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Advanced Practice Provider (NP/PA) Oncology Fellowship
Advanced Practice Provider (NP/PA) Oncology Fellowship
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Fellowship Background
The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) Advanced Practice Provider (APP) Oncology Fellowship provides nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs) with the opportunity to train at one of the top cancer centers in the United States. The fellowship began over 40 years ago in hospice and palliative care. In 2020, the fellowship was formally organized into the program that it is today and now accepts APP fellows across 10 distinct subspecialty tracks. Our APP fellows are mentored by an interdisciplinary team of oncology experts serving patients from around the world.
Mission Statement
The mission of the APP Oncology Fellowship is to provide an oncology-intensive post-graduate academic program promoting collaborative, high-quality, evidence-based, and compassionate patient-centered care to a diverse patient population, in alignment with MSK’s institutional mission. Our fellows participate in clinical skills practicums, simulation experiences, quality improvement initiatives, professional presentations, didactic learning, and clinical rotations on medical, surgical, and/or consultative services. Upon graduation from the fellowship, the APP will be trained to proficiently deliver exceptional comprehensive care to patients with cancer.
Fellowship Overview
This is a 12-month post-graduate training program for NPs and PAs who wish to transition into oncology-based care. The fellowship provides support and training during the transition to practice period, allowing fellows to build confidence and knowledge in clinical subspecialties.
The program is open to newly graduated APPs, as well as those with prior experience as an APP. The fellowship is especially well-suited for those looking to gain specialty exposure to oncology and those eager for an immersive learning experience. This fellowship allows for in-depth clinical training while affording protected educational time, which will help develop the APP as a well-rounded and extremely knowledgeable provider prepared to practice patient care in the cancer care continuum.
Throughout the fellowship program, fellows will:
Develop skills to strengthen critical thinking
Improve procedural abilities,
Build the confidence to work within a professional clinical setting,
Exercise self-directed learning, and
Utilize and integrate evidence-based practice into patient care.
Unified by the common goal of gaining proficiency in the delivery of comprehensive care to patients with cancer, the MSK fellows follow a core curriculum of oncology-based didactic learning together as a cohort while participating in subspecialty-specific clinical learning experiences.
A strong network of leadership is embedded throughout the program. The fellows will be guided by experienced preceptors, specialty-specific champions, fellowship coordinators, the APP Fellowship Manager, and the Director of APP Quality and Professional Development. Throughout the program, APP Oncology Fellowship leadership will teach self-care and self-reflection skills to promote resiliency and wellness while preventing burnout.
Learn more about each of the fellowship tracks below.
A group of MSK fellows gathering in New York City.
Fellow Clinical Responsibilities Will Include (As Appropriate for Each Subspecialty Track):
Gathering a comprehensive patient history
Performing a comprehensive physical examination
Ordering and analyzing laboratory and diagnostic studies
Formulating differential diagnoses, offering rationale for clinical decisions, and implementing treatment plans
Evaluating patient response to treatment
Coordination of patient care
Active participation within the interdisciplinary healthcare team
Accurate and complete documentation of patient encounters
Performing procedures
Participation in didactic learning experiences, including projects and presentations
Critical Care Medicine Subspecialty Track Overview
The Critical Care Medicine subspecialty track is designed to provide comprehensive, multimodality training to prepare APPs for the independent management of critically ill oncology patients. The program consists of a structured educational curriculum created to enhance critical thinking in addition to clinical opportunities to manage a diverse oncology patient population in the critical care environment as well as other services throughout the institution.
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
ICU
27 Weeks
ICU Consults
4 Weeks
Core Rotations
Duration
Cardiology
1 Week
Hematology
1 Week
Infectious Disease
1 Week
Mobile IR
1 Week
Neurology/Neuro Advanced Care Unit
2 Weeks
Pulmonology
1 Week
Renal
1 Week
Supportive Care
1 Week
Step Down Unit
2 Weeks
Elective Rotations
Duration
Fellow Choice (Up to 2 Rotations)
1-2 Weeks Each (4 Weeks Max.)
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Physician Assistant
Geriatric Oncology Subspecialty Track Overview
The Geriatric Oncology subspecialty track is designed to promote comprehensive, patient-specific care to older adults with cancer. This includes a strong emphasis on understanding geriatric syndromes, promoting patient autonomy, risk stratification prior to cancer treatment, and safe care transitions. The goal of this comprehensive program is to prepare the APP to deliver efficient, safe, patient-centered, and specialized care to a diverse geriatric patient population as part of a collaborative interdisciplinary healthcare team. This fellowship subspecialty track will highlight the complex needs of older adults with cancer and provide the fellow with a comprehensive outlook on providing patient-centered care. This fellowship subspecialty track aims to prepare APPs to be outstanding clinicians and champions of the care of older adults with cancer.
