Applied Public Health Informatics FellowshipProgram DescriptionThe Applied Public Health Informatics Fellowship (APHIF) is an opportunity to build informatics capacity at state, tribal, local, and territorial(STLT) health departments while training recent masters or doctoral graduates in applied public health practice. The fellowship recruits and prepares recent graduates and early career professionals for careers in public health informatics at state and local health departments. The goal of the APHIF program is to provide a high-quality on-the-job training experience in public health informatics for recent graduates and prepare fellows for long-term career placement at the state and local level. During their fellowship, fellows develop a set of core competency skills related to public health informatics, communication skills, and public health practice and policy. Fellows provide valuable service to their host site placement. Based on their interests and available positions, fellows are matched to a State, Territorial, Local, or Tribal (STLT) health department and work under the guidance of two experienced mentors. The fellowship is a full-time, paid position. 
APHIF Class 7 FellowsProspective FellowsAPHIF offers an opportunity for recent graduates and early career professionals to acquire and develop public health informatics and data science skills during a high-quality fellowship program in public health practice. Ideal fellow candidates will hold a degree or certificate in public health informatics, data science, or a related field. Applied experience in these areas will also be considered. Fellows work closely with highly trained and experienced informaticians, epidemiologists, and public health practitioners at the state and local level, as well as with those working at the federal level with the CDC. Program participants will develop a comprehensive set of core skills through applied competency-based training and experiences. Fellow placements are at state, tribal, local, or territorial health departments. Participating as a fellow is a full-time job. The fellowship is not compatible with holding another full-time role. Fellows are not permitted to be enrolled in a degree-seeking program during the fellowship. The exact date by which degrees must be completed is provided during the application process (e.g., to begin fellowship placement in fall 2024, all degrees must be awarded by August 2024). Host site placements are limited to the approved host sites. Health departments interested in hosting a fellow must apply to CSTE, identifying two qualified mentors and a set of projects which fellows can work on. Remote, hybrid, and in-person placements may be available. As host sites are accepted, CSTE shares those details with applicants. CSTE is the sponsoring organization for this fellowship program, which is funded through a cooperative agreement with CDC. All the host sites where fellows will work are STLT health departments. Candidates that match with a host site work with the mentors to determine a start date. Questions? Email aphif@cste.org. Email: aphif@cste.org Host Site ApplicationCSTE will host an informational webinar and Q&A during the host site application process. Host site applications will be scored based on demonstrated capacity to provide a fellow with technical training, applied research opportunities, and opportunities for experience in the application of public health informatics in a practical setting. Applications must be completed for review and consideration. Only applications from state, local, territorial, or tribal health agencies will be considered. Submission of an application does not guarantee placement of a fellow. Email: aphif@cste.org Fellow ApplicationProspective fellows are encouraged to review the application carefully before beginning. All complete applications submitted by the deadline will be reviewed. Highly-qualified candidates will be selected for interviews with CSTE. After these interviews, a subset of candidates will proceed to the matching phase. During matching, candidates will choose sites of interest and participate in phone interviews with mentors. Fellowship placements are matched with host sites based on funding availability and matching results. Some sites may not match with a fellow due to funding constraints or unsuccessful matches. Candidates who successfully match with a host site will work with mentors to determine a start date for summer 2024. Host site positions will be posted on a rolling basis as they become available. Is this the right role for me?As a training program, this fellowship is especially recommended to recent graduates and early career professionals looking to launch their public health informatics careers. Fellows work on a variety of public health subject areas and project types. The fellowship model means that successful applicants will be joining a cohort of other new public health professionals. Previous fellows greatly value the mentorship they received at their host sites, flexibility to explore their professional interests, and ability to network with STLT public health professionals. Based on their career aspirations, skills, knowledge, and interests, successful fellow candidates are carefully matched to a state or local health agency to work under the guidance of an experienced mentor. The exact responsibilities and desired skills for any fellow will vary depending on the specific state or local health agency. Health departments complete their own application to be included as a placement site in this fellowship program. Interested candidates should use the free-text fields, work experience, and personal statement components of the online application to describe both (1) the skills and knowledge they possess that make them a strong candidate and (2) the reasons they are interested in this opportunity. Benefits of Participating as a FellowFellow CompensationDesired skills in an ideal applicantIn-Demand Skills and Experiences While each applicant will bring a unique set of skills, knowledge, and professional goals, the following is a list of some of the in-demand skills and experiences host sites are looking for in ideal fellow candidates. This list is not exhaustive, nor would it be expected that any applicant would possess all these skills. Previous work experience in a state, local, tribal, or territorial health department Familiarity or experience with public health data Background in informatics or computer science Strong collaboration and customer service skills Strong communication skills, including with technical and non-technical audiences Project management skills Experience cleaning data, linking datasets, or managing databases Experience with data visualization Familiarity with epidemiology and disease surveillance methods, such as case reporting, outbreak investigations, contact tracing, reportable conditions, and electronic lab reporting Knowledge of or experience using any of the following software programs or languages: Excel, SAS, R, Python, SQL, Power BI, STATA, Tableau, REDCap, Microsoft Azure Cloud Analytic Tools, Rhapsody, and/or ArcGIS Prospective Host SitesTwo mentors oversee the fellow’s training, project work, day-to-day responsibilities, and ensure that the fellow is familiar with relevant techniques. Mentors also encourage the overall professional development of the fellow. Mentors help integrate fellows into their health agencies and provide hands-on public health informatics experiences. Mentors should have adequate time to provide day-to-day supervision and professional mentorship to the fellow. CSTE recommends that mentors have at least 4 hours per week available to work with the fellow, which can be distributed across shared meetings, project work, and one-on-one time with the fellows. This time can be split between the primary and secondary mentor. The time demands of mentoring a fellow will vary throughout the program. The activities of the fellow should strongly support achievement of competency in public health informatics and data science. Mentors receive an initial orientation from CSTE prior to the fellow’s arrival. CSTE staff are available to support mentors throughout the fellowship period. Primary & Secondary Mentor EligibilityDoctoral or master's degree & at least four years of experience in a senior/management role OR Bachelor’s degree & six years of professional experience Adequate time to supervise & mentor fellow (combined 4 hours per week) Present at health department to supervise fellow’s day-to-day activities (either primary or secondary) Benefits of Hosting a FellowWork across programmatic silos on cross-cutting topics Jumpstart stagnant projects National network of mentors Invigorate agency staff Host Site ApplicationCSTE will host an informational webinar and Q&A during the host site application process. Host site applications will be scored based on demonstrated capacity to provide a fellow with technical training, applied research opportunities, and opportunities for experience in the application of public health informatics in a practical setting. Applications must be completed for review and consideration. Only applications from state, local, territorial, or tribal health agencies will be considered. Submission of an application does not guarantee placement of a fellow. The Applied Public Health Informatics Fellowship is funded by a cooperative agreement with CDC. During the matching process, candidates will select sites of interest and complete phone interviews with the mentors. Fellowship placement offers are matched to host sites based upon funding availability and the matching outcomes. A host site may not successfully match with a fellow due to lack of funds to support the position and/or unsuccessful matching results with candidates. Candidates that m atch with a host site work with the mentors to determine a start date. Questions? Email aphif@cste.org. |