Student Highlights
Lipitz Center Student Fellowship
The Lipitz Center Student Fellowship is a 1-year program open to master’s students interested in aging and caregiving. It offers a unique opportunity to engage with faculty and impactful projects to gain valuable experience in research, policy, implementation, and data analysis. We are excited to announce our inaugural cohort of Lipitz Center student fellows!
Key Details
- Eligibility: Open to all master's students. PhD students are not eligible to apply.
- Fellowship Duration: November 2025 to May 2026
- Commitment: 5-10 hours per week working on assigned projects. Fellows are expected to have a strong work ethic and effectively manage their time to balance academic responsibilities with fellowship projects.
- Mentorship: Fellows must schedule and attend a minimum of 3 meetings with their assigned mentor throughout the fellowship period.
- Presentation: At the end of the fellowship, recipients are required to present their accomplishments and insights to the Lipitz Center faculty in May 2025.
- Financial Support: Each selected fellow will receive a total of $3,000, distributed in two separate payments over the course of the fellowship.
- Application Details: Potential mentors and their profiles are available in the application portal. Applicants should have a keen interest in aging and caregiving, encompassing research, policy, implementation, and data.
We are no longer accepting applications for the 2025–26 Lipitz Center Fellowship.
2024-2025 Lipitz Fellowship Presentation
From being caregivers for their loved ones to working with world-class faculty, Sanika Kulkarni, Abigayle Burnett, Aditi Bajpai, and Rohini Achal share what motivated them become Lipitz Center Student Fellows, what they learned during their fellowship, and what plans they have for the future.
Here's a glimpse of what they had to say.
Rohini Achal
Degree Program: Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH) – Health Policy and Management
Mentor: Dr. Kate Miller
Rohini Achal is a current first year Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH) – Health Policy student in the Department of Health Policy and Management. Her primary interests are family caregiving, long-term care, and disability policy. Previously, Rohini worked for the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, and for the University of Washington Schools of Public Health and the Environment. She currently works with the Center’s investigators on a multi-year study to advance the capacity of the National Family Caregiver and Native American Caregiver Support Programs to better recognize and support family caregivers. Rohini is excited to continue supporting this multi-year research project during this fellowship. As a fellow, she hopes to pursue research on the needs, experiences, and health outcomes of underrepresented caregiver and care recipient populations such as youth/young adult caregivers and caregivers to adults with understudied disabilities. Rohini ultimately seeks to translate this knowledge into evidence-based aging and disability policies that support a nationwide caregiving support system.
Aditi Bajpai
Degree Program: Master of Health Science (MHS) - Health Economics and Outcomes Research
Mentor: Dr. Kate Miller
Aditi Bajpai is a dedicated health sciences professional currently pursuing a Master of Health Science in Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She holds a PharmD and has extensive experience in clinical pharmacy, market access, and biopharma intelligence. Bajpai has worked with organizations like Maven Bio, Clarivate, and Kasturba Medical Hospital, where she gained expertise in healthcare data analysis, drug policy, stakeholder engagement, and clinical pharmacy practice. Her research includes a dissertation on the prevalence of potentially inappropriate medications among older adults, highlighting the importance of medication safety. Passionate about improving health outcomes for older adults and caregivers, she is involved in the Maryland Department of Aging's Longevity Ready Maryland initiative, addressing challenges in the direct care workforce. Aditi’s commitment to promoting patient safety, equity, and care for vulnerable populations drives her work, and she aims to continue addressing gaps in care for older adults and their families through research and policy advocacy.
Abigayle Burnett
Degree Program: Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH) – Health Policy and Management
Mentor: Dr. Chanee Fabius
Abigayle Burnett is an MSPH student in the Department of Health Policy and Management, following her graduation with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Health Studies from Queen’s University. Her experience includes qualitative research on food insecurity among socially isolated seniors and working as a Community Service Intern at South Riverdale Community Health Centre, where she contributed to initiatives addressing healthcare access barriers. She currently volunteers as a Friendly Caller with the Red Cross, providing social support to isolated seniors. Abigayle is also involved in the Maryland Department of Aging's Longevity Ready Maryland initiative, supporting the development of recommendations to address challenges in the direct care workforce. Passionate about social determinants of health, Abigayle is eager to apply evidence-based research to health policy. She looks forward to collaborating with mentors and peers during the Fellowship to help advance efforts that improve the quality of life for older adults.
Sanika Kulkarni
Degree Program: Master of Health Science (MHS) - Health Economics and Outcomes Research
Mentor: Dr. Karen Shen
Sanika Kulkarni is a current MHS candidate in the Health Economics & Outcomes Research program interested in the health economics and financing behind long-term and end-of-life care. Originally from the Bay Area, CA, Sanika grew up watching her parents learn to meet the complex needs of her grandparents as caregivers. After graduating from the George Washington University with a BS in Public Health and minors in Applied Mathematics and Bioinformatics, Sanika worked at a federal consulting firm that focused on public health informatics and social determinants of health where she became curious how she could use informatics to answer health economics questions for aging populations. Currently, Sanika works on a scoping review on credit scores and health with Dr. Ettman and on the CARE Environmental Scan project.
