ORBIT Institute FAQs

The goals of the ORBIT Institute are:

• To increase the skills of Fellows in a phased approach to behavioral intervention development, including associated questions, innovative methods, and study designs for early-phase translation of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (BSSR) to improve health.
• To conduct an ongoing evaluation of the success of the skills development course based upon three basic metrics:
  • Perceived value
  • The reach of the course based upon website hits, number of applications, and train-the-trainer (dissemination) activities
  • The impact of the course on the career trajectories of the Fellows (publications, grants)
• To conduct ongoing curriculum development and refinement, as well as dissemination via technology, based upon results of quantitate and qualitative evaluations and new methodologies emerging over the grant period.

The faculty for the ORBIT Institute include senior researchers with expertise in the development of behavioral interventions for chronic disease and include:

• Sylvie Naar, PhD (core faculty)
• Ty Ridenour, PhD
• Lynda Powell, PhD (core faculty)
• Kenneth Freedland, PhD (core faculty)
• Bonnie Spring, PhD
• Jasmin Tiro, PhD
• Susan Czajkowski, PhD (core faculty)
• Corrine Voils, PhD 

You may learn more about the ORBIT team here. 

You will need to complete the application online HERE by Thursday, December 4, 2025. You will also need to upload the following attachments to your application:

1. Current Curriculum Vita - PDF Format (required)
2. A personal statement (2,000 words max) (required) - please include in your statement:
   • Your current and future intervention research interests and how they address an important clinical or public health problem.
   • How participating in this program will help you to use the revised ORBIT model to advance your own research.
   • How this program may facilitate and achieve your short-term career goals.
   • Your past experience with intervention development and testing.
3. Current human subjects training certificate (e.g. CITI - required)
4. Any letters of reference you wish to provide (optional)
5. NIH Biosketch (optional)

You will be contacted via email from orbit.institute@med.fsu.edu to inform you of the decision of your application. We anticipate notifying individuals no later than February 6, 2026. Onboarding procedures will begin upon your acceptance of admission and there will be some pre-institute activities posted to the online learning platform used for the institute, Canvas. 

Upon acceptance, you will be required to complete onboarding and pre-institute activities (e.g. assigned readings and assignment in Canvas). The 2026 ORBIT Institute cohort will meet at the in-person workshop in Tallahassee, FL, May 12-15, 2026. Following the in-person workshop, you will be required to attend five (5) bi-weekly webinars and participate in webinar activities. After webinars conclude, fellows will be able to sign up/schedule a 1:1 consultation with an ORBIT core faculty member. You will have ongoing access to the ORBIT Institute resources as an ORBIT scholar. 

No, the ORBIT Institute does not provide salaries or stipends for trainees.

The ORBIT Institute will have a total of 4 cohorts over the course of 4 years. Each year, up to 25 fellows will be admitted into the ORBIT Institute. 

The 2026 cohort will be the final group supported by the current funding. 

This program will be open to scientists with an interest in behavioral treatment development to improve health behaviors. While applied behavioral and social scientists are the focus, basic scientists and methods experts are encouraged to apply as well.  Any post-graduate investigator (doctoral or terminal degree received) in the medical, behavioral, social, and statistical/methodology sciences who has a demonstrated pre-existing interest in contributing to investigator teams in developing and testing behavioral treatments is eligible to apply to this course.

Yes, if you meet the above eligibility criteria.

Yes, you may still apply. Place of residence is not a factor in the application review process; however, for anyone traveling from outside the U.S., traveling costs may be covered only partially. This is because our budget is capped, and we cannot guarantee full coverage for international travel. If you are admitted to the Institute and accept the invitation, you will be fully responsible for steps and expenses associated with any international travel paperwork to travel to the U.S. (e.g. visa).  

There are no costs or tuition fees associated with the Institute. You may incur some travel costs as part of the in-person short course, but they will be minimal. Transport, hotel, and some meals will be provided by the ORBIT Institute. 

Yes. Grant writing experience is not required to apply; however, it is helpful to demonstrate some grant activity, such as serving as a principal investigator or co-investigator on a small grant.

Yes. Accommodations can be provided upon request for people with disabilities, provided the request is made at least seven days prior to the event. Please contact the ORBIT Institute team at orbit.institute@med.fsu.edu or by calling 850-644-2334. The 2026 in-person agenda will be posted to the main page as soon as it is finalized; if you would like to see the 2023 in-person workshop agenda, please click here.

For Cohort 4 (2026), the in-person workshop will be tentatively in Tallahassee, FL, May 12-15, 2026. The in-person workshop agenda will be shared as soon as it is finalized. 

Yes, the ORBIT Institute will cover travel expenses for national flights. International flights may be covered, at least partially, depending on available funds that year. If your application is accepted, you will be contacted by the ORBIT team to determine your travel preferences and begin the process to have travel arranged on your behalf through Florida State University. 

Upon acceptance into the Institute, you will be required to set up a guest account on FSU Canvas (a web-based FSU learning management system) as part of your onboarding to the ORBIT Institute. You will be able to access training materials, including pre-institute assignments and readings through your Canvas account. 

Live ORBIT webinars will be set up via FSU-secure Zoom meetings. The ORBIT webinars will be recorded and made accessible through Canvas. Typically the ORBIT webinars are scheduled on a bi-weekly basis between June and July.