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
Geriatric Oncology Inpatient
19 Weeks
Geriatric Oncology Outpatient
13 Weeks
Core Rotations
Duration
General Internal Medicine
2 Weeks
Neurology
1 Week
Cardiology
1 Week
Pulmonology
1 Week
Medical Oncology
2 Weeks
Surgical Oncology
1 Week
Benign Hematology
1 Week
Psychiatry
1 Week
Bone Marrow Transplant and Cell Therapies
1 Week
Supportive Care Services
1 Week
Urgent Care Center, Ambulatory Extended Recovery, or Pre-Surgical Testing
1 Week
Renal Service
1 Week
Elective Rotations
Duration
Fellow Choice
1 Week
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Family Nurse Practitioner
Physician Assistant
Hematology/Oncology Subspecialty Track Overview
The Hematology/Oncology subspecialty track is designed to promote comprehensive, patient-specific care for the adult medical oncology population. The fellow will train in medical oncology practices through an educational framework and will learn to manage complex patients with various hematologic malignancies. The goal of this fellowship subspecialty track is to provide comprehensive training throughout various malignant hematology/oncology practices and the associated interdisciplinary teams to build an APP competent in this area of specialty.
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
Leukemia Inpatient/Outpatient
6 Weeks
Myeloma Inpatient/Outpatient
6 Weeks
Lymphoma Inpatient/Outpatient
6 Weeks
Bone Marrow Transplant and Cell Therapies Inpatient/Outpatient
6 Weeks
Core Rotations
Duration
Procedure Clinic
4 Weeks
Radiation Oncology
2 Weeks
Pathology
1 Week
Benign Hematology Inpatient/Outpatient
1 Week
Fertility Preservation
1 Week
Survivorship
1 Week
Elective/Area of Specialization
Duration
Fellow Choice
8 Weeks
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Family Nurse Practitioner
Physician Assistant
Hospice and Palliative Care Subspecialty Track Overview
The Hospice and Palliative Care subspecialty track is designed to equip qualified, committed, creative, and caring APPs with the clinical and academic expertise to become future leaders in palliative and supportive care. Nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs) in this program work with members of the Supportive Care Service and train side by side with physician fellows. The interprofessional approach of the twin fellowship programs, in which NPs, PAs, and doctors train side by side in a world-renowned cancer center, ensures that graduates are uniquely prepared for collaborative care and team science. Upon completion of a fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, NPs and PAs are prepared for independent practice and continued professional advancement in the palliative care subspecialty.
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
Adult-Gerontology Acute Care NP
Family NP
PA
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
Supportive Care Inpatient Orientation
4-5 Weeks
Supportive Care Inpatient Consult Service Independent Patient Management
24 Weeks (Divided between 4 disease cohorts)
Core Rotations
Duration
Inpatient Hospice
4 Weeks
Geriatric Oncology
1 Week
Inpatient Solid Tumor Oncology
1 Week
VNS Home Hospice
2 Weeks
Outpatient Supportive Care Clinic
1 Afternoon per Week
Elective Rotations
Duration
Fellow Choice
7-8 Weeks
Research Elective
1-2 Weeks
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
The Neurology/Neurosurgery subspecialty track is designed to promote practice transition and professional development for APPs serving the Neurology/Neurosurgery oncology patient population as part of a collaborative interdisciplinary healthcare team. This fellowship experience provides comprehensive and formalized training to the APP through a structured educational framework of didactic and “hands-on” experiences. With the support and guidance of an experienced leadership team, the APP fellow will develop their critical thinking and clinical decision-making skills to prepare them for independent practice as a proficient clinician in the highly specialized field of Neuro-Oncology.
