MEDSCHOOL, PMB, Education, Operational & Aviation Medicine Graduate Certificate Program

Operational & Aviation Medicine Graduate Certificate Program 

About the Program

1.    Objectives: The USU Graduate Certificate Program in Operational & Aviation Medicine aims to expand upon the USU mission of providing high-quality, military-relevant education to healthcare professionals in the Military Health System (MHS) and supporting the readiness of America's Warfighters. This program equips students with the skills to assess and manage the health and safety of military aircrew, patients, and passengers, contributing to overall safety and well-being within the complex and dynamic military aviation environment. The curriculum includes topics such as the physiological and psychological effects of flight, aviation safety and accident investigation, regulatory aviation medicine, and aeromedical assessment and certification. The program advances excellence in and readiness for aviation medicine roles such as flight surgeons and other aviation medicine support personnel.

2.    When/How: 
a.    Structure: Courses are primarily online asynchronous with some limited synchronous participation expected, except for the MEM 4805 and PMB4100 ACRs described below.
b.    Credits to Complete: 12 credit hours (see curriculum table below). 
c.    Duration: The expected timeline for completion ranges from 9 months (fast track) to up to 36 months (flexible track). 
d.    Workload: each class is expected to require approximately 2 hours of work per 1 credit hour per week for 12 weeks. For example, a 3-credit class would be expected to require 6 hours of participation and/or study time per week. An exception is MEM4805 (see below), which is an accelerated and condensed 4-week class, and thus can be counted as an advanced clinical rotation (ACR) for medical students.
e.    Grading & assignments: assignments may include tests, aviation medicine case discussion boards (asynchronous) or online discussions (synchronous) with flight docs, and/or case- or topic-based presentations and reports.
f.    Eligibility: DOW military and civilian employees only, minimum of a Bachelor's degree. USU Medical, Graduate, and Nursing students are eligible!

Certificate Requirements

Complete the following:

   1. Required classes (7.5 credits)

  2.  Selective courses (must complete at least 4.5 credits)

Eligibility

• This Program is open to military and DoW civilian applicants.
• This program does not support contractors and/or non-DoW/USU affiliated applications at this time.
• Applicants should possess, at a minimum, a Baccalaureate degree from an accredited academic institution.
• We will consider the likelihood of applicants' furthering the tactical, operational, or strategic objectives of the DoW, or the broader U.S. government, with respect to health informatics and information sciences.

Application Timelines: There are two application periods per year. The first is June 1-30 for a fall (Mid-August) start, and the second is November 1 to December 30 for a spring (mid-February) start. Application requirements will be consistent with USU policies for other graduate certificate programs (e.g. Tropical Medicine, Global Health, HPE).

Current USU Students in Degree-seeking Programs

Documents needed to Apply:

• A Dual Enrollment Form For USUHS students adding a secondary program of study. (USU email account only)
• Current students do not need to submit new transcripts
• Statement of Purpose:
  • How has your background prepared you to succeed in the Operational & Aviation Medicine Graduate Certificate Program at USU?
  • How will you use the knowledge and skills acquired in USU's Operational & Aviation Medicine Graduate Certificate Program to help you accomplish your career goals?
  • Please tell us anything else you would like us to know that might be pertinent to the evaluation of your application for admission to the Operational & Aviation Medicine Graduate Certificate Program.

External Applicants

Documents Needed to Apply:

• EMPOWER Application (USUHS Application Form) which includes:
  • Current CV/Resume
  • Official Transcripts from all major schools attended
  • Order official transcripts from all previous academic institutions to establish your student record within our system
    • Transcripts must come directly from the school (or their third-party vendor)
    • They can be sent via email to UniversityAdmissions@usuhs.edu
      OR mailed to
      Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
      Office of the University Registrar
      4301 Jones Bridge Rd
      Bethesda, MD 20814
• A statement of purpose answering the following prompts:
  1. How has your background prepared you to succeed in the Operational & Aviation Medicine Graduate Certificate Program at USU?
  2. How will you use the knowledge and skills acquired in USU's Operational & Aviation Medicine Graduate Certificate Program to help you accomplish your career goals?
  3. Please tell us anything else you would like us to know that might be pertinent to the evaluation of your application for admission to the Operational & Aviation Medicine Graduate Certificate Program.
• Completed applications submitted to the Office of the University Registrar (OUR) will be reviewed by the director and applicants will be notified regarding all decisions from the Graduate Education Office (GEO).

For further information regarding the Operational & Aviation Medicine Graduate Certificate Program please contact:

USU: COL (Ret) James Mancuso, MD
james.mancuso@usuhs.edu 
 

Navy: LCDR Matthew Lindsey
matthew.c.lindsey3.mil@health.mil 
 

Army: LTC Julissa Mendoza
julissa.mendoza.mil@army.mil 
 

Air Force: Maj Caleb James
caleb.s.james.mil@health.mil