Women's Reproductive Health Research (WRHR) Program
The WRHR program provides opportunities for obstetrician-gynecologists to obtain state-of-the-art training and experience in basic, translational and clinical women's reproductive health research. The WRHR program is funded through NICHD's Gynecologic Health and Disease Branch and co-sponsored by the NIH Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH).
The Duke WRHR training program combines cutting-edge research experiences with an innovative and proven career development framework to help develop the next generation of ob/gyn clinician-scientists. Our program supports up to two WRHR early stage faculty at any one time, across these categories of clinically relevant research:
- discovery of causal mechanisms
- translation of discovery into specific interventions
- testing interventions for safety, efficacy, and effectiveness
- implementing effective interventions into clinical practice and public health
WRHR scholars also participate in the Research Scholars Educational Training (ReSET) Program which provides structured, real-time grant writing support and welcomes all OBGYN trainees, faculty, and K12 scholars. Lectures and workshops are generally held on the 4th Wednesday of each month at Baker House Room 214. Scholars who are submitting an external grant in the next 3-6 months may Request a personal Grant Development Support (GRADS) Team to help get a grant out the door. Learn more on the ReSET website.
Letter of Intent
A Letter of Intent may be sent at any time, whether or not there is a Call for Applications. It is not required. Submission of the LOI begins a discussion of your career goals, proposed project, mentor selection, and eligibility with the Program Director. We will contact you to let you know if you are eligible to apply. The LOI should be emailed to the Program Director: Cindy Amundsen, MD at cindy.amundsen@duke.edu and Program Coordinator: Friederike Jayes at friederike.jayes@duke.edu.
The LOI must include the following information:
- Applicant’s full name
- Degree(s) and date(s) awarded (if MD with residency/fellowship, also include when you finished residency/fellowship)
- Department, Division, School
- Academic rank and position
- NIH biosketch
- Project title and a two-sentence description of the research project
- Brief description of the planned project (1 page max)
- Brief description of professional development goals (1 page max)
- Proposed mentor(s), at least one from the list of approved mentors
Announcements
2026 Women's Health Research Symposium
A resounding success! Over 145 people attended the 2026 Women's Health Research Symposium held on Friday, Feb. 6 at Trent Semans Great Hall. This year's themes — Expanding Research Impact through Data Science and Career Paths that Make a Difference — attracted faculty, trainees, students and other researchers from academia, industry and government representing more than 25 subspecialties. Dynamic panel presentations, interactive poster sessions and lunch roundtables fostered an engaging and collaborative atmosphere.