Tracks are tailored to the specific needs of a trainee. Each, however, begins with the trainees working with their mentors on ongoing research projects relevant to their interests. Successful candidates will be selected on the basis of academic record, research experience, career goals, letters of recommendation and motivation for a career in academic rehabilitation. Women and under-represented minorities are encouraged to apply. The laboratories of the track mentors are the primary training facilities of this program.
Additional facilities are available for animal housing, engineering, and statistical support.
In addition, the educational and research resources of the Mayo Clinic as well as our Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Rheumatology, Orthopedic and Neurology departments are available. Background Rehabilitation medicine has developed into a dynamic, multi-disciplinary specialty with an often empirically derived clinical base. This training program is designed to attack the fundamental weakness of rehabilitation medicine-the lack of the broad based research infrastructure needed to ensure the optimal development, objective evaluation and application of new ideas to the needs of the disabled. In particular, this program is designed to train researchers and physicians to become the objective, scientifically sound, motivated investigators needed to ensure the continued improvement of rehabilitation medicine. The first and third tracks, Biomechanics and Neuromuscular Disease, meet our goal by allowing the combination of the facilities of the well regarded, and well established biomechanics and muscle laboratories at the Mayo Clinic in areas such as gait, ergonometrics, neuromuscular control and musculoskeletal function.