The Minority Fellowship Program administered by the American Psychological Association identifies ethnic minority predoctoral students in psychology with an interest in aging research and facilitates their entry into research programs in adult development and aging; establishes a network of researchers, trainees and mentors in aging research that provides a national infrastructure for the expansion of ethnic minority research in aging; increases the number of ethnic minority persons interested in pursuing doctoral study in psychology with a focus on research in adult development and aging related to ethnic minority populations; provides enhanced career development opportunities to ethnic minority aging researchers through involvement with national programs of the National institute on Aging, the American Psychological Association, and the Gerontological Society of America. The Minority Fellowship Program recruits and selects trainees from a national applicant pool and places four new trainees per year in selected psychology programs that offer specialized research training in aging. Each trainee receives two years of support making a total of twelve trainees supported during the project period. Consortium/contractual arrangements are established with the training institutions to ensure that they provide matching funding, pay wages consistent with local standards, assign a mentor to work closely with the trainee, involve the trainee in relevant research related to an aging ethnic minority population, and prepare the trainee for a research career in gerontology. The Minority Fellowship Program monitors each trainee's progress annually, provides individualized mentoring, arranges enrichment activities for trainees, and develops a network of ethnic minority researchers in aging.
