Fellow Eligibility & Requirements

Key points

  • Applicants should read this page carefully to ensure they meet all eligibility requirements before applying.
  • Details are provided for the degree, citizenship, and relocation requirements.

Eligibility

All eligible applicants will receive equal consideration without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, gender, political affiliation, age, sexual orientation, or any other non-merit factors. Learn more from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

Degree Requirements

Traditional Track

Applicants must hold a PhD (or equivalent) with all requirements completed prior to the start of the fellowship. Eligible degrees include:

  • Economics
  • Agricultural economics
  • Health services research
  • Public health
  • Other related quantitative field

Analytics and Modeling Track

Applicants must hold a PhD (or equivalent) with all requirements completed prior to the start of the fellowship. Eligible degrees include:

  • Epidemiology
  • Infectious disease modeling
  • Disease ecology
  • Applied mathematics
  • Operations research or industrial engineering
  • Biological science
  • Data science
  • Evolutionary or analytic biology
  • Other related quantitative field

All applicants with degrees obtained at a non-U.S. institutions must also provide documentation of an academic credentialing evaluation to ensure degree requirements are equivalent. This shows how the foreign degree equates to academic degrees issued in the United States. Additionally, degrees must be translated into English.

Citizenship

  • Applicants who are non-U.S. citizens must be legal permanent residents or eligible for J1, TN, H-1B, OPT-EAD (STEM Extension), or other suitable visa prior to the program's start date.
    • CDC's Human Resource Office/Immigration Office and the PE Fellowship program will consult with all non-U.S. citizen candidates to identify the most appropriate visa type for the fellowship appointment.
  • All applicants must verify they are not a citizen of a country designated as a state sponsor of terrorism per the U.S. Department of State's State Sponsors of Terrorism page.

Relocation

Most assignments take place at CDC headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. Some assignments, however, may occur in other states or public health agencies. Relocation to the city of physical workplace is required.