ISO: PAs with a Passion for Learning

Will Select up to Three Early-Career Researchers for AAPA-PAEA Research Fellowship

May 16, 2019

By AAPA Research Department

Are you a PA with a doctoral degree who has a passion for learning? The AAPA-PAEA Research Fellowship may be for you.

We are looking for current AAPA members who have achieved a doctorate in the past five years or are in their final year of their degree program. The ideal candidate has been in education fewer than 10 years and is employed full-time at an accredited PAEA member program that is in good standing for at least one year. AAPA will consider non-faculty on a case-by-case basis. AAPA and PAEA will select up to three Fellows.

The Research Fellowship is a collaborative PA education and workforce research capacity building program. The goals of the Fellowship are three-fold: develop a cadre of PAs skilled in PA education and workforce research, encourage utilization of PAEA and AAPA data to generate research of interest to the PA profession and community of PA scholars, and provide future research mentors for newer faculty to sustain the PA workforce and education research pipeline.

Fellows are expected to use their release time to complete their research project, develop their skills under the guidance of a mentor, engage in educational activities, and broaden their knowledge of the PA profession and PA education. Previous Fellows have met with leaders at organizations such as the Association of American Medical Colleges, the Health Resources and Services Administration, the National Academy of Medicine, the Robert Graham Center, the National Centers for Health Statistics, the National Association of Community Health Centers, and the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Are your research interests aligned with AAPA or PAEA?

Are you interested in conducting research on one of the following topics? If so, this is your opportunity to receive funding to support your research.

• Workforce readiness of PA program graduates
• Advancing the PA identity
• Challenges and solutions to clinical education site availability
• Equipping PAs and faculty for expanded leadership roles in healthcare
• Diversity and the PA student pipeline
• Barriers to the creation of progressive work environments for PAs

Receive funding to support your research!

Each Fellow’s institution will receive $25,000 in exchange for 0.2 FTE protected time for research activities. Each Fellow will also attend the following, all expenses paid:

• 2019 and 2020 PAEA Education Forums and AAPA 2020 Conference
• Two in-person meetings in the Washington D.C. area (winter and summer seminars)

What’s a successful application?

In addition to a cover sheet, a personal narrative, and your CV, you need to submit a proposed research plan which outlines the research you would like to engage in. After reviewing two years of applications, here are suggestions for developing your research plan:

Thoughtfully develop the research plan. Each section of the plan needs to be clearly laid out. The research plan should have an easy to identify problem statement and statement of how the project will advance the knowledge we have. In addition, pay careful attention to the feasibility of the research project. You need to ensure that the research can be completed within one year and the publication can be released within two years.

Use AAPA data. If you would like to use AAPA data, reach out to the AAPA Research Department to learn more about their data. AAPA Research wants you to spend your time developing a sound research plan.

Get more than one colleague to review. They can let you know if you have any typos or grammatical issues. More importantly, with the evaluation materials in hand, they can let you know if the writing is confusing, if the project plan is not feasible, or if you do not include required information.

Be patient. It may take more than one application round to be accepted into this competitive Fellowship.

Help AAPA make a strong investment in research. Applications must be submitted no later than 12:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, June 10, 2019. Learn more here.

More Resources

AAPA-PAEA Research Fellowship

Noël Smith is AAPA’s senior director of PA and Industry Research and Analysis. Contact Noël at [email protected].