Infectious Diseases ACF – East of England

Oriel Advert HEEOE - Infectious Diseases - ACFST3, ACFST4
Vacancy ID HEEOE/26-27/7312/003/3-R1A
Entry Levels ST3, ST4
Applications Opened Thursday 1 October 2026, 10:00
Applications Closed Thursday 29 October 2026, 16:00

See also the ACF application form questions.

Training Programme Infectious Diseases
Post Type Academic
Post Commencing March 2027
Duration (months) 36
Recruitment Lead East of England
Recruiting For East of England
Enquiries https://heeoe.hee.nhs.uk/recruitment/academic-clinical-fellowships-east-england
Enquiries Email england.recruitment.eoe@nhs.net

Information

This is a 2026 post. The successful appointee must be in post by 31 March 2027 at the very latest. Please check the eligibility criteria below before submitting an application

If you are interested in the August 2027 start date post(s), please note these are on a separate vacancy

UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE

NHS England, East of England

Employer: University of Cambridge/Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Post type: NIHR Academic Clinical Fellowship NHSBT

Specialty/Level: Infectious Diseases, ST3 (with Medical Microbiology or Medical Virology),

IMT3 (with General Internal Medicine),

ST4 (with General Internal Medicine)

Expected start date: In post by 31 March 2027

Please be advised that this post is in direct competition with Medical Virology and General Surgery applicants and an appointment will only be made in 1 of these specialties.

ST3 and ST4 Applicants who do not already hold a National Training Number (NTN) or Deanery Reference Number (DRN) in the GMC specialty to which they are applying for will need to have achieved clinically benchmarking during the 2026 recruitment rounds. There will be no opportunity to achieve this before the post start date

Applicants for IMT3: Only trainees who hold a NTN or Deanery Reference Number (DRN) in the penultimate year of Internal Medical Training (IMT2) or ACCS acute medicine (ACCSIM3) are eligible to apply.

Trainees who have either: completed Core Medical Training, IMT training or ACCS-IM, are in the final year of IMT or ACCS-IM, or have alternative experience outside of UK training, are not eligible to apply.

Trainees currently in the penultimate year of their core programme who are successful in gaining an ST3-level ACF programme will start their first year by completing IMY3. Assuming internal medicine stage 1 is completed successfully, they will then run-through into their higher specialty at ST4-level. There is no requirement for trainees in this category to clinically benchmark as they will be carrying on with completing their IMT programme

Proposed Research:

This post has been awarded under the theme “​Prevention and Public Health​”. The trainee will be expected to undertake research within the theme area.

The research will be completed in one of the many world-leading laboratories on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus. Exact research projects will be developed on an individual basis. Examples of particular research can be found in the job description.

Our Principal Investigators have a wide range of research programmes, and strong collaborative links with clinicians provide a range of both basic and clinical research opportunities. Exact research projects will be developed on an individual basis. Please visit Cambridge Infectious Diseases (https://www.infectiousdisease.cam.ac.uk/) for further information.

Outline the clinical and academic programme post:

The ACF will undertake a bespoke training programme, with 25% protected academic time scheduled flexibly to support individual needs and allow development of a high-quality research fellowship application.

Applicants must apply via our online recruitment system, Oriel

The application window opens on Thursday 01 October 2026 at 1000 hours and closes on Thursday 29 October 2026 at 1600 hours

You will not be able to submit your application after this time. Please ensure that you have completed all relevant sections of the application form as missing information will deem your application incomplete and it will not be considered.

Please visit NHS England, East of England website for the further vacancy information and job description.

Host integrated academic training partnership details.

HEI: University of Cambridge

NHS Organisation: Cambridge University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

NHSE Local Office: NHS England, East of England

This ACF post is of 3-year duration and carries an academic training number – NTN(a) and will allow the successful candidate to spend 75% of their time in clinical training and 25% in research.

Applications from talented and enthusiastic doctors in training who seek a career combining research, teaching and the care of patients are invited for NIHR Academic Clinical Fellowships (ACFs). The Academic Clinical Fellowship forms a significant part of the NIHR Integrated Academic Training Programme. Fellows will develop skills allowing them to compete successfully for funding to study for a higher degree (MD/PhD). Only applicants who can demonstrate that they have outstanding potential for development as a clinical academic will be considered for this programme.

After this time candidates should have obtained funding for their higher degrees and start work towards these. On completion of the ACF the trainee will either continue their research if external funding has been obtained or enter their designated training programme as a full-time clinical trainee, provided that appropriate clinical competences have been obtained.

Applicants are expected to fulfil the academic person specification available and appropriate clinical person specification.

Applicants that do not already hold a National Training Number (NTN) or Deanery Reference Number (DRN) in the GMC specialty to which they are applying will also be required to undertake the national clinical recruitment process and attend an assessment/interview for that GMC specialty as appropriate. For further details please refer to the NIHR Academic Clinical fellowships (Medical) Guidance for Recruitment and Appointment 2027

The qualifications and professional registration requirements plus other eligibility criteria can be found in the person specification. The person specification for this specialty is available from the Specialty Training website which can be accessed from Oriel.

The Postgraduate Dean confirms that these placements and/or programmes will have the required educational and Dean’s approval at the time of entry into the programme.

Before you complete your online application, it is imperative that you download and read the linked documents which can be found in the documents section of the vacancy.

These documents contain specific and detailed information with regards to the application form and process, and the person specification. Please read them thoroughly to ensure that you fill out your application form correctly.??

All applicants are required to have essential competences or equivalent depending on the level they are applying for. For more information on competences please refer to the resource bank (https://www.oriel.nhs.uk/Web/ResourceBank) on Oriel.??

Please ensure you read and fully understand the contents of the Oriel Applicant User Guide which can be accessed on the recruitment system resource bank before submitting your application. Failure to do so may result in you missing vital information in relation to your application. In submitting an application, applicants confirm that they have read and understood the application guide. You will be unable to change your application once it has been submitted; if you have any questions, please ensure you contact the recruitment team at england.recruitment.eoe@nhs.net prior to submitting your application.

Please upload all required evidence of competences to your online application form when completing the application form online. For those experiencing difficulties when uploading evidence, please ensure you contact the recruitment team at england.recruitment.eoe@nhs.net prior to submitting your application.

NHS England – East of England is committed to preventing discrimination and promoting equality. All our hospitals are working towards Equal Opportunities with flexible working practices. We aim to ensure that no employee or job applicant receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of their age, colour, race, nationality or ethnic origin, religion or similar belief, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, trade union membership (or non-membership) or political affiliation.

Downloads

More Infectious Diseases ACF Adverts

Infectious Diseases ACF Adverts All ACF Adverts