Dr. Charlie Shaffer earned his undergraduate degree from Magdalen College at the University of Oxford, where he studied Modern History. Returning to his home in New York, Dr. Shaffer completed a post-baccalaureate premedical studies program at Columbia University and then entered medical school at Columbia University's College of Physicians & Surgeons. After graduating, Dr. Shaffer did his residency in the Payne Whitney Department of Psychiatry at NewYork-Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Medicine, where he served as Chief Resident and received the APA Resident Recognition Award. During training, Dr. Shaffer helped set up and run the Ketamine Infusion Service to treat inpatients with treatment-refractory depression. He also obtained advanced training in psychotherapy at the Personality Disorders Institute.

As an attending at Weill Cornell, Dr. Shaffer works on the inpatient unit and Ketamine Service, while also maintaining an outpatient practice. His current research is centered on the impact of COVID-19 on the treatment of patients with serious mental illness. He remains very involved in the supervision and teaching of residents and medical students.