The Wistar Institute’s Fox Biomedical Research Technician (BRT) Apprenticeship is the first-ever registered, nontraditional apprenticeship program for biomedical research.
The Fox BRT Apprenticeship offers apprentices a career pathway to becoming laboratory technicians in a biomedical environment. Through advanced training they learn to carry out laboratory procedures, manage a laboratory and monitor lab safety, analyze data, and other highly-skilled techniques with the goal of supporting a lead scientist and staff in the laboratory to advance scientific hypotheses and outcomes. This model successfully creates collaborations between industry, academia and research institutes, offers in-depth training and education while providing apprentices a wage, and gives trainees the skillsets sought after by the life science industry.
On May 11, 2017, the Fox BRT Apprenticeship Program was approved by the Council on Apprenticeship Standards for the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry.
