Curriculum
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-month Sleep Medicine Fellowship, you are directly supervised by Mayo Clinic sleep medicine staff physicians. Their specialties include adult and pediatric pulmonary and critical care medicine, 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. The facility includes an outpatient clinic and sleep laboratory. The laboratory features 24 state-of-the-art polysomnography beds with video-EEG capabilities. Supervised inpatient consultations provide valuable exposure to complex and interdisciplinary aspects of sleep medicine. The fellowship begins with a dedicated Sleep Medicine Bootcamp. The bootcamp builds confidence in sleep diagnostics, sleep study interpretation, and clinical workflows.
The fully staffed Pediatric Sleep Medicine section builds confidence in caring for children and adolescents with sleep conditions. Technical instruction in polysomnography and other sleep testing strengthens 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, and addiction and pain. Additional areas may include chronic fatigue, obesity, ALS, cardiology, and pulmonary medicine. Each is selected to complement your development as a sleep medicine specialist.
Fellows typically do not take overnight or weekend calls. This approach supports a rich learning experience while reducing 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 design, conduct, and present an original clinical research project. Under faculty mentorship, you will gain experience throughout the research process and participate in at least one research project. Elective time may be available to pursue additional research projects, either new or ongoing, with guidance from a faculty advisor.
Many fellows publish their findings or present at national conferences. This includes the annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, with fully supported attendance. Research opportunities include 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. The bootcamp builds confidence in sleep diagnostics, sleep study interpretation, and clinical workflows. You will participate in a comprehensive didactic lecture series and regularly scheduled recorded review sessions. Sleep laboratory core experiences strengthen your clinical knowledge and practical skills. Multidisciplinary conferences connect you with faculty and researchers 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 complete foundational training through Mayo Clinic’s Quality Academy and design a quality improvement (QI) project. Many projects qualify for Silver Quality Fellow certification through the Quality Fellows Program. With expert mentorship, you gain system-thinking tools and methods to improve sleep health care delivery. This training prepares you to deliver care and lead meaningful quality improvement efforts.
Career development and leadership preparation
Throughout the year, you will engage in structured professional development activities. These activities provide guidance on career planning, academic communication, and leadership skills. You will refine your presentation skills and learn to translate data into actionable insights. Training prepares you for roles in clinical leadership, academic sleep medicine, and program development.
Teaching opportunities
Opportunities are available for teaching rotating residents and medical students.
Evaluation
Your progress is monitored through rotation evaluations and regular meetings with the program director. Assessment includes a written knowledge exam and the Sleep Medicine In-Training Examination (SMITE). You will also complete an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) to evaluate clinical skills. Faculty evaluations are complemented by your opportunity to provide feedback on the program. Our goal is to ensure you graduate fully prepared to lead a sleep disorders service or direct a sleep laboratory. Training also prepares you to contribute innovative advances to the field of sleep medicine.