United Therapeutics Global Patient Safety Fellowship
This fellowship is sponsored in collaboration with United Therapeutics Corporation, and is part of the DPET fellowship program.
- Length: Two years
- Recruitment Brochure
United Therapeutics Corporation, in cooperation with UNC Hospitals and the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, sponsors a two-year fellowship in Global Patient Safety (GPS). This program offers an innovative combination of pharmacovigilance, medication-use safety and policy, and didactic training that is not offered by any other pharmacovigilance post-doctoral fellowship program. This fellowship is designed to provide practical training and experience in translatable medication safety work within the hospital and in key GPS functions to develop a practitioner with a comprehensive understanding of how their work in the pharmaceutical industry impacts medication use in a clinical setting. As with traditional pharmacovigilance fellowships, the fellow will be fully trained in the GPS requirements of drug development and investigational and marketed product risk management and surveillance to launch a successful and innovative career in GPS in the pharmaceutical industry.
Program Description
During the first year, the fellow will participate with pharmacy leaders on the Medication Management and Optimization team at the UNC Hospital to advance drug safety initiatives and management. The fellow will also collaborate with research faculty on clinical research at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy. Other first-year fellowship experiences include didactic training and coursework related to clinical trial design and medication safety, mentorship, participation in monthly NCTraCS data safety monitoring board meetings, and an investigational drug services rotation. Additional opportunities are available, such as completing regulatory and teaching certificates and traveling to scientific conferences. In the second year, the fellow will work with the product safety matrix team of medical professionals and experts from various backgrounds at United Therapeutics Corporation. The fellow will receive hands-on training to gain a complete understanding of the day-to-day operations of pharmacovigilance for a GPS safety scientist. The training will prepare the fellow to be a leader in the field, contributing to signal detection, safety analysis, and medical writing for various safety related documents.
Fellows will develop expertise in:
- Aggregate data analysis
- Signal detection
- Benefit-risk evaluation and risk mitigation strategies
- International regulatory requirements, specifically as it applies to drug safety
- Clinical medication safety
- Project management
- Medical writing
Program Goals and Objectives
- Gain a comprehensive understanding of the mission and role of UTC’s GPS department from clinical development through commercialization
- Collaborate effectively with various functional areas, developing strong communication and project management skills to ensure efficient and effective project execution
- Integrate into the product safety matrix model to attain a patient-focused approach, ensuring product safety monitoring and benefit-risk management through sharing of multiple perspectives and specialized resources
- Develop a thorough understanding of global vigilance and safety guidelines, regulations, and standard operating procedures to support day-to-day business compliance
- Enhance the ability to critically evaluate, interpret, synthesize, and present safety analyses through signal detection, safety topic analysis, and risk characterization
- Contribute to the creation of high-quality, scientifically accurate safety regulatory documents for submission to health authorities, including the Periodic Benefit Risk Evaluation Report (PBRER) and Developmental Safety Update Report (DSUR)
- Prepare manuscripts that elucidate the safety profile of investigational and marketed products
- Develop strategic thinking skills with a global pharmacovigilance and regulatory perspective
The ideal candidate should possess an innovative and entrepreneurial spirit, demonstrated analytic ability, strong communication skills, and substantial leadership experience.
About United Therapeutics Corporation
United Therapeutics Corporation is a biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of unique products to address the unmet medical needs of patients with chronic and life-threatening conditions. The company’s currently marketed products are in the field of rare diseases: pulmonary arterial hypertension and neuroblastoma. In addition, the company, through a wholly owned subsidiary, is focused on addressing the acute national shortage of transplantable lungs and other organs with a variety of technologies that either delay the need for such organs or expand the supply.
To Apply
Visit http://pharmacydpetfellowships.web.unc.edu/ for instructions on submitting an application.
Application Opens: October 1, 2025
Early Application Deadline: October 31, 2025
Final Application Deadline: November 21, 2025
Contact for Program Information
Robert Dupuis, Pharm.D.
Clinical Professor of Pharmacy and Director of Fellowship Programs
3313 Kerr Hall, CB # 7569
(919) 966-6194
fellowships@unc.edu