The Sara S. Sparrow Fellowship in the Clinical Neuroscience of Autism

Award Description

The Sara S. Sparrow Fellowship in the Clinical Neuroscience of Autism seeks highly qualified college graduates to participate in cutting-edge clinical research on autism spectrum disorder in the McPartland Lab and the Yale Developmental Disabilities Clinic at the Yale Child Study Center and through the Autism Biomarkers Consortium for Clinical Trials. The Child Study Center is a leading institution for clinical research on autism and related conditions, with a multidisciplinary approach spanning neuroscience, neuroimaging, genetics, and clinical care. Successful applicants will be involved in a program of training incorporating both clinical and research experiences, commencing on or before July 1, 2024.

The primary training experience will be in daily activities related to clinical neuroscience research. The fellowship’s curriculum includes participation in a weekly seminar on autism taught by Drs. James McPartland, Kelly Powell, and Mariana Torres-Viso (1 semester), weekly rounds in the Yale Developmental Disabilities Clinic (year-long), biweekly journal club meetings (year-long), weekly lab meetings (year-long), and other didactic experiences at the Yale Child Study Center. Fellows will gain experience working with autistic children and adults and their families, as well as individuals with other neurodevelopmental and psychiatric conditions and neurotypical participants. Training and research opportunities include electrophysiological brain recording using electroencephalography (EEG) and event related potentials (ERP), eye tracking, functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), positron emission tomography (PET), and behavioral assessment for ASD, including participation on multidisciplinary clinical teams in the Developmental Disabilities Clinic. Fellows will gain experience and exposure to all aspects of clinical research, from recruiting participants to analyzing data and authoring manuscripts. Fellows will also be provided opportunities to submit their research for conference presentation and potential publication. Successful applicants will be directly mentored by Dr. McPartland and be involved in a highly active and productive community of clinical research scientists at Yale and at collaborating groups in the United States and abroad.

Sponsor Institution: Yale Child Study Center, Yale University

Lab Director: James McPartland

Collaborating Faculty: Fred Volkmar, Kasia Chawarska, George Anderson, Denis Sukhodolsky, Linda Mayes, Flora Vaccarino, Michael Crowley, Pamela Ventola, Wendy Silverman, Julie Wolf, Alan Anticevic, Vinod Srihari, Roger Jou, Joy Hirsch, David Matuskey, David Grodberg, Phil Corlett, James Leckman, Adam Naples, Christine Cukar-Capizzi, Cara Keifer

Award Amount: $38,400 (plus full healthcare coverage)

Term of Award: Two years (with the second year being conditional on progress made in the first year)

Submission Deadline: February 1, 2024

Eligibility Requirements

College graduates who will have received a bachelor's degree by June 2024 are eligible. Candidates with previous experience with autism, children, or psychology/neuroscience research will be favorably reviewed.

Please note that this fellowship is not offered concurrently with graduate studies. However, we intend for the fellowship to serve as an important preparatory step for graduate studies upon completion of the program.

Application Information

For more specific questions, interested applicants should contact mcp.lab@yale.edu or call (203) 737-4586.

A complete application includes 1 copy of each of the following items in a single PDF file:

A completed application form.
A resume or CV.
Undergraduate and graduate (if applicable) transcripts. They need not be official.
A two-page personal statement containing biographic material, relevant experience, and career goals. This can be single or double spaced.
Two signed letters of recommendation that speak directly to the candidate's potential (sent separately by the recommenders).
A sample of the candidate's scientific writing (at least five pages).

In accordance with university requirements, postgraduate trainees in this position are expected to be on campus full time for in-person training and will need to verify COVID-19 vaccination status.

Submitting Your Application

Applications (with separate letters of recommendation emailed directly from referees) can be sent directly to mcp.lab@yale.edu.

Yale University's Equal Opportunity Statement

The University is committed to basing judgments concerning the admission, education, and employment of individuals upon their qualifications and abilities and affirmatively seeks to attract to its faculty, staff, and student body qualified persons of diverse backgrounds. In accordance with this policy and as delineated by federal and Connecticut law, Yale does not discriminate in admissions, educational programs, or employment against any individual on account of that individual's sex, race, color, religion, age, disability, status as a special disabled veteran, veteran of the Vietnam era or other covered veteran, or national or ethnic origin; nor does Yale discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.

University policy is committed to affirmative action under law in employment of women, minority group members, individuals with disabilities, special disabled veterans, veterans of the Vietnam era, and other covered veterans.