Application Information
June 1, 2011 through May 31, 2012
Partner Teacher Application
The partner teacher application is available as a PDF download. You will need Acrobat Reader, available from Adobe, to view and print the application. You may also want to review the guidelines for fellow applicants, below.
Fellow Application
The science teaching fellow application is available as a PDF download. You will need Acrobat Reader, available from Adobe, to view and print the application. You may also want to review the guidelines for student applicants, below.
Fellowship Details: Each fellowship will be awarded for a 12-month period with a starting date of June 1, 2011. The annual stipend is $7,000.
Eligibility Requirements: The fellowships are intended for postdoctoral fellows, Ph.D., and M.S. graduate students in chemistry, geology, physics, biological sciences, biomedical engineering, mathematics, chemical engineering, environmental engineering, and environmental science. Ph.D. students have to be admitted to Ph.D. candidacy prior to beginning the fellowship, and M.S. graduate students should be at the end of their second year of graduate work prior to beginning the fellowship (this requirement is designed to accommodate fellows with flexible schedules who are not required to register for more than minimum tuition).
The program is particularly well suited for graduate students who are at the dissertation writing stage. Interested graduate students must be nominated by their research advisor. Students must be enrolled at Vanderbilt University, Meharry Medical College, Tennessee State University, or Fisk University and must express a strong commitment for a career in academia and teaching.
Fellowship Time Commitment: The conditions of the program require fellows to spend the equivalent of a minimum of one full school day per week in the classroom providing direct assistance to teachers and three hours per week for planning (depending on assignment, the schedule may allow for one full school day or two half school days per week).
Science Teaching Fellows (STFs) are also required to attend a two-hour monthly seminar designed to address the specific needs of the STFs and the program partnership. This will be on the Vanderbilt campus from 5 to 7 p.m., usually the second Tuesday of September, October, December, February, April, and May.
STFs are also expected to attend two day-long seminars with their partner teachers: one in the fall and one in spring. These day-long seminars will take the place of evening seminars for November and March.
During the summer, STFs attend a summer workshop to plan with their partner teacher. For the summer of 2011, the workshop dates are:
- June 6 - 17 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each weekday or
- June 20 - July 8 (excluding July 4) from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. each weekday
Submission Materials: Fill out the science teaching fellow application and use it as a cover sheet for the first three items listed below. In addition, two letters of recommendation must be received by the deadline date.
- A letter of intent describing future career aspirations toward teaching and an academic position.
- Official transcript of graduate study.
- Official transcript of undergraduate study.
- Two letters of recommendation (these should be sent by the person making the recommendation to the appropriate address listed on the science teaching fellow application). One must be from the graduate research advisor.
