The NCI Center for Cancer Research offers a variety of training opportunities for graduate students. Trainees may spend one year (or several years) working with world-class biomedical researchers on NCI’s campuses in Bethesda and Frederick, Maryland.
Who Can Apply?
- Graduate students with a bachelor of science degree or the equivalent in the health sciences
- U.S. citizens and permanent residents
How Do I Apply?
- Visit CCR Careers for a list of open predoctoral training positions. Read the announcement for the position for which you are interested and apply directly to the principal investigator.
Visit the links below to learn more about the NIH intramural training programs that are available to graduate students.
Programs for Graduate Students
NIH Graduate Partnerships Program (GPP)
All graduate students who are interested in conducting their dissertation research at CCR must apply through this NIH program. There are 2 pathways available:
1. Institutional partnerships
The NIH has established several formal partnerships with universities, domestic and international, that allow students to perform dissertation research within the NIH Intramural Research Program (IRP). Students fulfill their academic requirements at the university while performing part or all of their dissertation research in a research group within the IRP.
2. Individual partnerships
Students currently enrolled in a Ph.D. training program come to NIH to enhance their dissertation research.
University of Maryland-NCI Partnership for Cancer Technology
This is an opportunity for University of Maryland graduate students in the mathematical sciences, physical sciences, and engineering to conduct research under the joint supervision of CCR investigators and University faculty.
Howard University - NCI Center for Cancer Research Cancer Track
A collaborative partnership between the Howard University (HU) and NCI CCR that allows HU doctoral candidates admitted to HU Ph.D. or M.D./Ph.D. programs in Biomedical Sciences, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biology or Chemistry to conduct all or part of their dissertation research in NCI CCR laboratories as collaborative projects or co-mentorships between HU and NCI CCR PIs.
Comparative Biomedical Scientist Training Program
This program combines interdisciplinary cross-over training in animal and human health. Program trainees (DVMs, VMDs) spend the first two years at a partnership university and then transition to the NIH campus to continue pathology training and to focus on their Ph.D. dissertation research.