Exploring AI in healthcare: An Ellison Scholar’s summer at EIT

This summer, EIT welcomed one of its inaugural cohort of Undergraduate Ellison Scholars, Atharva Dangre, for his first EIT internship experience.  

Working alongside Dr Lennard Lee and the Medical team at EIT, Atharva contributed to a research paper exploring the role of artificial intelligence in healthcare. His time at EIT was marked by a blend of academic research, networking opportunities and immersion into daily life at the Institute.  

Below, Atharva shares his reflections on the experience in his own words:

During my time at EIT, my main focus was contributing to an upcoming paper on AI in healthcare, which I worked on with Dr Lennard Lee and Ian Lowenhoff. A significant part of my role involved reaching out to clinicians across various specialties to gather their perspectives. These conversations gave me a broad view of both the opportunities and challenges that AI presents in medicine. It was fascinating to hear the diverse experiences clinicians have had with these technologies, and through this, I gained a deeper understanding of how the NHS is engaging with digital transformation.

Alongside the research, I had the chance to immerse myself in the wider work happening across the Medical team. Spending time with Alex introduced me to his respiratory pathogen kit project, and experimenting with the chatbot he had developed was both enjoyable and eye-opening. In the lab, Gareth supervised me as I learned library preparation techniques and became familiar with sequencing technologies. Getting to handle these methods firsthand - rather than just reading about them - was a highlight and gave me a real appreciation for the precision and skill involved.

What I enjoyed most about my internship was the blend of experiences: combining my core project on large language models with the chance to explore lab work and digital tools. I had the opportunity to speak with individuals across different domains at EIT, learning about and appreciating their contributions to the organisation’s wider mission. It was this variety - moving between interviews, manuscript drafting, and hands-on scientific techniques - that made my internship such a rich and rewarding period.

Dr Lennard Lee, Chief Medical Officer at EIT, said:

"We are always delighted to welcome the next generation of bright minds into the Medical Team. Their curiosity and fresh perspectives add real value to our work, and it is inspiring to see them engage so deeply with both the clinical and scientific aspects of our mission. These experiences help nurture the great scientists of the future, and we are proud to support their growth.”

The Education & Scholarships programmes at EIT empower exceptional individuals to become global technology innovators and leaders of the future, solving humanity’s most challenging and enduring problems. EIT Students actively contribute to EIT’s innovation projects through technological advancements, transforming research into practical solutions and scaling them for global impact.

The programmes fully fund undergraduate or graduate studies at the University of Oxford, covering course fees, a generous living stipend and the equivalent of paid internships. Alongside their Oxford education, EIT Students engage in project-based learning and receive mentorship with world-renowned experts at EIT, preparing them to drive profound change in their home countries and around the world.

Atharva is already based in Oxford, and he worked with EIT to pilot the internship experience. The incoming undergraduate Scholars will begin their first EIT internships in the summer of 2026.  

Applications for Graduate Scholarships are open now.