FDA Fellowship (Electromagnetic and Electrical Interactions)

A research opportunity is available immediately with the Food and Drug Administration, Center for Devices and Radiological Health in White Oak, Maryland. Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education Research Participation Programs at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are educational training programs designed to provide students and recent graduates the opportunity to participate in research and developmental at the Center for Devices and Radiological Health.

The mission of the Center for Devices and Radiological Health is to protect and promote public health by assuring patients and providers have timely, and continued, access to safe, effective, and high-quality medical devices and radiation-emitting products. The CDRH provides consumers, patients, caregivers, and providers with understandable and accessible science-based information about their health products. CDRH also facilitates medical device innovation by advancing regulatory science, providing industry with predictable, consistent, transparent, and efficient regulatory pathways, and assuring consumer confidence in devices marketed in the U.S.

This appointment is for a project within CDRH’s Electromagnetic and Electrical Interactions regulatory science program conducting research on the safe use of electrical energy and non-ionizing electromagnetic energy in medical devices. This program encompasses an extraordinary number of medical devices, including all devices that are electrically-powered, use batteries, or utilize the non-ionizing portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, such as static magnetic fields, radio waves, etc. Research activities are diverse, involving the development of tools and test methods to assess the many aspects of device safety and effectiveness. This includes but is not limited to battery performance, electromagnetic compatibility, and the safety of implanted devices during MRI scans.

This fellowship will provide participants with the opportunity to conduct laboratory experiments, perform computational modeling, analyze data, and review scientific literature, as well as the chance to write reports and publish in peer-reviewed scientific publications. As a participant, you may:

• Design and conduct computational modeling and simulation studies
• Design and perform electrical and/or electromagnetic experiments
• Electrically characterize and evaluate medical electrical equipment
• Program software for instrumentation control
• Code, develop, verify, and validate computational models

William Vogt, Mahsa Doosthosseini , Hongbae Jeong, and Yasaman Ardeshirpour will serve as the primary mentors for this fellowship. If you have questions about the nature of our research, please contact these mentor(s).

Our start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors. The initial appointment will be for one year, but may be renewed upon recommendation of FDA and is contingent on the availability of funds. This appointment is full time. Participants will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR), and foreign nationals. Non-U.S. citizen applicants should refer to the Guidelines for Non-U.S. Citizens. Proof of health insurance is required for participation. Participants are not employees of FDA, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Completion of a successful background investigation by the Office of Personnel Management is required for an applicant to be on-boarded. OPM can only complete a background investigation for individuals, including non-US Citizens, who have resided in the US for a total of three of the past five years. FDA requires ORISE participants to read and sign their FDA Education and Training Agreement within 30 days of his/her start date, setting forth the conditions and expectations for his/her educational appointment at the agency. This agreement covers such topics as the following:

• Non-employee nature of the ORISE appointment
• Prohibition on ORISE Fellows performing inherently governmental functions
• Obligation of ORISE Fellows to convey all necessary rights to the FDA regarding intellectual property conceived or first reduced to practice during their fellowship
• The fact that research materials and laboratory notebooks are the property of the FDA
• ORISE fellow’s obligation to protect and not to further disclose or use non-public information.

Qualified candidate should be currently pursuing or have received a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree in a relevant field. Degree must have been received within the past 60 months, or anticipated to be received by May 31st, 2026.

Preferred skills include:

• MR safety evaluation of medical devices
• Modeling and simulation of batteries and electronic components
• Design, development, and/or testing of medical devices
• Radiofrequency antenna array instrumentation and performance characterization
• Electromagnetic compatibility testing of electronic equipment

This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and FDA. If an ORISE Fellow, to include their spouse and minor children, reports what is identified as a Significantly Regulated Organization (SRO) or prohibited investment fund financial interest in any amount, or a relationship with an SRO, except for spousal employment with an SRO, and the individual will not voluntarily divest the financial interest or terminate the relationship, then the individual is not placed at FDA. For additional requirements, see FDA Ethics for Nonemployee Scientists.