The Fellowship Guide

Fellowship application photo.
2026 & 2027 cycles.

Fellowship applicants use the same ERAS system, the same AAMC photo spec, and the same MyERAS upload flow. What changes is the calendar, the audience, and the wardrobe. The 2026 cycle closes May 31, 2026; the 2027 cycle opens June 4, 2026.

Updated May 17, 2026 · 6 min read

Same spec. Earlier cycle. Different stakes.

Fellowship applicants apply through ERAS too — and the photo specification is identical to residency. What changes is the calendar, the audience, and the look. Your fellowship photo lands with program directors who have already met you at conferences and on rotations. It should look like the doctor you are now.

2026 closing, 2027 opening.

The 2026 ERAS fellowship cycle ends May 31, 2026 at 5 p.m. ET. The 2027 cycle opens four days later, on June 4, 2026 at 9 a.m. ET. July-cycle subspecialties (cardiology, GI, heme/onc, pulm/CCM, and most internal-medicine subs) may begin submitting on July 1, 2026; December-cycle subspecialties (interventional cardiology, advanced heart failure, transplant subs) begin submitting on November 12, 2026. Plan your photo six to eight weeks before your subspecialty opens.

All three of our studios — Times Square, Wall Street, and Brickell — book the same fellowship sessions year-round. Same-day delivery, AAMC-spec output, the same wardrobe direction adjusted for a more senior look.

• 2027 season opensJun 4, 2026
• July cycle submitsJul 1, 2026
• July specialtiesCards · GI · Heme/Onc · Pulm · CCM
• December cycle submitsNov 12, 2026
• Dec specialtiesIC · AHF · Transplant subs
• Photo specSame as residency
• Reuse residency photo?If < 12 mo & current look

AAMC 2027 fellowship timeline →

Same spec as residency

The AAMC photo specification is identical for residency ERAS and fellowship ERAS. If you've already done a residency photo recently, you know the drill.

Two cycles, side by side

Fellowship ERAS runs on overlapping cycles. The 2026 season closes May 31, 2026 at 5 p.m. ET; the 2027 season opens June 4, 2026 at 9 a.m. ET. Each cycle splits into two waves — July-cycle subspecialties (the larger wave, most internal-medicine subs) and December-cycle subspecialties (mostly interventional and transplant).

2027 fellowship cycle — opening now

If you are applying for fellowship positions starting in 2027 or 2028, this is your cycle.

• June 4, 2026 — 2027 ERAS season opens at 9 a.m. ET.
• June 5, 2026 — EFDO distributes fellowship tokens.
• July 1, 2026 — July-cycle applicants may begin submitting at 9 a.m. ET. Cardiology, gastroenterology, hematology/oncology, pulmonary & critical care, infectious disease, endocrinology, nephrology, rheumatology, geriatrics, sleep, allergy/immunology, hospice & palliative.
• July 15, 2026 — July-cycle programs begin reviewing at 9 a.m. ET.
• Nov. 12, 2026 — December-cycle applicants may begin submitting at 9 a.m. ET. Interventional cardiology, advanced heart failure & transplant cardiology, transplant hepatology, adult congenital heart disease, selected interventional & transplant subspecialties.
• Dec. 2, 2026 — December-cycle programs begin reviewing at 9 a.m. ET.
• May 31, 2027 — 2027 ERAS season ends at 5 p.m. ET.

• 📷 Photo target — July cycle: Have your photo in hand by mid-June 2026 (six to eight weeks ahead of July 1).
• 📷 Photo target — December cycle: October 2026.

2026 fellowship cycle — closing

If you applied during the 2026 cycle and need a retake or refresh before the season ends:

• June 4, 2025 — 2026 ERAS season opened.
• July 2, 2025 — July-cycle applications began transmitting.
• May 31, 2026 — 2026 ERAS season ends at 5 p.m. ET.