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
Neurology Inpatient
6 Weeks
Neurology Consult
6 Weeks
Neurosurgery Inpatient
6 Weeks
Neurology/Neuro-Oncology Outpatient Clinic
8 Weeks
Neuro Acute Care Unit
6 Weeks
Core Rotations
Duration
Neurosurgery Outpatient
2 Weeks
Neuroradiology
2 Weeks
Radiation Oncology
2 Weeks
Elective Rotations
Duration
Fellow Choice
8 Weeks
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
The Pediatric Hematology/Oncology subspecialty track is designed to provide comprehensive training with the goal of developing well-prepared Pediatric Hematology/Oncology APPs. Fellows are supported by a structured educational framework combining didactic and experiential learning to promote and advance their critical thinking and clinical reasoning skills, enabling them to provide safe, efficient, patient-centered, and specialized care to a diverse pediatric hematology/oncology patient population.
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
Pediatric Sarcoma Outpatient
3 Weeks
Pediatric Neuroblastoma Outpatient
3 Weeks
Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Outpatient
3 Weeks
Pediatric Hematologic Malignancies Outpatient
3 Weeks
Pediatric Surgery Outpatient
2 Weeks
Pediatric Surgery Inpatient
2 Weeks
Pediatric Stem Cell Transplant and Cellular Therapies Outpatient
2 Weeks
Pediatric Stem Call Transplant and Cellular Therapies Inpatient
4 Weeks
Pediatric Critical Care
6 Weeks
Core Rotations
Duration
Pediatric Long Term Follow Up
1 Week
Pediatric Pain and Palliative Care
2 Weeks
Elective Rotations
Duration
Fellow Choice
1 Week
Area of Specialization
Duration
Fellow Choice
18 Weeks
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
Pediatric Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
Family Nurse Practitioner
Physician Assistant
Perioperative and Specialized Care Subspecialty Track Overview
The Perioperative and Specialized Care subspecialty track is designed to provide efficient, safe, and patient-centered postoperative and specialized care management training to APPs serving a diverse patient population. At MSK, the APP-driven model in the Anesthesia Pain Service (APS), Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU), and Step Down Unit (SDU) allows APPs to autonomously manage patient care in collaboration with attending physicians on these services.
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
Inpatient Surgical Services
12 Weeks Total (6 Different Services)
Step Down Unit
6 Weeks
Pre-Surgical Testing
6 Weeks
Post Anesthesia Care Unit Main Hospital
6 Weeks
MSK Koch Post Anesthesia Care Unit
2 Weeks
Surgical Day Hospital Post Anesthesia Care Unit
2 Weeks
Acute Pain Management Service
4 Weeks
Elective/Area of Specialization
Duration
Fellow Choice
8 Weeks
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Family Nurse Practitioner
Physician Assistant
Psycho-Oncology Subspecialty Track Overview
The Psycho-Oncology subspecialty track prepares APPs to deliver thorough and specializedpatient-centered care for adult psycho-oncology patients. This includes a strong focus on understanding psychiatric symptoms, adverse effects from cancer medications, behavioral emergencies, consultation-liaison psychiatry, and the interdisciplinary field of psycho-oncology. This fellowship subspecialty track highlights complex psychiatric cases in the inpatient and outpatient population, with a wide range of clinical experiences. APP fellows in the psycho-oncology track work with members of the psychiatry service and have didactic experiences alongside other APP and physician fellows. In addition, APP fellows are exposed to a variety of related specialties to allow for collaborative critical thinking. This fellowship subspecialty track provides APP fellows the opportunity to grow to be exceptional clinicians, develop academic expertise, and become future leaders in the field.
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
Blended Inpatient Clinical Psychiatry and Outpatient Psychiatry (Outpatient beginning after first 4 months)
43 Weeks
Core Rotations
Duration
Supportive Care
2 Weeks
Geriatric Oncology
2 Weeks
Palliative Care/Hospice VNSNY
3 Weeks
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Psychiatric and Mental Health Nurse Practitioner
Family Nurse Practitioner
Physician Assistant
Solid Tumor Medical Oncology Subspecialty Track Overview
The Solid Tumor Medical Oncology subspecialty track is designed to promote comprehensive, patient-specific care for the adult medical oncology population. The fellow will train in medical oncology practices through an educational framework and will learn to manage complex medical oncology patients. The goal of this subspecialty track is to provide comprehensive training throughout the various medical oncology practices and the associated interdisciplinary teams to build an APP competent in this subspecialty.
