Our fellowship offers a well-rounded and flexible training experience that combines clinical care, research, quality improvement, teaching, and leadership preparation. 

Clinical training

During the 12 months of clinical training in the Sleep Medicine Fellowship, you are under the direct supervision of Mayo Clinic sleep medicine staff physicians with primary specialties in adult and pediatric pulmonary and critical care medicine, adult and pediatric neurology, psychiatry, and primary care. You evaluate, investigate, and treat patients with a wide spectrum of sleep disorders in both clinic and hospital settings.

Training takes place at the Center for Sleep Medicine on Mayo Clinic’s campus in Rochester, Minnesota, which includes an outpatient clinic and laboratory facility with 24 state-of-the-art, video-EEG-capable polysomnography beds. Supervised inpatient consultations provide valuable exposure to complex and interdisciplinary aspects of sleep medicine. You evaluate a full range of adult and pediatric sleep disorders, including sleep-related breathing disorders, insomnia, hypersomnia, circadian rhythm disorders, and parasomnias.

The center’s fully staffed Pediatric Sleep Medicine section ensures that you gain confidence and competence in caring for children and adolescents with sleep conditions, while technical instruction in polysomnography and other sleep testing enhances your understanding of sleep diagnostics. 

Rotations and call frequency

Rotations are individualized based on your prior training and career interests. They may include psychiatry, clinical neurophysiology, neurology, dental sleep medicine, otolaryngology, maxillofacial surgery, addiction and pain, chronic fatigue, obesity, ALS, cardiology, and pulmonary medicine—each selected to complement your development as a sleep medicine specialist.

Fellows typically do not take overnight or weekend call, aligning with the program’s focus on rich learning rather than high service burden. Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science follows the recommendations of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).

Research training and scholarly work 

You will have protected research time in dedicated blocks to initiate, design, conduct, and present an original clinical research project under faculty mentorship. As a fellow, you are expected to participate in at least one research project. Elective time may be available for participation in a new or ongoing research project(s) under the guidance and mentorship of a faculty advisor.

Many fellows publish their findings or present nationally, including at the annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, for which attendance is fully supported. Research opportunities include areas such as sleep-disordered breathing, hypersomnia, insomnia, parasomnias, remote monitoring/wearables, artificial intelligence, and health-systems innovation.

Didactic training and teaching experience

The fellowship begins with a dedicated Sleep Medicine Bootcamp, designed to accelerate your comfort with basic sleep diagnostics, sleep study interpretation, and clinical workflows. You will participate in a comprehensive didactic lecture series, regularly scheduled recorded review sessions, sleep laboratory core experiences, and multidisciplinary conference participation that draws faculty and researchers from across Mayo Clinic sites. Teaching opportunities with rotating residents and medical students are also available, enabling you to hone presentation and communication skills.

Quality improvement and innovation

All fellows participate in basic training through Mayo Clinic’s Quality Academy, completing the foundational modules and designing and implementing a quality improvement (QI) project—often qualifying for Silver Quality Fellow certification in the Quality Fellows Program. Under the mentorship of a trained quality improvement expert, you will acquire system-thinking tools and methods that prepare you not only to deliver care but to lead improvements in sleep health service delivery.

Career development and leadership preparation 

Throughout the year, you will engage in structured professional development activities, including guidance on career planning, academic communication, and leadership skills. You will refine your presentation skills, learn to translate data into actionable insights, and prepare for roles in clinical leadership, academic sleep medicine, or program development.

Teaching opportunities

Opportunities are available for teaching rotating residents and medical students.

Evaluation

Your progress is monitored through formal rotation evaluations, meetings with the program director, a written knowledge assessment, the Sleep Medicine In-Training Examination (SMITE), and an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE). Faculty evaluations are complemented by your opportunity to provide feedback on the program. Our goal is to ensure that you graduate with full readiness to lead a sleep disorders service, direct a lab, or contribute innovatively to the field of sleep medicine.