University of Münster to receive renewed funding to support physicians engaged in research
Early-career funding for the future of medicine: the University of Münster’s Faculty of Medicine is delighted at the news that funding for its Clinician Scientist CareerS Münster programme is to be renewed. The German Research Foundation (DFG) will be providing around 1.3 million euros to support the programme for another two years. CareerS enables medical professionals to obtain scientific qualifications and actively pursue research alongside their patient care duties. Since its launch in January 2023, the programme has already provided funding for 44 candidates from 31 clinics and institutes of the Faculty of Medicine and the University Hospital Münster.
“Talented medical professionals pursuing this dual career will play a key role in the future of medicine,” stresses Professor Frank Ulrich Müller, dean of the Faculty of Medicine. He explains that direct contact with patients sharpens the focus on clinically relevant aspects of research and allows scientific findings to be incorporated into novel treatment approaches. “Having sufficient scope for both research and patient care is crucial to create synergies between the two,” says Professor Alex W. Friedrich, medical director of the University Hospital Münster, adding that the CareerS programme has established itself as a central means of providing sustained support to clinician scientists on this important but challenging career path.
The funding programme is open to medical professionals working on any research topic in any clinical discipline. It offers different options tailored to specific career stages – from undergraduate level to leadership positions. The new modules set up with DFG funding support clinician scientists particularly during the demanding career phase of their clinical specialisation training or help them take the step towards leading their own research group. The funding encompasses not only protected time for research but also an accompanying curriculum and individual mentoring. One important aspect is that – with the agreement of the Ärztekammer Westfalen-Lippe (Westfalen-Lippe Chamber of Physicians) – up to twelve months of research can count towards clinical specialisation training, which eases the time pressure on funded fellows.
In recent years, the DFG has supported the expansion of clinician scientist programmes at a total of 23 medical faculties in Germany, thereby significantly helping to promote the clinician scientist profile long-term. The University of Münster’s Faculty of Medicine, its third-party-funded research networks and the Interdisciplinary Centre for Clinical Research (IZKF) already make a substantial contribution to financing the programme in Münster. Together, they will continue to jointly run the programme even once the DFG funding comes to an end.