The Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Carilion Clinic is accepting applications for Research Fellow positions for the academic year 2026-2027. This fellowship is intended for an unmatched graduating MS-4 / M.D.At Carilion Clinic, we believe that a research fellowship should be a developmental position, intended to 1) teach the fundamentals of orthopaedic research, 2) foster personal growth and maturity, and 3) deepen knowledge of clinical orthopaedics. The overarching goal of the fellowship is to develop the fellow into a place where they are prepared to enter orthopaedic residency and eventually go on to become a practicing clinician-scientist.Research fellows are expected to conduct the day-to-day operations of research, including study design, enrollment, data analysis and manuscript preparation. Fellows will also participate in the educational curriculum of the
Virginia Tech Carilion Orthopaedic Surgery Residency
This includes all didactics, educational conferences, workshops and guest speaker presentations.The research fellowship is designed to be two years as this is the time we believe is needed in order to gain the maturity, skill set and clinical knowledge that will improve the fellow's residency application. We have a history of success with placement of graduates of the research fellowship into orthopaedic residency. Research fellows will continue to receive ongoing clinical education in orthopedic surgery by attending the resident educational conferences. There are no patient care responsibilities in this fellowship. The Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Carilion Clinic is the largest academic orthopaedic department in Virginia with 48 faculty and clinical fellows in spine (1), joints (2) and hand (1). Additionally, the Department has an orthopaedic research fellowship (2 fellows) and an orthopaedics residency (4 residents per year). The Musculoskeletal Education and Research Center (MERC) serves as the research arm of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.The research fellowship program director is Peter J. Apel, MD, PhD (hand surgery and pediatric orthopaedics). W. Garret Burks, PhD and Youngjae Lee, PhD oversee and assist with day-to-day operations of MERC. Areas of research encompass various aspects of orthopaedic surgery including trauma, adult reconstruction, hand, spine, sports and pediatric orthopaedics. Research is largely clinically oriented, with both prospective and retrospective studies and other research projects that focus on clinical aspects of health care delivery. Fellows are assigned to 2-3 specific areas to allow for focus and in-depth development / mentorship.This position is a paid full-time research position through Carilion Clinic in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery with a salary and benefits similar to a PGY-1 which allows for comfortable living in Roanoke, VA. Roanoke is the center of operations for Carilion Clinic and will be where nearly all research and educational activities will be conducted.Candidates will be selected based on personal attributes, including work ethic, motivation for orthopaedic surgery and the likelihood of future success in the Match.
At the time of starting the fellowship, candidates are required to have been awarded a degree from an LCME-accredited U.S. medical school (or offered a deferment of graduation having fully completed the medical school curriculum) and have no prior GME experience. To assess competitiveness for eventual entry into orthopaedic surgery residency, candidates must submit USMLE score transcripts, medical school transcripts and letters of recommendation. At this time, non-US medical school graduates and candidates with any prior GME experience (any clinical internship or residency) can not be considered. While the goal of the fellowship is to prepare the applicant to enter orthopaedic residency, there is no promise or guarantee of admission into the
Virginia Tech Carilion Orthopaedic Surgery Residency
The research fellowship program director is Peter J. Apel, MD, PhD. Inquiries should be sent to pjapel@carilionclinic.org. Recruitment will begin after 10:00 AM EDT on Monday March 16th, 2026. Interviews will be conducted by phone or Zoom on a rolling basis. Based on prior years' timelines, the positions is expected to fill by the end of the week (Friday, March 20th). Candidates who accept this research fellowship position will be asked to cease pursuits of other positions upon acceptance.
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