Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting uncertainty regarding travel and institutional financial support, the Association for Gerontology Education in Social Work (AGESW) will not be selecting a 2020 AGESW Pre-Dissertation Fellows cohort. We plan to resume the program for the 2021-2022 academic year and will extend eligibility to include first and second year social work doctoral students. For the upcoming year, we will plan to offer a series of free webinars to all social work doctoral students interested in aging and will share that information as soon as it is finalized. Please see the Announcements section of our homepage at agesw.org to stay in the loop about these upcoming webinars.
The Association for Gerontology Education in Social Work (AGESW), along with support from the Gerontological Society of America (GSA), will begin accepting applications for its Pre-Dissertation Fellows Program on January 1, 2021. The application deadline is May 1, 2021.
Program Eligibility
An applicant must at the time of application:
- Be enrolled in a U.S. social work/social welfare doctoral program (full- or part-time)
- Be in the first year or second year of their doctoral program (if attending part-time, first year requirements of a full-time student be completed)
- Be a graduate of a Master of Social Work Program
Program Training & Financial Benefits
Professional Development Training
- Full-day pre-conference training at the 2021 Gerontological Society of America (GSA) Conference
- Daily one-hour trainings throughout the 2021 GSA Conference
- Nationally recognized faculty experts in Gerontological Social Work will provide training on navigating the dissertation process; working with quantitative and qualitative methods; writing for publication; teaching strategies; and effective networking
- Professional development webinar held in the spring of 2022
- Ongoing mentoring from a member of the AGESW organization
Financial Benefits
- A $1,200 stipend to attend the pre-conference AGESW Pre-Dissertation Fellows Training at the 2021 GSA Conference
- One-year membership to the AGESW organization
- Registration for the 2021 GSA Conference
- One-year membership to the GSA organization
The Application
- Applicant Information
- Applicant’s Curriculum Vita
- A two-page single-spaced personal statement indicating:
- Applicant’s educational journey and post-MSW experience prior to entering the doctoral program
- Interest in gerontological social work research and education
- Career goals upon graduation and ways in which the Pre-Dissertation Fellows Program may be helpful in reaching those goals
- A letter of support from an institutional faculty sponsor discussing 1) the applicant’s match to the Program’s goal of preparing doctoral students for academia and 2) the applicant’s capacity to develop into a competitive candidate for an academic career
- A letter from applicant's program director confirming $600 institutional support for attending the 2020 Gerontological Society of America (GSA) Conference
Questions: Contact Dr. Marla Berg-Weger at marla.bergweger@slu.edu
