Project Summary/Abstract This project addresses the lack of diversity in the field of Biomedical Informatics and Data Science. We propose a summer internship experience called the interdisciplinary summer research experience (ISRE) in the Department of Biomedical Informatics at the Ohio State University. The ultimate goal of this project is to encourage and support underrepresented students who are interested in careers in BMI and data science. We take a unique approach to the internship in two ways. First we focus on interdisciplinary dual mentorship. This means that each student will have two mentors from different fields and research backgrounds. The goal is to help the student gain a broader perspective of the field by exposure to different viewpoints. The second innovation as part of this grant is to offer a mentored experience in an artificial intelligence challenge competition instead of a traditional research experience. AI competitions foster teamwork, creativity, and quick thinking. We will study whether this experience has the same impact as the traditional mentored research experience. We have a supportive departmental environment, institution, and dedicated and engaged faculty members. It is the responsibility of the faculty current in the field to work to increase diversity and support those that are underrepresented to build a stronger and more diverse workforce for the future.

Project Narrative A diverse workforce requires encouraging mentors, interesting projects and engaging opportunities. This summer experience will capitalize on experts in the field to grow undergraduate interest in biomedical informatics and data science and encourage engagement in professional experiences that solve complex public health problems. The dual-mentorship experience, with a clinical or operational expert and a methods or quantitative expert will give the students a well-rounded and unique experience fostering collaborative science and giving them a competitive edge for graduate applications.