Dean's Teaching Fellowship Program

Growing out of the Dean's Teaching Scholar Program in 2002, the Dean's Teaching Fellow (DTF) Program is an endowed program at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry which provides a rigorous curriculum to further the development of 6-8 highly qualified faculty members per year based on their commitment to careers in medical education. The purpose of the DTF Program is to:

Further advance the development of a core group of expert educators.
Promote the careers of MD and PhD faculty in medical and dental education.
Support support educational innovations and research at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry

Eligibility:

The DTF Program is open to junior and mid-career faculty members from all departments and centers at the School of Medicine and Dentistry who are committed to academic careers with a significant focus on medical education. Basic science and clinical faculty are eligible to apply.

Description of the Program:

Fellows spend 15% of their time on the program for 2 years. This includes a 3-hour biweekly seminar series (20 sessions per year), and completion of an educational project. Fellows work closely with one another and with local and national education experts to implement educational projects, and develop expertise in educational theory, teaching methods, educational research and curriculum innovation. They also develop career planning and leadership skills.

DTF Seminars:

DTF seminars focus on a different areas of educational theory, research methods, teaching methods, educational technology, curriculum design, assessment of students, faculty development, leadership, and career planning. The DTF endowment has allowed us to invite four or five visiting professors per year. The sessions generally consist of a 2 hour seminar on a medical education topic, with the final hour reserved for discussion of fellows’ projects or presentations from former Dean's Teaching Fellows. Click here to learn more about DTF seminars.

Each fellow will undertake an educational project expected to last the two years and to culminate in a publication or presentation at a national meeting. The project may involve an educational innovation, new methods of assessment and/or research using new or existing data. Examples of recent projects include creating a web-based curriculum for internal medicine trainees, development of a course in narrative medicine, implementation of a standardized patient examination in a surgery clerkship, transitioning from slides to electronic images in pathology education and analysis of data from peer assessments. Click here to see past DTF projects.

Criteria For Selection:

The DTF endowment provides an annual stipend plus up to $3000 in support for research-related expenses and travel to educational conferences. It is recognized that each fellow’s department will contribute any difference between the stipend and the fellow’s salary. A maximum of six fellows are selected yearly. Criteria for selection include:

The quality of the proposed educational innovation and/or research project.
The applicant’s commitment to medical education at the undergraduate, graduate or continuing medical education level as part of his/her anticipated career trajectory.
The applicant’s willingness to serve as a master teacher and mentor for future Fellows and other faculty members.
Identification of a suitable mentor for the project.
A letter of support from the applicant’s Chair specifying that the fellow will be relieved of 15% FTE of his or her time of current duties to devote that time to the program.