The postdoctoral programs at the Center for Gerontology and Healthcare Research provide fellows with an exciting opportunity to participate in groundbreaking, interdisciplinary research in such areas as health promotion and prevention, long-term care, community-based systems of care, healthcare organizations, and methodological approaches to health services research.
The Center runs two fellowship programs: an AHRQ Post-Doctoral Program and a SURDNA Fellowship Program. Fellows graduating from all programs have gone on to publish widely in their respective fields and have assumed positions in major research institutions throughout the country.
AHRQ Post Doctoral Fellowship Program: The AHRQ Post Doctoral Fellowship Program is rooted in the premise that a multi-level, multi-disciplinary approach is the most appropriate one to adopt in studying how health services are delivered to meet the needs of individuals with chronic illness. In this program clinician and non-clinician scientists not only work together on funded projects, they also teach each other about the clinical aspects of the population and the research methods necessary to study it systematically. Further, special care is taken to ensure a good fit between the needs of each trainee and the interests, available resources, and capabilities of his or her faculty mentor.
SURDNA Fellowship Program: Since 1989, the Center for Gerontology and Healthcare Research has made available junior faculty fellowships of approximately $20,000 for a one year period funded by an endowment from the SURDNA Foundation. The fellowship is designed to provide academic faculty in clinical departments the resources and research mentorship to develop an independent line of research on some aspect of aging. The first SURDNA Fellow began training in the fall of 1990. Past fellows have studied topics as diverse as the aging uterus and factors contributing to the hospitalization of nursing home patients.
Interested physicians or clinicians who have completed some clinical training (preferably a residency and clinical fellowship, if appropriate) and non-physicians who have completed a Ph.D. are invited to apply. Once applications have been reviewed by the faculty, a select group of candidates is invited for an interview. An invitation is based on a candidate’s demonstrated academic ability, depth of commitment to health services research, and compatibility of research interests with ongoing projects at the Center. Invited candidates spend an entire day at the Center, give a research presentation, interview with the faculty who comprise the Evaluation and Review Committee, and meet the current postdoctoral fellows. The program director and the faculty review written evaluations by faculty and fellows, as well as information provided through informal discussions.
