The ASPH/NHTSA Public Health Fellowship Program is a collaborative effort between ASPH and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), within the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). The global leader in motor vehicle and highway safety, NHTSA's mission is to save lives, prevent injuries and reduce economic costs due to road traffic crashes, through education, research, safety standards and enforcement activity. The agency develops, promotes and implements effective educational, engineering, and enforcement programs to prevent injuries and deaths and reduce economic costs associated with the nation's roadways and provides leadership to the motor vehicle and highway safety community through the development of innovative approaches to preventing roadway crashes and resulting deaths and injuries. NHTSA spearheads innovative research and data analysis critical to motor vehicle and highway safety and leads the nation by setting the motor vehicle and highway safety agenda.

What does the ASPH Fellowship offer you?

The ASPH/NHTSA Fellowship is a unique training opportunity offered to graduates of accredited schools of public health. The selected fellow will be based in NHTSA’s Office of Behavioral Safety Research, located at DOT headquarters in Washington, DC.

The Fellow should be an early-career public health professional with interest in injury prevention and behavioral research. NHTSA’s Office of Behavioral Safety Research has national responsibility for conducting applied research and evaluations of national, state, and local traffic safety programs; conducting behavioral research on the role of driver factors in crash avoidance; and identifying strategies for reducing traffic-related deaths and injuries. The Office conducts research and evaluation on a number of traffic safety issues including alcohol- and drug-impaired driving; safety belts and child restraint devices; speeding and aggressive driving; pedestrian, bicycle and motorcycle safety; traffic safety for older adults and novice drivers; driver licensing and education; emergency medical services; distracted and drowsy driving; and international road safety issues. The research and development programs conducted by the Office employ behavioral science, public health and human factors theories and accepted research practices to increase safe driving and to reduce injuries and death resulting from vehicle crashes.

Upon completion of the Fellowship, the selected applicant will have made a useful contribution to a project of public health importance that is related to the mission of NHTSA, and will have carried out scientific work that, if applicable, is acceptable to the sponsoring academic institution for degree credit as specified at the beginning of the fellowship.

Eligibility

Students receiving their MPH or Doctorate degree prior to the beginning of the fellowship (no later than September 2009) and early career professionals, within 5 years of graduation, with MPH or Doctorate degrees may apply for the fellowship program. Graduate degrees must have been received from an ASPH member graduate school of public health accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). A full list of accredited ASPH member schools can be accessed via the ASPH website at http://www.asph.org. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or hold a visas permitting permanent residence in the U.S. (i.e., “Green Card”) to be eligible for the fellowship program.

Location & Start

The fellowship position will be located at the U.S. Department of Transportation Headquarters (DOT), Washington, D.C. The selected applicant will be required to relocate to the fellowship location. Relocation expenses will not be reimbursed. The selected fellow is expected to report to this location to begin the fellowship by November 1, 2009.

How are Fellows selected?

All applications to the fellowship program will undergo a technical review process by NHTSA staff based on the following criteria: quality of essay, strength of credentials, previous professional experience; and letters of recommendation. Finalists will then be evaluated to assess which of the candidates applying for the project is most suited for the fellowship.

How do I apply to the program?

Hard-copy application materials must be received by ASPH by no later than 5:00 PM (Eastern) on Friday, August 28, 2009. All application forms and instructions can be found on the ASPH website at the below links.

Important Note: ASPH will not accept electronic applications for this announcement. The online application system is undergoing annual upgrades/maintenance and will not be available during the month of August 2009. ASPH will accept only paper-based, hard-copy, applications in response to this announcement.

To view the official 2009 Request for Applications (RFA), application form and instructions, please click the link below: