Apply to be A SCOPE Fellow
Application deadline for the 2026 SCOPE Travel Fellowship is November 25th, 2025 at 11:59 PM (Pacific Time)
About the Fellowship
The SCOPE Travel Fellowship is a 6-month fellowship with a 6-8 week travel opportunity to learn firsthand about fostering interdisciplinary approaches to addressing global health challenges.
LOCATION & DURATION: Fellows will be based in Seattle with an opportunity to travel to Ethiopia for 6-8 weeks to conduct global health fieldwork, research, practicum or thesis work depending on the successful applicant's availability and the SCOPE program's needs. If travel conditions permit, in-country work will be in Gondar, Ethiopia; if conditions do not allow travel to or extended stays in Gondar, the Fellow will be based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Upon completion of the fellowship, fellows are invited/encouraged to support transition and continuity of the work and to serve as mentors for future fellows.
PREFERRED SERVICE DATES: Spring or Summer 2026
ELIGIBILITY: Open to UW graduate students in good standing in public health, nursing, medicine, and other health-related disciplines. Preference is for students who will use their fellowship to meet academic requirements, e.g., practicum, capstone, thesis/dissertation.
BACKGROUND: Despite tremendous growth and advancement of the health system in Ethiopia in the last two decades, challenges remain in securing coverage for some critical health services including mental health and obstetric fistula. Community-based interventions that train and mobilize faith leaders to identify, counsel, and refer parishioners to care may be an effective intervention for improving outcomes for these health challenges. SCOPE's mission is to unite medical and faith communities to improve health through innovative partnership, leadership development, and measured impact. SCOPE works with communities in the Amhara region of Ethiopia where there is an opportunity to partner with faith leaders from the Ethiopian Orthodox Church to leverage the robust influence and strong community networks of the church to improve health for women and children.
OVERVIEW: The 2026 SCOPE Travel Fellow will support ongoing SCOPE workstreams in the areas of mental health and/or obstetric fistula. Key to this work will be ongoing formative research and continued exploration of models of effective community-based mental healthcare delivery, attitudes of faith leaders, healthcare workers, and other “community gatekeepers” preferences of mental health providers, and understanding of mental health needs and dynamics in both the Gondar region of Ethiopia and in Addis Ababa. In addition, the SCOPE fellow will support the development of an emerging collaboration with Healing Hands of Joy (HHOJ), in their mission to prevent obstetric fistula, identify women with obstetric fistula, and reintegrate them into their communities as they recover. Fellows may also be involved in emergent work to assess the feasibility and acceptability of piloting a local arm of SCOPE here in King County, Washington working with community based organizations, religious institutions, and government collaborators.
SCOPE Fellows are mentored by Global Health faculty at the University of Washington, the University of Gondar College of Medicine and Health Sciences, and professionals from the SCOPE Board of Trustees to define a full scope of work (SOW) before the start of their fellowship in spring or summer quarter of 2026. Fellows will also work closely with and receive guidance from collaborating organizations, such as Healing Hands of Joy. Fellows are responsible for completing all deliverables in the specified timeline. SOWs that fulfill an academic requirement (practicum, capstone, thesis) are highly encouraged, and fellows will be supported in submitting relevant works for publication.
The program will cover coach airfare to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia along with a one-time stipend of $4000-$5000 (depending on duration of fellowship) to cover expenses such as housing, meals and incidentals, ground transportation, passport and visa, FRILA, travel insurance, travel health consultation, immunizations, and medications. SCOPE will assist with identifying housing while in Ethiopia.
Desired Skills (Strengths in one or more of the following)
Coursework and/or work experience in quantitative and qualitative data analysis
Demonstrated interest in global mental health or women’s and children’s health
Entry-level skills in research and/or project management
how to apply
For Applicants to be considered for the Fellowship, application packets must include:
A complete application cover sheet
Current Curriculum Vitae (CV) or Resume
A 1-2 page letter describing interest in the program and skills, experience, abilities, and perspective individual will bring to the project
One letter of recommendation from an individual who can attest to the professional skills and qualities of the applicant
Unofficial Transcript
Below is the SCOPE Travel Fellowship 2026 Application. The Application Deadline is 11: 59 PM, November 25, 2025.
Completed applications and questions can be sent to Dr. David Citrin at dcitrin@uw.edu