How to Apply
HOW TO APPLY
Join a highly motivated community of faculty and Ph.D. students that are working to further build innovative research collaborations at the nexus of environment and health in rural areas.
Our competitive application process is open to incoming and current Virginia Tech students.
After acceptance, students embark on a journey of learning and professional growth with a diverse campus-wide community of peers.
The REH T32 application deadline is on March 15th.
Applicants should advance research at the nexus of environmental and health sciences in rural settings. Students should reference the NIEHS' mission to ascertain if their research is applicable to rural environmental health -
"NIEHS seeks to comprehensively understand the role of environmental factors in human health and disease. In addition to analyzing chemicals in the air you breathe, the water you drink, and the things you touch, environmental health research considers what happens inside your body as chemicals are processed. Environmental factors can be external to your body such as sunlight, mold, and pollutants, or internal such as diet choices, metabolism, and stress. This research covers all lifespan periods."
More information can be found on the NIEHS can be found here.
Examples include but are not limited to: characterization of environmental exposures in rural settings; examination of environmental interventions to improve rural health and well-being; investigations of socio-political underpinnings of environmental health management; etc.
Requirements
Incoming (first-year PhD student to begin in the Fall term) or current PhD students are eligible to apply. To apply, students must be in, or applying to, a degree granting program at Virginia Tech and should be advancing research at the nexus of environmental and health sciences in rural settings.
Trainees will complete their dissertation research within one of three focus areas which are:
- Molecular mechanisms of environmentally-mediated diseases.
- Community-engaged and epidemiological approaches to address environmental health priorities in rural areas.
- Exposure science and risk assessment.
T32 Citizen Eligibilty
The T32 has restricted citizenship eligibility. Only U.S. citizens, non-citizen nationals, and permanent U.S. residents may be appointed to a T32.
- Trainees who do not have this status must have a valid Alien Registration Receipt Card (I-551).
- Send a notarized statement verifying permanent residency status with the PHS-2271.
- Anyone on a temporary or student visa is not eligible.
Applicants should actively assess whether the REH T32 training program will be beneficial for their career plans and whether they can meet the expectations of the program. Program and curriculum requirements are detailed on the REH T32 Courses & Requirements page.
**Interested students should email the Program Coordinator, stephmcbride@vt.edu with any questions.
An Applications Review Committee will be established that will be made up of at least one Steering Committee member and three additional faculty mentors, with representation from each of the three focus areas, while ensuring that graduate mentors of current applicants do not serve on the committee.
The Applications Review Committee members will individually review applicant materials and use an admissions rubric that requests a Likert scale evaluation of: 1) the pertinence of the student’s research to rural environmental health disparities, 2) the research potential to advance the field of environmental health sciences as defined by NIEHS, 3) the interdisciplinary nature of the research, 4) the potential for the candidate to contribute to diversity and inclusion in environmental health sciences, and 5) evidence that the REH training program curriculum will help the student reach their professional goals. The committee members will then meet to compare and discuss their scores and determine final admission decisions.
Each applicant must have a clearly articulated post fellowship funding plan (at least 2 years of financial support planned, which cannot include the REH T32 fellowship). If the funding plan includes any departmental support (e.g., GTA), the letter must include a signature from the home department’s authorized representative (department head or graduate program coordinator).
Deadline for applications is 5 pm EST on March 15, 2025. Incomplete, late, or incorrectly formatted applications will not be considered. Notification of awards will be made by mid-April.
Applicants should submit the following materials in PDF format, addressed to the REH T32 Admissions Review Committee, to Steph McBride, Program Coordinator (stephmcbride@vt.edu):
1. The one-page Cover Sheet [PDF]
2. A CV that includes undergraduate GPA, graduate GPA (if applicable), GRE and/or TOEFL score (both optional), and contact information (Institution, email, and phone number) for three references.
3. An application letter, not to exceed 2 pages, that is divided into 3 sections that includes:
- Research Statement: Description of the applicant’s research plan, specifically how it relates to environmentally-mediated diseases, rural landscapes and populations and informs an environmental health sciences gap in knowledge.
- Interdisciplinary Statement: Applicants will describe how their research is interdisciplinary.
- Plans for Fellowship Use: How will the applicant use the 3-year program to advance their professional development to become a leader in rural environmental health and contribute to diversity and inclusion in environmental health sciences?
4. A letter of support from the applicant’s primary faculty mentor, not to exceed 1 page, that explains:
- The applicant’s strengths in undertaking the proposed research and any notable accomplishments;
- The applicant’s contributions to outreach or other service-related activities;
- How the applicant’s training will benefit from the REH program;
- Each applicant must have a clearly articulated post fellowship funding plan (at least 2 years of financial support planned, which cannot include the REH T32 fellowship). If the funding plan includes any departmental support (e.g., GTA), the letter must include a signature from the home department’s authorized representative (department head or graduate program coordinator).
- As part of the T32 grant requirements, faculty mentors are required to attend a diversity training sponsored by the REH T32 Program annually. Faculty should include a brief acknowledgment of this requirement in their letter of support
