Guided Fellowship FAQs

The ACP Guided Fellowship Program is exclusively for early career physicians who have one to two years post-residency. Guided Fellowship gives participants a structure to meet the requirements for ACP Fellowship over three years.

Active members who have recently completed residency, or are one-year post-residency completion, as well as fourth-year chief residents are eligible to enroll in the program.

Courtesy of the ACP Member Insurance Program, a one-time enrollment fee of $175 is waived. This benefit is exclusive to Guided Fellowship, but not for Advancement to Fellowship. ACP membership dues must be current and paid for all three years of the program. For more information about ACP member dues rates, see the US Membership Details or Global Membership Details.

Unlike the Advancement to Fellowship application, the Guided Fellowship application does not require you to identify sponsors or provide a sponsorship letter.

Physicians in a subspecialty fellowship may enroll after the end of residency. The applicant must be a dues-paid Resident/Fellow Member for the previous membership year and have renewed their ACP membership for the current year. Physicians in subspecialty fellowship may retain their status as a Resident/Fellow Member while in the Guided Fellowship Program. However, once you complete the program your membership class will be changed to Physician Member.

To complete the Guided Fellowship Program and become an ACP Fellow, participants must:

• Demonstrate activity in at least three of the four Pillars of Fellowship by completing one activity annually.
• Maintain ACP membership in good standing (Resident/Fellow Member or Member) for at least three years post-residency and ensure dues are paid for three of the four most recent years.
• Be board certified in internal medicine, neurology, or a combined/internal medicine specialty (ABIM or AOBIM).
• Possess an active medical license in good standing (if in clinical practice).

The four Pillars of Fellowship represent core areas of professional dedication:

1. Continuing Medical Education (CME)
2. Community Engagement and Community Service
3. Practice Improvement and Scholarly Activities
4. Teaching, Coaching, Mentoring, and Leadership

To be eligible for election to FACP, participants must submit activities in at least three of these pillars to demonstrate their commitment to advancing internal medicine.

Enrolled participants can view their Guided Fellowship Dashboard at www.acponline.org/gfdashboard.

Board certification is not required to enroll in the Guided Fellowship Program. However, board certification in internal medicine or neurology must be obtained before completing the program and being elected to ACP Fellowship.

Guided Fellowship cohorts begin annually on January 1 with an Orientation webinar happening at the end of the month. Program years end December 31 each year.

Participants who meet the program requirements are eligible for election to Fellowship (FACP) after three years. Guided Fellowship elections take place during December each year.

Participants can request a one-time, one-year extension if they require additional time to complete the requirements to achieve FACP.

Members can build their community, while helping others provide excellent healthcare, by getting involved with volunteer opportunities at ACP's Volunteer Opportunities. Guided Fellowship Participants can learn about ACP activities that support their journey to Fellowship in the ACP Connect App Guided Fellowship Community. It is also recommended that participants connect with their local ACP chapter to learn about local opportunities to get involved.

Program participants can track their progress through a personalized Guided Fellowship Dashboard. In your dashboard, you can review the list of suggested professional development activities and note those completed. Completed activities will display on your personalized dashboard.

If a participant believes that an activity, they have completed falls under a pillar but is not a part of the suggested list, they should submit the activity under the “Other” category.

Once they submit activities under this category, an administrator will review the activity and approve its addition. “Other” activities will not show up on your personal dashboard until after administrative approval.

There is not a minimum number of activities that must be submitted for each pillar. However, participants must have at least one activity in three out of the four pillars by the end of the program. Continuous demonstration of professional activities typically results in more than one activity in each pillar.

Participants may not complete the program early or ahead of the rest of their cohort if they fulfill pillar requirements early. All three years of participation are required for program completion.

The Guided Fellowship Program supports the professional development of early career physician's post-residency. Therefore, activities or work completed during residency cannot be applied to the program requirements.

While the ACP Guided Fellowship Program begins January following the end of your training, activities can be tracked from the completion of your internal medicine residency and submitted when your dashboard is open.