Medical Logistics and AAM Readiness Fellow
Medical Logistics and AAM Readiness Fellow
Western Michigan University, Office of Research and Innovation (with the College of Aviation and the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences)Kalamazoo, Michigan (primary); Battle Creek, Michigan (WMU College of Aviation)https://wmich.edu/research
Program Duration: December 1, 2026 – November 12, 2027Compensation: $60,000/year + benefitsWork Model: Hybrid (minimum 2 days/week onsite)
About the Role
Hosted at Western Michigan University (WMU) — lead applicant in the Southwest Michigan Healthy Aging Mobility Hub — the Medical Logistics and AAM Readiness Fellow will design and validate an end-to-end medical-logistics and EMS-integration pathway for one defined regional mission and corridor, and assemble the requirements for a future patient-carrying aircraft configuration.
Supervised in the College of Aviation or the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences with the Office of Research and Innovation, and advised by WMed clinical faculty and EMS medical direction, the fellow coordinates and integrates analysis — assembling de-identified EMS and transfer data, convening experts, running exercises, and writing the roadmap — while faculty engineers, clinicians, EMS medical direction, aviation partners, and aircraft manufacturers remain responsible for all formal engineering, medical, and certification determinations. The fellow is an integrator, not the certifying authority; patient-carrying flight operations are outside the fellowship scope. The position works alongside a second fellow at StartupZoo focused on community mobility navigation for older adults.
What You'll Do
• Complete one mission-and-corridor analysis identifying where an advanced aircraft could meaningfully reduce door-to-definitive-care time, counting dispatch, loading, transfer, and weather-availability time.• Produce a concept of operations and run one EMS tabletop exercise with clinical, aviation, and community participants.• Build and evaluate one cabin/loading mock-up (digital, extended to physical if resources allow) with clinicians, EMS crews, older adults, and people with disabilities.• Deliver a partner-endorsed go/no-go roadmap with a platform comparison (hybrid-electric and battery-electric powered lift, short-takeoff aircraft, helicopter, ground ambulance, and drone logistics) and an economic and equity analysis.
Who You Are
Required:• Recent bachelor's or master's degree (conferred December 2024–December 2026) in engineering, aviation, health systems or administration, public health, data analytics, logistics, or a related field• Strong analytical and systems thinking; ability to synthesize technical input from many experts into clear findings• Organized project execution and strong technical writing skills• Data analysis and modeling experience• Experience coordinating stakeholders or working groups• Comfortable convening clinical and technical stakeholders as an integrator — no aircraft-engineering or clinical-certification expertise expected
Nice to have:• Exposure to aviation, EMS, healthcare logistics, or emerging mobility technologies
Supervisors and Advisors
Day-to-day supervisor: Dr. Radu Babiceanu, College of Engineering and Applied SciencesExecutive sponsor: Dr. Remzi Seker, Vice President for Research and InnovationClinical advisors: WMed clinical faculty and EMS medical direction
Primary Location
Western Michigan University, 1903 W. Michigan Ave., Kalamazoo, MI 49008 (Office of Research and Innovation; primary). Also covered: WMU College of Aviation at Battle Creek Executive Airport, Battle Creek, MI, and partner sites (WMed, EMS agencies, hospitals, and airports) as project activities require.