About Sanofi
At Sanofi, our passion is to prevent, treat and cure illness and disease throughout life. We are driven to improve the health of communities and to find new solutions for patients by combining breakthrough science with advanced technology.
Inspired by the resilience of our patients and strengthened by our heritage, we are always working for new ways to fight chronic, complex and rare diseases with medicines that offer hope for patients and the future of healthcare.
About the University of Washington
The University of Washington is a world-class leader in health sciences education and has been consistently listed in US News and World Report as one of the top 10 institutions for its graduate programs. The University is particularly noted for its strong research programs and since 1974 has received more federal funds for research and training than any other public university in the United States. It fosters a highly collegial atmosphere between departments and academic units, creating a particularly attractive environment for such partnerships between the public and private sectors.
The Comparative Health Outcomes, Policy, and Economics (CHOICE) Institute is housed within the University of Washington School of Pharmacy, which boasts nearly 125 years of academic and research success. Faculty in the program (1) provide advanced research training for graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and clinicians (PharmDs, MDs), (2) conduct rigorous scientific research in economic evaluations and outcomes of pharmaceuticals and other health technologies, and (3) translate and disseminate the results of research into clinical practice and healthcare policy, with the goal of improving patient care.
The CHOICE Institute faculty participating in the fellowship have been chosen both for their dedication to teaching and their excellence in research. Each is trained either as a health economist or health services researcher and all have an extensive history of effective economic evaluations and pharmacoepidemiologic research.
Fellowship Directors
Sean D. Sullivan, BScPharm, MSc, PhD
Professor of Pharmacy
University of Washington
sdsull@uw.edu
Ron Preblick, PharmD, MPH
Head, HEOR
US General Medicines Market Access
Sanofi
ronald.preblick@sanofi.com
Kyle Hvidsten, MPH
Head, Specialty Care HEVA
Global Market Access
Sanofi
kyle.hvidsten@sanofi.com
Health Economics and Outcomes Research Fellowship
The University of Washington/Sanofi HEOR Fellowship is a two-year program that provides formal training and hands-on experience in the HEOR field. The first year of the fellowship will consist of completing a Masters degree in Health Economics and Outcomes Research at the University of Washington, and the second year places the fellow in Sanofi’s Global Health Economics and Value Assessment (HEVA) department.
Fellowship Program Objectives
Upon completion of the experience, the HEOR/HEVA Fellow will be prepared to contribute within pharmaceutical organizations in numerous ways by drawing upon the following sample of skills developed:
- Design of outcomes research studies; use of descriptive and inferential statistics
- Publication within scientific/medical journals
- Resource development for use in patient treatment decisions
- Identification of unmet medical needs to drive research and communication planning
- Project management, including vendor supervision and common metrics reporting
- Working knowledge of relevant regulatory and compliance requirements
- In depth understanding of the US and Global healthcare environment, and the influence of payers on patient access to medicines
Fellowship Program First Year – University of Washington (Seattle, WA)
The objective of the first year is to provide the fellow with the research tools necessary for economic evaluation and policy assessment. The fellow will be given an overview of pharmaceutical economics and general health policy, and taught methods of economic assessment, health services research, epidemiology, clinical research design, and biostatistical analyses. The fellow will also complete an MS thesis project under the guidance of their University of Washington and Sanofi mentors.
Fellowship Program Second Year – Sanofi (Cambridge, MA)
The 2nd year of the fellowship places the fellow in Sanofi’s Global Health Economics and Value Assessment (HEVA) organization. HEVA has the mission of developing, translating, and communicating scientific evidence for use by health care providers, payers, and other customers to facilitate access and use of the best treatments for patients. A principal objective of HEVA is to demonstrate the value that Sanofi products bring to payers and other healthcare providers. HEVA accomplishes this goal by generating and publishing research studies, conducting collaborative projects with various stakeholders, and partnering with other functions of the broader Sanofi organization to develop solutions that address unmet medical needs and product value propositions.
The HEOR/HEVA Fellow will rotate through various US and Global HEVA functions, learning core skills related to conducting prospective and retrospective research studies, publishing data in scientific journals, developing customer support tools, and interacting with payers and stakeholders. This fellowship will provide a balanced exposure to best practices related to developing and communicating evidence, as well as a solid working knowledge of regulatory and legal guidelines inherent to these capabilities. The fellow is expected to grow professionally throughout their experience, engaging in projects of varying complexity and ultimately managing selected responsibilities with greater levels of independence.
Application Requirements
- You must hold U.S. citizenship or permanent residency status to apply, we are unable to sponsor non-immigrant visas for this program.
- Degree in pharmacy or health-related discipline.
- Previous research experience (preference will be given to those with a high academic standing).
- Excellent oral and written communication skills, ethics, professionalism, leadership and an interest in the biopharmaceutical industry.
- Curriculum vitae, cover letter, three letters of recommendation.
Selection of fellows will be made by a committee composed of University of Washington faculty members and representatives from the respective company.
Application Process Timeline:
- Eligibility: Degree in Pharmacy by July 1, 2024
- Application Opens: Friday, September 1, 2023
- Application Deadline: Monday, October 23, 2023
- Interview Notification: Monday, October 30, 2023
- Interviews: Week of November 6, 2023 (via Zoom)
- Offer Notification: Rolling, after interviews
- Decision Deadline: December 13, 2023
- Program Start Date: July 1, 2024
How to Apply
- Login to the Graduate School application: https://apply.grad.uw.edu/portal/gr_app
- Select “Start Graduate Application”
- Complete all sections of the application along the lefthand panel, starting with the Profile Information section.
- Under Program Selection, choose the following:
- Application type: Graduate
- Program: Pharmacy – Health Economics & Outcomes Research (MS)
- Review the Program Requirements and indicate the term and year you intend to enroll in the program
- Select Autumn 2024 (this is when the matriculation to the graduate program would begin).
- For the section, “Application Questions”, select which MS fellowship program(s) to which you would like to apply. You may choose a min. of 1 and a max. of 6. The selections are not ranked.
- Select all that apply: AbbVie Fellowship Program, Bayer Fellowship Program, Genentech Fellowship Program, Novo Nordisk Fellowship Program, Sanofi Fellowship Program, Seagen Fellowship Program
- To add another program, select “Add a fellowship program”. You may choose up to 6.
- Continue with completing all other sections of the application, including Application Materials and Recommenders.
- Review your application and check for any missing required fields or errors. When ready, click Submit Application. Your application is not submitted until you have paid the application fee.
- Fee waivers are available for those who qualify. Review eligibility requirements and the process for fee waiver requests here: https://grad.uw.edu/prospective-students/how-to-apply/application-fee-waivers/
A more detailed instruction guide can be found here.
Contact Information
For more information, please contact:
University of Washington
Marina Gano, M.Ed.
Graduate Program & Operations Manager
The CHOICE Institute, Department of Pharmacy
206-616-1383
uwsopchoice@uw.edu