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
Gynecological Medicine
4 Weeks
Breast Medicine
4 Weeks
Lung Medicine
4 Weeks
Genitourinary Medicine
4 Weeks
Gastrointestinal Medicine
3 Weeks
Head/Neck and Melanoma Medicine
2 Weeks
Neuro-Oncology
2 Weeks
Radiation Oncology
2 Weeks
Core Rotations
Duration
Supportive Care
1 Week
Urgent Care Center/Clinical Decisions Unit
1 Week
Rapid Response Team/ICU Consult
1 Week
Phase I Early Drug Development
1 Week
Nocturnal Rotation
4 Weeks
Elective Rotations (Fellow Chooses 3)
Duration (2 Weeks Each/6 Weeks Total)
Malignant Hematology/BMT
Benign Hematology
Infectious Disease
Renal
Endocrine
IR/Mobile IR
Psychiatry
Survivorship
Plastic Reconstructive Surgery
Pulmonary
Elective/Area of Specialization (Fellow Choice)
Duration (6 Weeks)
Women’s Health
Men’s Health
Lung
Head/Neck and Melanoma Medicine
Radiation Oncology
Gastrointestinal Malignancy
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Family Nurse Practitioner
Physician Assistant
Surgical Oncology Subspecialty Track Overview
The Surgical Oncology subspecialty track is designed to give the APP the opportunity to rotate through various surgical specialties. The core rotations will heavily focus on time in the operating room and the development of surgical skills. There will also be exposure to the outpatient surgical clinics and some inpatient floor work on surgical services to provide a comprehensive learning experience centered on providing care to patients with cancer who require surgical intervention.
Clinical Rotations
Core Curriculum
Duration
Orientation
1 Week
Head and Neck Surgery (Josie Robertson Surgical Center)
4 Weeks
Head and Heck Surgery (Main Campus)
4 Weeks
Plastic Surgery (Josie Robertson Surgical Center)
4 Weeks
Plastic Surgery (Main Campus)
4 Weeks
Breast Surgery
8 Weeks
Genitourinary Surgery (Josie Robertson Surgical Center)
4 Weeks
Genitourinary Surgery (Main Campus)
4 Weeks
Gynecological Surgery (Main Campus)
4 Weeks
Gynecological Surgery (Josie Robertson Surgical Center)
4 Weeks
Robotic Surgery (Main Campus)
4 Weeks
Elective/Area of Specialization
Duration
Fellow Choice
7 Weeks
Track-Specific Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be trained at the master’s level or higher as a(n):
Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner with First Assist Certification
Family Nurse Practitioner with First Assist Certification
Physician Assistant
Length of Program and Work Hours
The program starts October 10, 2023 and is 12 months in duration.
Fellows may be asked to work nights, weekends, and/or holidays.
Average work week is about 50 hours to include clinical learning and protected didactic learning time.
Eligibility & Requirements
You are a highly motivated critical thinker with a strong desire to care for the oncology patient population. You are empathetic, resourceful, you communicate well, and enjoy working interprofessionally. You are seeking a fellowship position in an environment that fosters mutual respect, leadership, ethical decision-making, critical thinking, and problem-solving.
All applicants must:
Have current New York State Registered Nurse (RN) and Nurse Practitioner (NP) licenses or a Physician Assistant (PA) license and appropriate NP/PA board certification as listed within each subspecialty description prior to the MSK credentialing deadline
Be graduates of an accredited Nursing, NP, and/or PA program in the United States
Application
Applicants must choose one subspecialty track of interest to apply to.
Please submit all required documents in one PDF via the link above.
Curriculum vitae
A personal statement
Three letters of recommendation
Personal Statement:
The personal statement offers you an opportunity to discuss the talents, experiences, and goals that qualify you as a unique APP Fellowship candidate. We are seeking evidence of your qualifications and aptitude as well as your ability to communicate clearly and professionally. Personal statements should be no more than 500 words, typed, and double spaced using 12-point Times New Roman or Arial font.
Letters of Recommendation:
Letters of recommendation should be from the following sources:
Peer/Colleague
Current or prior work supervisor
Advanced Practice Clinical Instructor, Faculty, Program Director, or Preceptor
Letters of recommendation should be addressed to:
Nicole N Zakak, MS, RN, CPNP
Director, APP Quality and Professional Development
Applications will be reviewed and interviews will occur on a rolling basis between March 1st and May 15th, 2023. As subspecialty tracks are filled, available tracks will be updated on the application page. Please only apply for tracks that remain open for application
Program Directors
Amelia Cataldo, DNP, RN, CPNP-AC, CCRN
Manager, Advanced Practice Provider Fellowship Program [email protected]
Nicole Zakak, MS, RN, CPNP, CPHON
Director, Advanced Practice Provider Quality and Professional Development
