Denton A. Cooley Fellowship

Program Overview

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This fellowship provides an educational experience for North American cardiothoracic surgeons who are in the final year of their residency, or have recently completed their residency, to spend four weeks studying at the Texas Heart Institute (THI) and Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center (BSLMC). Annually, one recipient is selected and awarded a grant of $5,000 to defray travel and living expenses. Additionally, recipients are strongly encouraged to attend the AATS Annual Meeting.

This educational observership will include the following opportunities:

Texas Heart Institute, Division of Cardiovascular Surgery

• Dr. O.H. Frazier
• Dr. Charles Hallman
• Dr. James Livesay

Baylor College of Medicine

• Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Dr. Marc Moon, Chief
• Professor and Executive Vice Chair, Dr. Joseph Coselli
• Division of Cardiac Transplantation, Dr. Kenneth Liao, Chief
• Division of General Thoracic Surgery

Want to learn more about what it is like to be a Denton A. Cooley Fellow? Watch the video interviews with Ourania Preventza, MD, of the Texas Heart Institute and Baylor St Luke's Medical Center, and Michael Magarakis, MD and Clauden Louis, MD, two recent award recipients.

View Denton A. Cooley Fellowship recipients

Application Process

• Applicants should provide a curriculum vitae with a full description of their surgical experience.
• Letter of support from his/her current attending surgeon or future department chair/division chief.*
• One- to two-page narrative to include:
  • What you hope to accomplish during your fellowship at the host institution.
  • How you will utilize the skills you have learned at your home institution.
  • Relationship of the planned study to the your prior experience, preparation, and professional goals.
  • Statement of your future career goals.

*For those looking to send letters of support for the candidate directly to the AATS Foundation, please email foundation@aats.org.

Review Process

AATS Foundation’s North American Early Career Scholarship Committee will review all applications and recommend recipients to be presented to AATS Foundation Board of Directors for a final decision. Applications will be graded on all aspects of the award criteria.

All applicants will be notified with an official letter from the AATS Foundation within 2-3 months of the program deadline. Should you have any questions regarding your status prior to receiving this notification, please contact foundation@aats.org.

• One fellow per year will be awarded $5,000 to offset travel and living expenses incurred at the host institution.
• At the conclusion of the fellowship, a final report is required to be submitted to the Foundation Board of Directors and the Denton A. Cooley Fellowship program founders.