Trainee Perspectives on the Fogarty African Bioethics Consortium Postdoctoral Fellowship Program: A Process and Impact Evaluation

Abstract

There is a growing demand for postdoctoral bioethics training in Africa, driven by the significant rise in graduate programs offered by universities. This study sought to evaluate the Fogarty African Bioethics Consortium Post-Doctoral Fellowship program and to explore the experiences and perspectives of its trainees as well as the program's impact on their careers in their home countries. This study adopted an exploratory qualitative design involving in-depth interviews with fellows of the postdoctoral training program. Six fellows participated in the interviews. They expressed satisfaction with the training program and indicated that it effectively fulfilled their expectations. The fellows found mentorship the most valuable component of the training program. The study also found that all fellows are now actively engaged in bioethics-related activities following their training. Bioethics is increasingly becoming a prominent area of study, and African universities need to identify innovative ways of sustaining bioethics training programs on the continent, particularly at the postdoctoral level.