FDA campus at White Oak in Silver Spring, MD

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has launched a multiyear hiring initiative offering health professionals the opportunity to join the highly skilled and internationally respected work force at their state-of-the-art facilities in the Rockville/Silver Spring, MD, area. The FDA employs more than 10,000 people who work all around the country. Founded when Congress passed the Food and Drugs Act of 1906, the FDA is one of the Nation's oldest and most respected consumer protection agencies. A career with the FDA offers exciting professional opportunities and rewards. The FDA is currently hiring Commissioned Corps officers across all professions, including but not limited to:

• Physicians
• Chemists
• Biologists
• Microbiologists
• Health/Regulatory/General Health Scientists
• Mathematical Statisticians
• Epidemiologists
• Pharmacologists
• Pharmacists
• Veterinarians

Examples of jobs are….

Drug Information Officer/O4
Drug information officers provide support on a variety of special projects in the performance of research, including conducting studies and evaluating and analyzing data. They design and/or enhance the FDA’s automated information gathering and reporting systems and are responsible for the overall management, security, integrity, tracking, and accuracy of the electronic records program for regulatory and scientific documents generated.

Senior Regulatory Management Officer /O5
Senior regulatory management officers plan and conduct regulatory inspections and in-depth investigations of industry warehouses, manufacturers and distributors. They perform analysis and evaluate data samples and information gathered during investigations to ensure that the documentation and practices are in compliance with Federal regulations. Senior regulatory management officers interact with and advise officials representing the establishments and testify as expert witnesses.

Senior Regulatory Review Officer/O5
Senior regulatory review officers assist the division in the coordination of the activities of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) health education and training programs to include a broad regulatory and scientific education and training requirements. They manage, review, and evaluate with the team leader current activities associated with the CDER Scientific Seminar program.

This opportunity is primarily targeted at those interested in joining the Commissioned Corps and working for the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) in Silver Spring, MD. If you meet the requirements for a commission as a U.S. Public Health officer and want to work for the FDA, e-mail LT Carlos Bell at CDERCommissionedCorpsJobs@fda.hhs.gov with a cover letter and CV as ONE attachment. You will also need to fill out an application to the Commissioned Corps and indicate FDA on question 29 of the application. Please follow the application instructions provided. If you are seeking a FDA position as a civilian, please follow the process outlined on USAJobs.

Commissioned Corps Officers Already At Work
in the FDA

Rear Admiral Paul Seligman serves in the FDA as the associate director for Safety Policy and Communication at the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. The FDA regulates approximately 25 percent of the Nation’s commerce, having an extraordinary impact at both national and international levels. RADM Seligman provides direction to the Center’s Drug Safety Oversight Board and MedWatch, the FDA safety information and adverse event reporting program. According to RADM Seligman, “No drug is 100 percent safe. Every medication has a potential side effect or potential for causing a more serious health problem. Science-based, efficient risk management allows the FDA to provide the most health promotion and protection at the least cost to the public. The FDA reviews data to assess the risks and benefits of drugs before and while they are on the market.”

Lieutenant Commander Brian Cronenwett is currently an FDA consumer safety officer and investigator in Springfield, MO. He inspects large-volume facilities manufacturing infant formula, low-acid canned foods, and aseptically-packaged beverages to ensure that these products meet safety standards for public consumption. LCDR Cronenwett notes that, “Most people are quite surprised to find a registered nurse working for the FDA in consumer safety. Actually, this job is very well suited to health care workers, especially nurses, because it requires a person to pay attention to detail. That is exactly what a good professional nurse does every day.”

Lieutenant Commander Connie Jung worked as a civilian government employee for the FDA. She joined the Corps after learning about the benefits and opportunities to work in offices across many government agencies. After her commission, LCDR Jung stayed on with the FDA as a regulatory review officer and is currently stationed in Rockville, MD. LCDR Jung’s current position allows her to apply her education and experience towards ensuring that the American public has access to safe and effective, low-cost generic drug products—a role she sees as vital to improving the public health of the country. LCDR Jung states, “I learned that I am part of a special group of clinicians and researchers that are strongly dedicated to promoting public health.”

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