Visiting Fellow Hiring Mechanism for Postdoctoral and Pre-Doctoral IPDs

Please note that the primary policy source for the NIH Visiting Fellowship program is located within NIH Policy Manual 2300-320-3.

The Visiting Fellow (VF) program allows scientists from around the world the opportunity to work with senior NIH investigators on research areas of mutual interest. The program is designed to provide non-immigrant foreign participants opportunities for developmental training and practical research experience in a variety of disciplines related to biomedical research, medical library research, and related fields. Fellowships are designed to provide research training “for which fellowship support is not provided under Section 487 of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act, and which is not residency training of physicians or other health professionals.”

All Visiting Fellow Program participants are non-citizens who must possess a work authorization issued by the appropriate federal agency. The NIH Division of International Services (DIS), Office of Research Services (ORS) serves as the central point for all immigration matters for NIH. DIS prepares all immigration documents necessary to recruit and retain foreign participants and reviews and verifies work authorization for program participants. DIS issues a “notice” to the Institute and Center (IC) once work authorization is verified and monitors the stay of program participants, as well as immigration compliance for NIH. In addition, DIS also alerts ICs of the need to renew or terminate a participant.

Training must be carried out at a facility of the NIH, but may be supplemented by additional training acquired at another institution, if it is found to be directly related to the purpose of the traineeship and necessary to its successful completion. Training outside of NIH requires approval from the Office of Intramural Research (OIR) and DIS and must not comprise a majority of the training. Under the traineeship, the sponsor/supervisor of record for all trainees must be an IRP PI (Senior Investigator, Investigator, Senior Clinician, Senior Scientist, or Assistant Clinical Investigator, or OIR-approved Independent Research Scholar).

Service is a by-product of the Visiting Fellow Program, unlike Research and Clinical Fellowships which include service as a dominant part of the training objective. Please note that Fellows may not independently engage in patient care activities (any clinically-related activity must explicitly be under the direct supervision and control of an NIH employee), be assigned official supervisory responsibilities, or sign documents (e.g., requisitions) on behalf of the Government.

A Visiting Fellow is a non-Full-Time Equivalent Employment (FTE) position.

Visiting Fellow opportunities are available through the following two programs:

• Postdoctoral
  • Provides advanced practical research experience to doctoral researchers and physicians who have less than 5 years of postdoctoral research experience since the receipt of their most recent doctoral degree. Participation is contingent on applicable immigration rules and regulations.
• Pre-Doctoral (Graduate Partnerships Program [GPP])
  • Provides practical research training and experience to students, by supplementing academic course work and/or encouraging pursuit of professional careers in biomedical research to students enrolled in doctoral degree programs in biomedical sciences. The research experience, which frequently involves dissertation research, is undertaken as an integral part of the student’s academic preparation and will involve close cooperation and planning between NIH and the academic institution (foreign or domestic).

Foreign nationals on an F-1 visa are not eligible to come to the NIH for dissertation research. Additional information regarding the Visiting Fellowship program can be found at the NIH Division of International Services (DIS) page.

Approvals (Process)

For Visiting Fellows that require clinical credentialing, an additional approval must be received from the Chief Executive Officer, CC (or delegate) after recommendation by the Clinical Center (CC) Credentials Committee and the Medical Executive Committee (MEC). For further information, please contact the Office of Credentialing Services, Clinical Center (OCS/CC) at cc_ocs@mail.nih.gov(email) or 301-496-5937.

Ethics

Intramural scientists at the NIH, as is true for all scientists, should be committed to the responsible use of scientific tools and methods to seek new knowledge. While the general principles of scientific methodologies are universal, their detailed application may differ in various scientific disciplines and circumstances. All research staff in the Intramural Research Program should maintain exemplary standards of intellectual honesty in formulating, conducting, presenting, and reviewing research, as befits the leadership role of the NIH.

Within the NIH IRP, the ethical conduct of researchers is governed by the following three disciplines:

• Research Ethics
• Government Ethics
• Bioethics

Ethics information may also be available through your specific IC. Please reach out to OITE-Private@nih.gov for additional guidance.

Stipend

Please refer to the NIH Policy Manual 2300-320-3 for stipend information. Current NIH Intramural Research Program stipend tables can be found at https://www.training.nih.gov/stipends/.

Note that the Office of Intramural Research (OIR) requires stipend parity for all NIH intramural fellows. All postdoctoral and predoctoral Visiting Fellows must receive a stipend that is equivalent to or exceeds the NIH Intramural Research Program stipend tables. For fellows who have funding from an approved outside source, that funding must meet or exceed stipends listed in the table, or the stipend must be supplemented up to current NIH stipend levels. NIH intramural fellows cannot receive foreign funds. Personal funds do not count toward a trainee’s stipend.

Recruitment Process / Appointment Mechanisms

Please refer to the NIH Policy Manual 2300-320-3 for recruitment and appointment criteria. Additional information on recruiting predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows can be found at https://www.training.nih.gov/find-trainees/.

Find instructions and templates for initial awards, including the Visiting Fellow initial award letter and fellowship agreement [NIH Only], available on the OITE Intranet. Fellows may refer to the initial award letter and fellowship agreement provided to them during onboarding.

Renewals

Visiting Fellow (VF) appointments are for one year, renewable up to a standard maximum depending on appointment type (see below). Renewal is not guaranteed and depends upon factors including, but not limited to, research progress, funding availability, immigration regulations, and appropriate agency approvals.

Postdoctoral VF appointments have a standard maximum of five years renewed in one-year increments. Postdoc fellows may be extended for an exceptional sixth, seventh, or eighth year if they would benefit from additional training to achieve their research and career goals.

Visiting Fellows qualify only if their visa allows. J1 visa extensions beyond 5 years are subject to review and approval by the G7 Peer Review Committee at OIR by filing a complete G7 package with DIS at least 6 months in advance. A maximum of one year may be granted per request.

For additional G-7 Program renewal information, please refer to the following:

• DIS G-7 Program: J-1 Extensions Beyond 5 Years
• DIS Request for Department of State (DOS)/Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Extension of J-1 Exchange Visitor

Pre-Doctoral VF appointments have a standard maximum of three years renewed in one-year increments. Beyond three years, renewal requires a written student justification requesting additional time, followed by a rigorous review that includes Institute approval and an interview with the Director of the Graduate Partnerships Program (GPP) to establish a timeline for completion.

For additional renewal information, please refer to the NIH Policy Manual 2300-320-3. Additional information on exceptional extensions, including submission requirements and timeline, can be found on the Non-FTE Trainees Exceptional Extension Policy page of this Sourcebook.

Resources

A Visiting Fellow is not granted independent resources by their Institute.

Termination

Please refer to the NIH Policy Manual 2300-320-3 for termination information.

Please note that ICs must notify the Division of International Services (DIS), Office of Research Services (ORS), of non-immigrant foreign national Visiting Fellow assignment termination at least 30 days prior to the end date.