AEROSPACE MEDICINE CLERKSHIP

Work Tour Description
The four week Aerospace Medicine Clerkship is offered semi-annually during the months of April and October at the Johnson Space Center (Houston, Texas) and typically begins the first Monday and concludes on the last Friday of the month. The clerkship involves formal lectures on space medicine topics and issues, as well as familiarization with the medical aspects of Space Shuttle operations and International Space Station design and function. Clerkship participants are required to complete a research project and paper in a current focus area of space medicine, which will be presented both orally and written to the JSC Space Medicine Community.

Eligibility Requirements
Interested persons must be at least in their final year of medical school during the clerkship, have an interest in Aerospace Medicine, and must be a US citizen.

Application and Selection Process
In addition to the application, a letter of interest, curriculum vitae, letter of good standing / recommendation from the school or institution, and official transcript from the medical school are required. Applications are due June 1 for the October clerkship and December 1 for the April clerkship.

Upon completion of the application period, five students will be selected for each of the clerkships by a committee of NASA flight surgeons and other Space Medicine team members. Selection is based upon interest and career goals in Aerospace Medicine, academic standing, content of a Dean's recommendation, research, and work experience.

Mail application to:
C/O Training Section / Elisca Hicks Wyle Laboratories 1290 Hercules Drive, Suite 120 Houston, Texas 77058-2787 + Application Form

Logistics of the Clerkship
If selected, to assist with lodging, you will be supplied with a listing of NASA and contractor personnel who have rooms to rent as well as local hotels and extended stays.

You will be supplied with a workstation at Wyle laboratories, including a phone and computer to be used for research purposes.

It is highly recommended that you provide your own means of transportation during the clerkship. However, there will be opportunities to carpool back and forth from Wyle to JSC with the coordinator or other clerks.

All costs incurred during the clerkship are your responsibility. No monies are provided by JSC or Wyle for the clerkship.

During The Clerkship
During the clerkship you will be exposed to a variety of space medicine topics given in presentations, lectures, and tours, such as the medical equipment available to crew members in space, space physiology, radiation monitoring, tours of the training facilities, etc. The daily activities will include both presentations and tours, as well as time for you to work on your project. The schedules are always subject to change.

If any special events are to occur during the clerkship, time is usually set aside for the clerks to attend, but would be considered optional.

This is considered an educational/research clerkship, so do not expect contact/interaction with patients during the clerkship.

Questions/Concerns
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Elisca Hicks (elisca.hicks-1@nasa.gov).