The PROPEL Fellowship (AY 26-27)
The PROPEL Fellowship is a selective, application-based faculty fellowship designed to accelerate the dissemination of educational research at UMB.
This fellowship supports faculty who are actively engaged in educational research and are positioned to move their work toward publication or presentation within the academic year.
PROPEL provides mentorship, targeted writing support, and a focused cohort environment to help faculty advance existing projects to scholarly dissemination.
Who Should Apply
Faculty across all UMB schools—including Medicine, Nursing, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Law, Social Work, and Graduate Studies—are encouraged to apply.
Competitive applicants will have at least one of the following:
- A defined research focus/question
- Data collected and/or analysis underway
- Preliminary findings and/or drafted materials
Educational research can include but is not limited to any inquiry into curriculum and instructional design; clinical training and workplace learning; assessment and evaluation; faculty development; diversity, equity, and inclusion; learner/faculty wellbeing; technology and/or innovation; theory and/or methodology; or continuing professional development.
Fellowship Expectations
Fellows will:
- Participate in individual and cohort meetings (via Zoom)
- Engage in peer feedback and manuscript workshopping
- Work with designated faculty mentors (Dr. Eric Belt and Dr. Michael Soh)
- Make consistent progress toward a defined dissemination goal
By May 2027, fellows will complete at least one of the following:
- Have a manuscript be sent out for peer review at a professionally relevant journal
- Have a proposal submitted and/or accepted at a regional, national, or international conference (conference schedule dependent)
Support Provided
- $1,500 professional development funding (administered through the fellow’s home school; may be used in accordance with school’s policies on conference travel, publication fees, or related dissemination costs)
- Targeted mentorship and writing support
- Structured accountability and milestone tracking
- Peer collaboration within a small cohort (2-4 fellows)
Application Requirements
Applicants should be prepared to submit:
- Project Summary
- Project Status
- Coauthors and/or Collaborators
- Dissemination Plan
- Timeline to Submission
- Support Needs
- Feasibility & Capacity
- Commitment Statement
Selection Criteria
Applicants will be selected based on:
- Readiness of the project for dissemination
- Clarity and feasibility of the dissemination plan
- Alignment with educational research
- Likelihood of completing a scholarly submission within the fellowship period
Priority will be given to projects that are positioned for submission during the academic year.
Important Dates
- Application Deadline: June 30th, 2026
- Notification of Acceptance: July 15th, 2026
- Fellowship Period: September 2026 – May 2027
Program Leadership
- Dr. Eric Belt, Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning (FCTL)
- Dr. Michael Soh, Health Professions Education (HPE)
Authorship and Scholarly Contribution Guidelines
Authorship decisions will follow established academic conventions and will be discussed transparently throughout the fellowship.
- Fellows will always serve as the primary or first authors on their projects.
- Program leaders may also serve as co-authors, dependent on contributions that may include methodological input, data analysis support, or manuscript development and revision.
How to Apply
This fellowship is designed for faculty who are ready and willing to move their work forward. Applicants with projects that are positioned for submission within the fellowship timeframe are especially encouraged to apply.