Predoctoral Rehabilitation Research Fellowship Program
for Academic Year 2009-2010

The Office of Academic Affiliations annually sponsors a Rehabilitation Research Predoctoral Fellowship Program to support doctoral-level research with direct relevance to the rehabilitation of Veterans with disabilities and to enhance rehabilitation research capacity within VA. The fellowships provides opportunities for interested graduate students in various rehabilitation-related fields to develop expertise in clinical research, and prepare for leadership roles in rehabilitation research and clinical care in VA and the Nation after their degrees are awarded.

The fellowships are designed for graduate students in a rehabilitation-related health discipline who are prepared to work on basic science or clinical dissertation research relevant to recovery of function from disabling diseases or injuries of Veterans. Students pursuing doctorates in health sciences such as engineering, kinesiology, neurosciences, nursing, occupational and physical therapy, psychology, and speech and hearing sciences, among others, are encouraged to apply. Areas of high research priority include amputations, orthopedics, orthotics, and prosthetics; dementia and cognitive disorders; geriatric rehabilitation; mobility; rehabilitation outcomes; serious psychiatric disorders; single or multiple impairments of vision, hearing, and communications; spinal cord injury and other neurologic disorders; and traumatic brain injury.

Twenty-four proposals were received for the 2009-2010 Academic Year. After a careful and systematic review process, ten of these proposals were selected for funding by the Office of Academic Affiliations. The funded proposals are listed below.