Virtual Mentor is the American Medical Association's online ethics journal. Its mission is to promote the ethical and professional development of tomorrow's physicians, and its primary audiences are medical students, residents, other physicians, and medical educators.

VM serves as an educational resource for a rapidly growing number of readers. We invite medical students and residents to apply to serve as theme issue editors. Each theme issue editor undertakes, with help from VM staff editors, responsibility for: (1) selecting a theme for one issue and defining the ethical and professionalism concerns inherent in that theme, (2) generating case narratives that provide opportunities for examining those concerns in clinical and educational contexts, (3) identifying, securing, and corresponding with contributors to the issue, (4) editing copy and reviewing page proofs before the issue goes live on the first working day of the month. These tasks will be accomplished at each editor's "home" location.

Theme issue editors, selected in late November, will be flown to Chicago to meet with Virtual Mentor staff some time in January. Each theme issue editor will receive a $1,000-stipend and subscriptions to two relevant journals.

Experience in editing or journalism is desirable. The abilities to critique an argument or article, work well with authors, and meet deadlines are essential. To apply, send a short letter stating your current medical student or resident program status and your reason for wishing to be a theme issue editor for VM. Attach to the letter, the following:

  1. A curriculum vitae
  2. A writing sample of not more than 1,000 words
  3. Your response to this exercise in 500 words or fewer

Virtual Mentor is planning an issue on the topic of addiction. Considering VM's mission and primary audiences, what ethical and professionalism concerns specific to this theme should VM develop? Look at the table of contents in one or more issues of VM. What cases and articles would you develop for each of the sections that appear in a typical issue-the clinical cases and commentaries, journal discussion, policy forum, op-ed piece, medicine and society, or medical humanities? How would you go about identifying prospective contributors to this topic?

Be as specific as possible in your reply to this part of the application. It serves as our best indicator of how you would approach your editing responsibilities.

Send your letter of application and attachments by e-mail to: Faith.Lagay@ama-assn.org .

The deadline for applications is midnight (CST), November 9, 2007.