing boundaries
After cycling from New Zealand to the UK Emily Jefferson found herself in Scotland with a job at the University of Dundee Health Informatics Centre. Professor Emily Jefferson Soon afterwards she...

INTERN: Shahriar Kabir Khan – a future researcher
The health data research sector is in search of promising young people with the talent and vision needed to tackle the major challenges facing healthcare. Shahriar Kabir Khan Kabir joined HDR UK...
Meet our team
- Sarah Cadman, Programme Director for Talent and Training
- Tim Frayling, Chief Talent and Training Officer
- Rosie Wakeham, Head of Training
- Dona Reddiar, Doctoral and Internship Programme Manager
- James Kavanagh, Training Support Officer
- Jack Greenslade, Educational Videographer.
Training needs and aims
Our training and learning initiatives are directly geared to supporting HDR UK’s the National Research Priorities which are: Better care, understanding the causes of diseases, improving public health, applied analytics, plus better, faster, more efficient clinical trials.
HDR UK is aiming to identify and to meet the country’s health data research needs. We would love to hear from you at Learn@hdruk.ac.uk if you have a training need we can help with, a training offer for health data science researchers or want to know more about our work in talent and training.