VA Advanced Postdoctoral Fellowship in Women's Health

Please see the VA Advanced Postdoctoral Fellowship in Women's Health webpage for the most updated information.

The San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC)/University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) seeks candidates annually for a two-year advanced postdoctoral fellowship in women’s health. Mentors include a team of researchers from diverse disciplines aiming to understand the unique challenges facing women veterans. Our research focuses on improving the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of relevant health issues.

The ideal fellowship candidate will have a demonstrated interest in women’s health. The candidate will have opportunities to analyze pre-collected data and disseminate findings, design new research projects, and contribute to ongoing studies. Topics of study include:

  • PTSD
  • Psychophysiology
  • Fear conditioning
  • Psychoneuroendocrinology
  • HPA/HPG axis in stress
  • Psychoneuroimmunology
  • Metabolomics
  • Sex differences
  • Infertility
  • Ovarian aging/menopause
  • Eating and nutrition
  • Pain
  • Sleep
  • Osteoporosis
  • Gender dysphoria
  • Urinary incontinence
  • Breast cancer
  • Cardiovascular disease risk

Fellowship

The Veterans Administration sponsors a two-year research fellowship in women’s health. The overarching goal of the fellowship is to provide focused, structured, mentored research training for individuals across diverse disciplines who are committed to becoming leaders in investigating health issues of women and to pursuing a career in women’s health.

Curriculum

The fellows will conduct research and writing projects under the supervision of senior faculty. Access to didactic courses, experiential training and multidisciplinary research mentoring will be provided. Fellows will devote up to 25 percent of their time to direct clinical care in the SFVAMC Women Veterans’ Comprehensive Health Center.

Community

The San Francisco VA Health Care System is affiliated with UCSF, one of the top ranked medical schools in the country. In addition to its broader commitment to the veteran population and education, SFVAHCS has the largest funded research program in the Veterans Health Administration with more than $87 million in annual research expenditures. The San Francisco VA Medical Center is the top-ranked VA medical center in terms of research grants.

Requirements

The San Francisco VA Advanced Fellowship in Women’s Health Program will enroll two fellows each year. One fellow will be a physician and the other a fellow in an associated health field such as psychology, nursing, or pharmacology. Applicants must have a medical degree (MD) and have completed an approved residency or doctorate of philosophy (PhD). For psychology applicants, an APA-accredited doctorate in clinical or counseling psychology and APA-accredited internship is required. All requirements for the doctoral degree must be completed prior to the start of the fellowship year. US citizenship is required.

Core faculty

How to apply

Deadline: Application review starts in mid-December each year and continues on a rolling basis until the positions are filled.

 

A VA-based faculty mentor or co-mentor must be identified. Please note that you would like to work with Dr. Richards in your application. Applicants should provide:

  1. Letter of interest, including a brief summary of educational, research, and clinical research experiences relevant to the fellowship, a summary of your training needs and goals, and a statement of your career goals.
  2. A curriculum vitae
  3. Three letters of recommendation from research mentors

Please include #1 and #2 in a combined PDF. Letters should be emailed directly by recommenders.

Please direct application materials or questions to: