Paul Farmer Global Surgery Research Fellowship — Fellowship

The Paul Farmer Global Surgery Research Fellowship is run by the Program in Global Surgery and Social Change at Harvard Medical School, with roots in a collaboration involving Boston Children’s Hospital and Partners In Health. It trains clinicians to work on research, education, surgical-system strengthening, policy, and advocacy for global surgical, anesthesia, and obstetric care.

Research Fellows are based in Boston and may undertake international placements through program projects. The route covered here is the full-time, two-year Research Fellow position, not the separate one-year Research Collaborator position.

Benefits & funding

The program provides a two-year research and policy training experience but does not fund fellows.
Final acceptance depends on securing adequate external support; previous participants have used scholarships, grants, surgical societies, foundations, and nongovernmental organizations.
Housing is not provided.
Fellows may separately apply for a Harvard public-health master’s program, but admission is separate and the fellowship does not cover tuition.

Eligibility

Applicants must have graduated from medical school and be residents, registrars, or international equivalents in obstetrics and gynecology, anesthesia, or a surgical subspecialty; people who have completed residency may also apply.
Both United States and international applicants are welcome, with no nationality, prior-residency, or age restriction stated.
The fellowship requires a full-time two-year commitment; ongoing full-time or part-time clinical or research employment is not compatible with participation.
The program is in person in Boston, although fellows traveling for research may join some programming remotely.

Can you apply?

Open to all applicants

No nationality, residency, education, or experience limits are listed.

Circlebreaker is a free database of global fellowships, scholarships and programs — every one decoded like this.

We only check the criteria we have data for. Always confirm full eligibility on the official page before applying.

Application process

1
Complete the official Paul Farmer Global Surgery Fellowship application and select the Research Fellow route.
2
Prepare a global-surgery-focused CV of no more than two pages, with one additional publications page if needed.
3
Submit a one-page personal statement, a 400-word commentary, two recommendation letters, and an official medical-school transcript.
4
Email the completed materials to the program address shown on the official page; the program instructs applicants not to use artificial intelligence to complete the application.

Program timeline

Applications opened for the most recent cycle.
June 2026
Application deadline.
July 15, 2026
Candidates selected for first-round interviews are contacted.
By September 2026
Selected candidates are notified.
Mid-November 2026
Fellowship starts.
July 2027