Research (T32) Fellowship in Geriatric Mental Health

The fellowship was awarded in 1995 (PI: Dilip V. Jeste) and renewed in 2008. It supports up to six outstanding postdoctoral Fellows who are suited for an academic research career in geriatric mental health. In addition, four slots are devoted to the training of medical or other predoctoral students in order to develop a "pipeline" for future fellows. Fellowship opportunities exist in clinical and applied services focusing on the treatment, rehabilitation, and prevention of psychotic disorders in late life. The primary goal of the Fellowship program is training fellows in those skills necessary for developing into independent researchers.

Over the last 14 years, we have recruited 67 T-32 trainees including 43 postdoctoral Fellows, and 11 predoctoral and 13 medical students. This T-32 program is a part of a larger research training program within UCSD’s Division of Geriatric Psychiatry. It is affiliated with NIMH-funded Advanced Center for Innovation in Services and Intervention Research (ACISIR), which has a distinct Bioethics Unit and a Latino Studies Unit. Most trainees have published multiple peer-reviewed papers. Our trainees have obtained 9 NIMH and 2 VA Career Development Awards, 7 RO1s, 8 R34s/R21s/R03s, 11 NARSAD Young Investigator Awards, 6 NIMH Postdoctoral Minority or Disability Supplements, 4 NIMH Minority Predoctoral Awards, and a number of other competitive grants. We place major emphasis on career development.

The Fellowship program includes individual mentoring along with experiential research training, complemented by didactic activities. A personalized training plan is developed for each trainee early in the course of the Fellowship. Writing skills enhancement, guidance on balancing personal life and professional career, and exposure to inter-disciplinary mentors are some of the features of our program. Over the next 5 years, we will increase our focus on physician scientists, translational researchers (with both types of translation - from bench to bedside and from bedside to community), and diversity of trainees.
 A list of fellows from the past five years.

Mentorship

A large proportion of fellows’ time is be devoted to research (which includes relevant clinical or basic work such as SCID interviews, therapy sessions, lab assays, etc.). The balance of time may be committed to teaching and administration. The overall training program is based on a combination of individualized mentoring, and more structured group training, with an increasing emphasis on independence during the latter part of Fellowship. Each fellow will be assigned one principal mentor and up to two "secondary" mentors. This structure provides them with an inter-disciplinary team of mentors who can provide valuable input into your training process. One of the "secondary" mentors may be a senior Fellow or junior faculty member.

Division of Geriatric Psychiatry Research Fellowship Responsibilities and Requirements

Responsibilities of the fellowship include: research-related clinical work, such as diagnostic interviews, division-related data collection, and attendance and participation in seminars and meetings. A detailed list of the seminars, meetings, courses, and other activities offered by the Division of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Evaluation of Progress

Each fellow will be evaluated both informally and formally. They meet with their principal mentor on a regular basis. The principal mentor will provide the trainee with ongoing feedback about his/her progress. Secondly, formal evaluations are conducted by the principal mentor periodically. Each fellow will be asked to provide feedback on their own training and on the Fellowship program in general on an ongoing basis. In addition, formal written evaluation of the Fellowship are completed once a year. These evaluations are utilized to make changes deemed necessary.