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Clinical Academic Training Office (CATO)

The Clinical Academic Training Office (CATO) runs from Sunderland School of Medicine in Murray Health. The role of the CATO is to be a contact point for students who are undertaking academic activity such as research internships or intercalation, and to support Academic Clinical Fellows (ACFs).

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Clinical Academics are doctors and dentists working as healthcare professionals while undertaking research with a university or an NHS facility.

Get involved

There are many ways to get involved with the CATO. We work with students, clinicians, researchers, patients, public contributors, and industry partners to support clinical academic careers and research development.

You can get involved by:

  • Attending training and networking events
  • Taking part in our Summer Research Internship Programme
  • Contributing to research through Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE)
  • Connecting with us to learn more about our work in clinical academic training and building research capacity across the north-east.

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Integrated Academic Training (IAT) pathway

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The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) fund our current academic programmes. The NIHR helps improve the health and wellbeing of the nation through research, working in partnership with the NHS, universities, patients, and the public.

The NIHR IAT(opens in new tab) pathway supports the training of doctors and dentists in England to develop their clinical academic careers. The programme is delivered through several schemes that rely on close partnership between the NIHR, NHS England, medical schools, and NHS organisations.

NIHR allocates Academic Clinical Fellowships (ACFs) and Clinical Lectureships (CLs) to partnerships of organisations comprising medical schools and dental schools (and their partner universities), NHS England local offices, and partner Trusts. These posts fit within the speciality training period and allow trainees to combine clinical and academic training.

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Academic Clinical Fellowship (ACFs): a programme for doctors who have completed their foundation training and want to combine their clinical work with research training. ACFs are medical speciality training posts within the NHS that also included scheduled time for research. Fellowships last around three years, with 25% protected academic time. Applications for these posts are very competitive, and you must demonstrate your suitability for the post through an interview process.

Sunderland School of Medicine currently support ACF trainees in the following specialties:

  • General practice
  • Anaesthetics
  • Acute medicine
  • Renal
  • Rheumatology
  • Cardiology.

Undergraduate opportunities

NIHR vacation studentships

Medical students can apply for a funded research internship for six weeks during the summer (July-August). You'll identify a supervisor and topic of interest and we'll support you to complete and disseminate your project findings. This is a great opportunity for you to gain research experience and consider pursuing academic activity throughout your medical career.

Intercalation

Intercalation is an additional year of study for medical students. You could gain an extra qualification, such as an MRes, an MA, or MMEd (Masters in medical education). Intercalation helps you to gain academic skills and make informed choices about specialisation later in your career.

Intercalation offers several potential advantages, including:

  • A better understanding of basic biomedical sciences, medical humanities, and research methodologies
  • Gaining an extra qualification which may help with future job applications, especially in competitive specialties
  • Discovering if you'd like to pursue a clinical academic career
  • The opportunity to pursue a subject of personal interest in a depth not usually possible at medical school
  • Gaining important skills such as medical writing and public presentation

At Sunderland, intercalation most often takes place following Year 4. Following Year 3 may be possible on a case-by-case basis. You can apply via an expression of interest form and should expect to start your course in August for 12 months.

Postgraduate opportunities

Specialist Foundation Programme (SFPs)

The SFP provides an opportunity for foundation doctors to develop research, teaching and leadership/management skills. This is in addition to the competencies outlined in the Foundation Programme Curriculum.

PhDs

We're keen to support clinical academic doctoral research fellowships (PhDs). Please contact us to discuss your career ambitions and research project: catoMS@sunderland.ac.uk(opens in new tab).

Work with us

We welcome partnerships with industry through our Summer Research Internship Programme. The programme supports the next generation of medical researchers and clinicians.

During the 10-week programme, medical students work alongside clinical academics on projects that address important healthcare challenges. They gain hands-on experience and build research, analytical, and professional skills. Students also learn more about careers in clinical research and academic medicine.

For many students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, financial support is essential. It means they don’t have to choose between paid work and valuable research experience.

With support from industry partners, we can open up more opportunities in academic medicine. We can also strengthen research across the north-east and support future clinical researchers who’ll help improve patient care and drive innovation.

If you'd like to support research or find out more, please contact catoMS@sunderland.ac.uk(opens in new tab).