CDC Customer Experience and Quality Improvement Research Fellowship
To submit your application, scroll to the bottom of this opportunity and click APPLY.
A complete application consists of:
- An application
- Transcripts – Click here for detailed information about acceptable transcripts
- A current resume/CV, including academic history, employment history, relevant experiences, and publication list
- One educational or professional recommendation. Your application will be considered incomplete, and will not be reviewed until one recommendation is submitted.
All documents must be in English or include an official English translation.
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*Applications will be reviewed on a rolling-basis.
CDC Office and Location: A research opportunity is available in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), located in Chamblee, Georgia.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is one of the major operation components of the Department of Health and Human Services. CDC protects America from health, safety and security threats, both foreign and in the U.S. Whether diseases start at home or abroad, are chronic or acute, curable or preventable, human error or deliberate attack, CDC fights disease and supports communities and citizens to do the same. CDC increases the health security of our nation. As the nation’s health protection agency, CDC saves lives and protects people from health threats. To accomplish its mission, CDC conducts important science and provides health information that protects our nation against expensive and dangerous health threats, and responds when these arise.
Research Project Description: You will participate in a mentored educational research experience within the Occupational Health and Safety Office (OHSO), focusing on applied research in customer experience assessment, quality improvement, process analysis, and process evaluation in a federal public health context. This opportunity is designed to enhance your learning and professional development through engagement in research activities such as evaluating customer feedback approaches, analyzing organizational processes, and learning to review alignment between documented procedures and current practices. The primary emphasis is on your acquisition of knowledge and skills; any benefit to OHSO is secondary. All activities are conducted under the guidance of OHSO mentors, ensuring your experience is centered on learning and training.
Learning Objectives:
Under the guidance of a mentor, you will receive training through regular meetings, project guidance, and opportunities to participate in cross-functional discussions focused on occupational health and safety research, quality improvement methodologies, customer experience principles, research and evaluation methods, and professional development. You will also receive ongoing feedback on technical writing, presentations, and research activities.
By the end of the fellowship, you will:
- Develop experience assessing customer-experience programs and identifying opportunities for improvement using evaluation and quality-improvement approaches.
- Learn methods for conducting organizational assessments, gap analyses, and strategic prioritization within occupational health and safety programs.
- Learn to apply quality improvement and process evaluation principles to occupational safety and industrial hygiene activities.
- Gain experience applying process mapping and workflow analysis techniques using Microsoft Visio to evaluate process consistency and quality improvement opportunities.
- Gain experience evaluating implementation fidelity by comparing documented procedures with observed practices in real-world settings.
- Strengthen skills in stakeholder engagement, technical writing, data interpretation, and communicating quality improvement and evaluation findings.
- Gain practical experience applying continuous quality improvement principles, process mapping techniques, organizational assessment methods, and occupational health and safety program evaluation within a federal public health research environment.
Mentor(s): The mentor for this opportunity is Molly Lauterbach (akz7@cdc.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research please contact the mentor(s).
Anticipated Appointment Start Date: October 21, 2026. Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors.
Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year year, but may be renewed upon recommendation of CDC and is contingent on the availability of funds.
Level of Participation: The appointment is full time.
Citizenship Requirements: This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens only.
ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and CDC. Participants do not become employees of CDC, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.
The successful applicant(s) will be required to comply with Environmental, Safety and Health (ES&H) requirements of the hosting facility.
Questions: Please visit our Program Website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process please email CDCrpp@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.
The qualified candidate should have received or be currently pursuing a master's degree in one of the relevant fields (public health, industrial hygiene, occupational safety, quality management, health administration, or a related field).
Preferred Skills:
- Strong analytical, organizational, and communication skills.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office.
- Experience with Microsoft Visio.
- Familiarity with quality management and continuous improvement methodologies such as PDCA (plan-do-check-act) or Lean Six Sigma.
- Experience with process mapping, organizational assessment, or program evaluation.
- Interest in Quality Management Systems.
I certify that I have not previously been employed by CDC or by a contractor working directly for CDC. I understand that CDC does not permit individuals with a prior employment relationship with CDC or its contractors to participate as trainees in the ORISE program. (Exceptions may be granted for individuals who, since the previous CDC employment, have obtained a new STEM degree which necessitates training in a new field.)
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