Office of Trainee Affairs (OTA)

Research education and training is vital to the mission of the Abigail Wexner Research Institute (AWRI) at Nationwide Children's Hospital. As a top 10 free-standing pediatric research center and an academic affiliate of The Ohio State University, AWRI has an outstanding faculty dedicated to training and mentoring the next generation of scientists in pediatric research.

AWRI Investigators are teaching faculty in various departments at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, including the departments of Pediatrics, Pathology, Surgery, Otolaryngology and Psychiatry.

As a result, many students and trainees are based at AWRI, including undergraduates, graduate students, residents and fellows in pediatrics and pediatric surgery and post-doctoral fellows. Instruction occurs in informal and formal didactic sessions, one-on-one interactions and hands-on laboratory training.

The Office of Trainee Affairs (OTA) oversees these training opportunities and the numerous programs, events, activities and resources available to support those who participate in them, including the Research Institute’s Trainee Association (RITA), the AWRI postdoctoral association.

Trainee Association

The Research Institute’s Trainee Association (RITA) was created in 2013 to help better train and prepare trainees for their “next steps.”

Postdoctoral

Nationwide Children's offers postdoctoral opportunities for those individuals who recently received their degree in many of the Abigail Wexner Research Institute's research laboratories.

Graduate Students

First-year graduate students are able to do short rotations though the Abigail Wexner Research Institute laboratories prior to committing to their thesis laboratories.

Medical Students

Medical students may apply for research opportunities, with eight-week programs during their third year and four-week elective programs during their fourth year of medical school available.

Medical Fellows

Nationwide Children’s offers high-quality, nationally recognized fellowships in a wide range of pediatric subspecialties, most of which include opportunities in basic or clinical research. 

Awards and Fellowships

The Office of Trainee Affairs has several financial awards and fellowships that are aimed at supporting trainees throughout their research journey.