We are currently recruiting fellows for the 2026 Class of the PE Fellowship, which starts on Aug. 10, 2026. The PE Fellowship is a two-year post-doctoral research and service fellowship established in 1995 to address an ongoing demand in the field of public health for quantitative policy analysis, health economics-based inquiry, and integrative health services research. Through applying a range of analyses and evaluation methods, prevention effectiveness assesses the public health impact of policies, programs, and practices by determining their outcomes, quality, and cost. At CDC, prevention effectiveness research includes the use of econometric, decision, simulation, and operations analysis and modeling to understand determinants of health, morbidity, mortality, health inequalities, healthcare use, and expenditures. In 2021, the PE Fellowship added a Modeling and Analytics Track to build capacity in mathematical disease modeling.
Since its inception, the PE Fellowship has trained a total of 250 PE Fellows, 80 of whom now work at CDC. There are currently 12 PE Fellows in the class of 2024. We did not fill a Class of 2025. CDC now employs more PhD-level health economists and disease modelers than any federal agency. Their work has generated more than 4,500 publications, 179 in 2024 alone, and has established CDC as a leader in applied economics and quantitative analysis of public health intervention programs. The PE Fellowship is a prestigious training and development program, competitively pursued by doctoral-level graduates. The PE Fellowship sponsors didactic trainings in a range of topical areas. Candidates selected for the PE Fellowship report to one CDC program, which provides them a supervisor and mentor. Consequently, the work of PE Fellows is wide-ranging and significantly contributes to the body of knowledge helping to further establish CDC as the premier public health research institution.
The PE Fellowship has experienced exceptional growth over the past few years, and may now be the largest post-doctoral training program in health economics in the US. The PE Fellowship is extremely competitive. In 2024, 132 competitive applications were received for 16 positions. We currently have 10 open fellowship positions for the Class of 2026. PE Fellows represent some of the elite academic programs in the nation and internationally. PE Fellows hold doctoral degrees in economics or applied economics, operations research/industrial engineering, health services research, applied mathematics, disease ecology, or a related quantitatively oriented field. PE Fellows enter the PE Fellowship with varying levels of experience. For most PE Fellows, CDC is their first real job, while some PE Fellows have significant experience. Many PE Fellows are non-US citizens, and CDC sponsors their OPT-STEM, J1, TN, and other visas. The starting salary is $98,000 with federal benefits.
We are currently recruiting fellows for the 2026 Class of the PE Fellowship, which starts on Aug. 10, 2026. The application window closes Jan. 9, 2026. Applications may be submitted via the CDC Prevention Effectiveness Fellowship application portal.
