The overall aim of the program is to encourage minority students to enter careers in public health. In the shorter term, the objective is to offer students work experience and training in public health and to expose them to job options in the field. Students will attend a graduate course in the principles of public health, will work on projects supervised by public health professionals, and will attend weekly seminars on current public health topics. Research fellowships are awarded for eight weeks during the summer, four weeks during school vacations, or throughout the academic year to students who can travel daily to the Medical Center. Research fellows are placed in laboratories at the Medical Center, with the investigator serving as their mentor and adviser.
Fellows attend and present seminars and are paid for their laboratory work.
The Center of Excellence for American Indian Medical Education is a multi-campus program that offers American Indian medical students a career path in Indian health. It combines teams of Indian staff, faculty and advisors with culturally relevant programs to train medical students in the Indian Health Pathway . The Pathway offers direct exposure to clinical work in Indian health centers, practical courses in health-care delivery, and experience in traditional Indian medicine. The Center of American Indian and Minority Health also offers the Faculty Development Program in Nursing and the Faculty Development Program in Public Health, in which participants who have degrees in nursing, public health or health sciences are appointed to the faculty for 2-3 years while they complete a doctoral program. Tuition is paid by the university staff scholarship program, and salary is determined by academic rank.