FDA Medical Acoustics Research Opportunity

Organization
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Reference Code
FDA-CDRH-2026-0006
How to Apply

To submit your application, scroll to the bottom of this opportunity and click APPLY.

A complete application consists of:

All documents must be in English or include an official English translation.

If you have questions, send an email to ORISE.FDA.CDRH@orau.org. Please include the reference code for this opportunity in your email.

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Application Deadline
9/30/2027 3:00:00 PM Eastern Time Zone
Description

*Applications will be reviewed on a rolling-basis.

FDA Office and Location: A research opportunity is available within the Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), located at Silver Spring, Maryland.

Research Project: The FDA's CDRH Medical Acoustics Program ensures safe medical acoustic devices through therapeutic/diagnostic and transcranial sub-programs covering brain treatments, tumor ablation, pain management, and cardiovascular care across all patient populations. The program addresses gaps including lack of transcranial device understanding, absence of standardized acoustic/thermal characterization methods, and insufficient computational models. 

Learning Objectives: Under the guidance of a mentor, you will have the opportunity to learn:

  • How to investigate transcranial safety
  • Development of standardized characterization methodologies and computational tools
  • Creation of standard foundations for emerging technologies
  • Safety assessment and standard testing approaches
  • Process for the development of regulatory guidance for acoustic device applications

Mentor: The mentor for this opportunity is Subha Maruvada, subha.maruvada@fda.hhs.gov. If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor.

Anticipated Appointment Start Date: 2026. Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors.

Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year, but may be renewed upon recommendation of FDA and is contingent on the availability of funds.

Level of Participation: The appointment is full time.

Participant Stipend: The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. 

Citizenship Requirements: 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 Details page of the program website for information about the valid immigration statuses that are acceptable for program participation.


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. The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Participants do not become 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 at FDA.  OPM can complete a background investigation only for individuals, including non-US Citizens, who have resided in the US for a total of three of the past five years.

Qualifications

The qualified candidate should be currently pursuing or have received a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree within the last 60 months in the one of the relevant fields. 

Point of Contact
Eligibility Requirements
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree, Master's Degree, or Doctoral Degree received within the last 60 months or anticipated to be received by 5/31/2027 12:00:00 AM.
  • Discipline(s):
    • Chemistry and Materials Sciences (12 )
    • Computer, Information, and Data Sciences (17 )
    • Engineering (18 )
    • Mathematics and Statistics (11 )
    • Physics (16 )
  • Age: Must be 18 years of age
Affirmation

I have lived in the United States for at least 36 out of the past 60 months. (36 months do not have to be consecutive.) 

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