Making AI in Healthcare Reliable with Dr. Burcu Ozek
Portrait of Dr. Burcu Ozek. Photo sourced from LinkedIn.
Dr. Burcu Ozek is currently a Principal AI Scientist at Walkky after completing a PhD in industrial engineering at Northeastern. Looking back at her time with Northeastern, Ozeck shares the value of the LEADERs program and how her hands-on experience gave her the necessary skills to communicate across teams in her work with AI in healthcare.
When Dr. Burcu Ozek began her PhD at Northeastern, her goal was ambitious but clear: build machine learning systems that are accurate, reliable, and interpretable for real-world healthcare decision-making. Today she’s doing exactly that, as a Principal AI Scientist at Walkky, a health technology company focused on cardiovascular disease detection. Ozek’s doctoral research spanned traditional statistical models to advanced deep learning approaches, with her dissertation centering on machine learning for pain assessment and uncertainty quantification in AI models. The thread tying it all together was her commitment to ensure that these systems could actually be trusted when it mattered most.
During her PhD at Northeastern, Ozek was a teaching assistant for the Data Mining in Engineering course (IE 7275) in the Industrial Engineering department for three years. This experience sharpened her ability to break down complex technical concepts and mentor others. Additionally, through the LEADERs program, she completed an industry internship at Merck, a leading multinational biopharmaceutical company, gaining direct exposure to cross-functional collaboration and applied research. She continues to draw daily from these skills she honed during this time in her current leadership role.
Today at Walkky, Ozek leads the company’s AI modeling strategy, overseeing everything from research and clinical validation to real-world deployment of cutting-edge models for early heart disease detection. Leading AI initiatives in the fast-moving world of biotechnology means collaborating across various teams of scientists, clinicians, engineers, and business partners, each with their own set of priorities and professional jargon. After being in the workforce for several months now, Ozek feels that her time as a TA and her LEADERs experience prepared her to take on enormous responsibility, “My PhD at Northeastern gave me a strong foundation in rigorous research, analytical thinking, and solving complex real-world problems. It also taught me how to learn independently and continuously grow in unfamiliar areas.”
For Ozek, the LEADERs program was more than a professional development opportunity. It transformed her mindset from purely academic research toward applied, impact-driven problem solving. She started to see herself not just as a researcher, but as a leader capable of driving projects within complex organizations, “Through hands-on experience and structured training, I developed a clearer understanding of how to translate technical expertise into business and clinical value. Ultimately, the program helped bridge the gap between academia and industry, making my transition both intentional and strategic.” Her internship at Merck, facilitated through the LEADERs program, became a turning point by offering real-world exposure to industry workflows while expanding her professional network through connections with mentors and leaders outside academia.
Looking back as an alum now, Ozek had pointed advice to share with those currently in their PhD programs, “Early in my journey, I realized that strong technical work alone is not enough. You must also communicate its value clearly to people with different backgrounds and priorities.” Learning to tailor her message, whether to academic peers, clinicians, or industry leaders, made her transition to industry significantly smoother. She gave further guidance to those preparing to enter the workforce:
- Recognize that your PhD has equipped you with far more than technical expertise, it has trained you to think critically, solve complex problems, and learn independently.
- Take the time to translate those skills into language that resonates outside academia.
- Don’t underestimate the value of communication and adaptability.
- Trust that the ability to learn quickly and navigate ambiguity is one of your greatest strengths.
Dr. Burcu Ozek’s journey from PhD graduate to Principal Scientist is a powerful example that the skills forged during a PhD extend far beyond the lab when combined with intentional career development.
Please see her Google Scholar page to read her latest publications.
More about Dr. Burcu Ozek:
Dr. Ozek is originally from Turkey, and pursued her PhD in the United States, an experience that deeply shaped both her academic path and personal development. She is passionate about translating advanced AI research into meaningful, real-world healthcare impacts.
This article originally appeared on PhD Education.