Key points
- The Class of 2027 fellowship application opens September 1 and closes November 6, 2026.
- Applicants should read this page carefully to ensure they meet all eligibility requirements.
- Details are provided for the education, research, relocation, and citizenship requirements.
Eligibility
Education and Experience Requirements
Applicants must hold a qualifying degree from an accredited academic institution:
- Doctoral level applicants: PhD, MD, PharmD, DrPH, or an equivalent doctoral degree
- Master's level applicants: MPH, MS, MSc, or an equivalent master's degree.
The qualifying degree must be in one of the following fields:
- Public health, medicine, healthcare, or health services research
- Computer science, data science, or medical or public health informatics
- Statistics or epidemiology
- Engineering
- Operations research
Additionally, applicants must have at least 1 year of documented full-time work or volunteer experience in the same field as their qualifying degree.
Citizenship
Please note the program's ability to accept fellows who are not United States citizens or US Permanent Residents is subject to federal laws, regulations, and applicable federal rulemaking. We will post any resulting updates to eligibility here as they occur.
Applicants must verify that they are not a citizen of a country designated as a state sponsor of terrorism per this US Department of State website: State Sponsors of Terrorism.
Applicants must be in one of the following groups to be considered for the program.
- US citizens
- US Permanent Residents
- Non-United States citizens or US Permanent Residents eligible for one of the following visas/work authorizations:
- OPT STEM extension covering the entire two years of the fellowship (for current F1 visa-holders)
- TN visa authorized under the current United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) for eligible citizens of Canada and Mexico
- J1 cultural exchange visa (or J2 visa as spouse of J1-holder)
- H1B visa
- Other applicable visa that authorizes work in the US
Non-US citizen candidates who advance in the selection process will be contacted to discuss their visa and work authorization.
Research
PHIFP applicants should document any research or evaluation experience that they completed during or after their academic training.
Acceptable experience includes publications, thesis writing and defense, poster presentations, and/or a research or evaluation proposal.
Relocation
Selected fellows must relocate to their assigned CDC site. Most assignments are in Atlanta, GA (85%) or Washington, DC (10%). Fellows are not eligible to work remotely. Relocation costs will not be paid.
This page was last updated on this date. Updates may include minor edits, image changes, or other modifications to page content.
The information on this page was last reviewed by subject matter experts to ensure accuracy.