Wardrobe — reads more senior

The residency photo wardrobe rule (solid colors, no patterns) still applies. What shifts is the silhouette. Fellowship applicants tend to opt for a structured suit jacket rather than the soft blazer that's common at the residency stage. The reasoning:

• You are no longer a med student. The fellowship application lands with program directors who've seen you at conferences, on rounds, and in grand rounds. The photo should look like the doctor they've encountered.
• The audience is more conservative. Fellowship faculty skew slightly more traditional than residency PDs. A structured suit signals readiness in a way that registers immediately.
• The look matches your CV. By PGY-3 / PGY-4, you have publications, conference talks, and a developed clinical persona. The photo should match the rest of the application.

Best wardrobe choices for fellowship

• Charcoal or navy suit jacket. Single-breasted, two-button, structured shoulder. Worn over a crisp white or pale blue shirt.
• Conservative neckwear. If you wear a tie or a tie alternative, keep it solid or with a fine micro-texture. No patterns that read at thumbnail.
• Lab coat is optional. AAMC doesn't require one. Most fellowship applicants don't wear a white coat in the photo — it makes the wardrobe look generic. Save it for clinic.

What changes between PGY-3 and the fellowship application

Six notes for fellowship-stage applicants — what shifts from the residency photo you took two or three years ago, and what is unchanged.

1. Wardrobe reads more senior.

   The med-student blazer-or-button-down framing still works, but most fellowship applicants opt for a structured suit jacket. Solid charcoal, navy, or black. Keep neckwear simple — no patterns.

2. Time the photo to your cycle.

   July-cycle subspecialties (cardiology, GI, pulm/CCM) want your photo ready by late June. December-cycle subspecialties have until October. Six-to-eight-week lead time is the safest budget.

3. Refresh — don't reuse on autopilot.

   If your residency match photo is more than a year old, re-shoot. PDs notice when a fellowship applicant submits a photo that no longer matches the person they've met on rounds.

4. Split a session with a friend.

   The Besties tier works for two fellowship applicants applying the same cycle — co-residents, friends from your program, anyone applying alongside you. Same morning, same studio, half the awkwardness — $300 total, $150 each when split.

5. Headshots beyond ERAS.

   Fellowship is the moment to refresh LinkedIn, your hospital biography, and any speaking-engagement materials. The Plus tier gives you 150+ frames in one hour for all of the above.

6. Same AAMC spec, same delivery.

   2.5 × 3.5 in, JPEG or PNG, under 150 KB, 150 dpi, plain light background. The fellowship file uploads to MyERAS exactly like the residency file — no separate workflow.

Reuse vs refresh

Common question: can I just use my residency match photo for fellowship? Short answer — yes, if it's recent and still looks like you. Longer answer:

• If the photo is under 12 months old and your appearance hasn't materially changed, re-uploading is fine. The AAMC spec is identical, so the file passes upload.
• If the photo is older than 12 months, refresh. Hairlines move, weight changes, glasses get swapped, and program directors who've met you at a conference will notice a stale photo.
• If you matched in a specialty and are applying to fellowship in something different — for example, IM residency → cardiology fellowship — refresh anyway. The fellowship photo can subtly signal the next career stage.

Most applicants refresh. It's $225–$350, it takes 20–60 minutes, and the photo is the single most-viewed element of your fellowship application.

Photos beyond ERAS

Fellowship season is also when most applicants update LinkedIn, hospital biography pages, conference profiles, and (often) a personal site. The Plus tier gives you 150+ high-res frames in a single one-hour session — enough to fill all of those at once. The same session produces the AAMC-spec ERAS file plus square LinkedIn crops plus standalone landscape frames.

Best way to save · split a session with a co-applicant

The Besties tier is the cheapest way to do this. Grab a co-resident or a friend from your program who's also applying — same morning, same studio, same direction. Each of you walks out with the full ERAS Basic deliverable. The session is $300 total; split it down the middle for $150 each, the lowest per-person price on the menu. Less awkward than going alone, too.

A note for IMGs in fellowship

International medical graduates applying through ERAS-fellowship route documents through ECFMG's MyIntealth platform, exactly as for residency. The photo specification is identical. We work with IMG applicants every week — visa documentation, recent move to the US, last-minute booking. The same-day delivery handles all of it.

Book a fellowship session

Three studios, all delivering AAMC-spec fellowship photos the same day. Times Square · Wall Street · Brickell.