The University, through the School of Public Health (SPH), recently won a $700,000 training grant to fund a five-year, interdisciplinary doctoral training program in public health and aging.
Eligible students must be admitted to or currently enrolled in a doctoral program in health sciences, social or behavioral sciences, and have research plans that are interdisciplinary and focus on aging and public health. Each trainee also must have a mentor and co-mentor who represent an interdisciplinary approach.
Mary Haan, program director and professor of epidemiology, says the program office already is receiving inquiries by word-of-mouth because there is such a growing need for trained professionals in the field. Approximately 28 faculty members from SPH and other U-M disciplines are involved.
“In both public health and aging there are lots of issues that come up in a research setting and a practice setting that require the contributions of people with different training and different points of view,” Haan says. “For example, geriatricians provide clinical care, but health policies influence what they can do and how patients experience care delivery.”
The deadline for applications is June 1, and decisions will be made by the end of June. The positions are available starting fall 2008 with four students the first year, adding two more of each the following years, for a total of eight-10 students trained, Haan says.
The program emphasizes three broad areas: the epidemiology of chronic diseases in aging adults; research methods and analytic models in aging; and translation of research on aging populations into public health practice and policy.
The grant is funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging.
For application information, contact SPH, c/o L. Blythe, 109 S. Observatory St., Ann Arbor, MI 48104, call 615-8190 or e-mail [email protected].
