External Fellowships / Prizes / Awards Opportunities

Graduate students are encouraged to pursue external fellowship opportunities. Students who receive external fellowships must inform the graduate registrar immediately in order to be eligible for the stipend top-up provided by the University. Additional fellowships may be found on the Yale Fellowship and Funding website.

Undergraduate

The LeRoy Apker Award recognizes outstanding achievements in physics by undergraduate students, and provides encouragement to young physicists who have demonstrated great potential for future scientific accomplishment. Two awards are presented each year, one to a student from a Ph.D. granting institution, and one to a student from a non-Ph.D. granting institution. The award consists of $5,000 for the recipient, $5,000 for their undergraduate institution's physics department to support undergraduate research, a certificate, and reimbursement for travel to an APS meeting to give an invited talk.

Through its Fellowship Programs, the Ford Foundation seeks to increase the diversity of the nation’s college and university faculties by increasing their ethnic and racial diversity, maximize the educational benefits of diversity, and increase the number of professors who can and will use diversity as a resource for enriching the education of all students.

Predoctoral, Dissertation, and Postdoctoral fellowships will be awarded in a national competition administered by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on behalf of the Ford Foundation.

Predoctoral

The Science, Technology and Research Scholars (STARS) Program, administered by the Yale College Dean’s Office, is designed to support women, minority, economically underprivileged, and other historically underrepresented students in the sciences, engineering, and mathematics. The STARS program provides undergraduates an opportunity to combine course-based study, research, mentorship, networking, and career planning in the fields of science and technology. The program seeks to improve student performance and persistence rates in all STEM disciplines.
The Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship seeks to attract talented, committed individuals with backgrounds in the STEM fields—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—into teaching in high-need secondary schools in Pennsylvania. The Fellowship has also prepared over a thousand teachers in Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, and Ohio. Eligible applicants include current undergraduates, recent college graduates, midcareer professionals, and retirees who have majored in, or have extensively studied, one or more of the STEM fields. The Fellowship also works to change the way top teachers are prepared, partnering with colleges and universities that have agreed to provide Fellows with innovative, year-long classroom experiences, rigorous academic work, and ongoing mentoring.
Every summer, Yale Young Global Scholars hires undergraduate and graduate students and recent graduates to serve as Instructional Staff in the summer sessions.

Graduate Fellowships

AAUW’s American Fellowships program has been in existence since 1888, making it the oldest noninstitutional source of graduate funding for women in the United States. The program provides fellowships for women pursuing full-time study to complete dissertations, conducting postdoctoral research full time, or preparing research for publication for eight consecutive weeks.

Established in 1991, the Department of Energy Computational Science Graduate Fellowship (DOE CSGF) provides outstanding benefits and opportunities to students pursuing doctoral degrees in fields that use high-performance computing to solve complex science and engineering problems.

The program fosters a community of energetic and committed Ph.D. students, alumni, DOE laboratory staff and other scientists who want to have an impact on the nation while advancing their research. Fellows come from diverse scientific and engineering disciplines but share a common interest in using computing in their research.

More than 425 students at more than 60 U.S. universities have trained as fellows. The program’s alumni work in DOE laboratories, private industry and educational institutions.

The Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration Stewardship Science Graduate Fellowship (DOE NNSA SSGF) provides excellent financial benefits and professional development opportunities to students pursuing a Ph.D. in fields of study that solve complex science and engineering problems critical to stewardship science.

The fellowship builds a community of talented and committed doctoral students, program alumni, DOE laboratory staff and university researchers who share a common goal to further their science while advancing national defense. The friendships and connections fellows make in the program continue to benefit them throughout their careers.

The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration funds the DOE NNSA SSGF to train scientists vital to meeting U.S. workforce needs in advanced science and engineering.

The DOE Office of Science Graduate Student Research fellowship program has now opened its second solicitation for 2019, timed for student internships next summer. This is a valuable program for university students to spend time at DOE labs working on projects related to their PhD thesis and DOE experiments, and gain lab training and access to lab expertise and facilities. The program often has a high success rate for applications. Please consider using this program to give students valuable training and lab experience. The SCGSR 2019 Solicitation 2 (2019 S2) is now accepting applications. The online application closes 5:00PM ET, November 14, 2019. New in this solicitation are Convergence Research Topical Areas. These are for research of interest to 2 or more SC offices and are treated somewhat differently in review. Please encourage likely candidates. Convergence Research Topical Areas (a)Microelectronics (ASCR, BES, HEP) (b)Data Science (ASCR, BES, BER, FES, HEP, NP) (c)Fundamental Symmetries (BES, HEP, NP) (d)Accelerator Science (ASCR, BES, BER, FES, HEP, NP)

Through its Fellowship Programs, the Ford Foundation seeks to increase the diversity of the nation’s college and university faculties by increasing their ethnic and racial diversity, maximize the educational benefits of diversity, and increase the number of professors who can and will use diversity as a resource for enriching the education of all students.

Predoctoral, Dissertation, and Postdoctoral fellowships will be awarded in a national competition administered by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on behalf of the Ford Foundation.

Dissertation

The annual competition for Graduate Fellowships begins with the application period which opens each year in August at which time a deadline consistent with those of NSF and other fellowship granting organizations will be posted. Only those applications which are complete, with all supporting materials and documents provided (including Reference Reports) by the posted deadline will be assured of full consideration by the Foundation. Untimely or incompletely-submitted applications will be entertained only at the Foundation's discretion and convenience.
The Krell Institute manages two Department of Energy (DOE) fellowships that identify and support the nation’s top science and technology graduate students. The DOE Computational Science Graduate Fellowship (DOE CSGF) is funded by the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and Office of Science. The NNSA also funds the Stewardship Science Graduate Fellowship (SSGF). Besides managing programs, the Krell Institute also helps the scientific community gain support for projects. Krell frequently assists with initiatives that advance high-performance computing for the scientific and technology communities. Krell backs up its fellowship management expertise with high-quality publishing, planning of events large and small and many other community-building capabilities and services.

The Laura Bassi Scholarship, which awards a total of $8,000 thrice per annum, was established by Editing Press in 2018 with the aim of providing editorial assistance to postgraduates and junior academics whose research focuses on neglected topics of study, broadly construed. The scholarships are open to every discipline and the next round of funding will be awarded in August 2020:

     Summer 2020
     Application deadline: 25 July 2020
     Results: 15 August 2020

All currently enrolled master’s and doctoral candidates are eligible to apply, as are academics in the first five years of their employment. Applicants are required to submit a completed application form along with their CV through the application portal by the relevant deadline.

The DoD NDSEG Fellowship Program, established in 1989 by direction of Congress and sponsored by the Army, Navy, and Air Force, serves as a means of increasing the number of United States citizens trained in science and engineering disciplines of military importance. This program is designed to encourage Baccalaureate recipients to enter Graduate school and ultimately gain Doctorates which align to the DoD services Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs) in research and development. Since program inception, over 4,000 fellowships have been awarded and over 60,000 applications received. DoD plans to award new three-year graduate fellowships each fiscal year (subject to the availability of funds) to individuals who have demonstrated ability and special aptitude for advanced training in science and engineering. We encourage you to explore our site and learn more about this exciting opportunity.

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based Master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited United States institutions.

Eligibility Guidelines See the current Program Solicitation for eligibility guidelines.

Those already enrolled in graduate school may apply one time only.

The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans program honors the contributions of immigrants and children of immigrants to the United States. Each year, we invest in the graduate education of 30 New Americans—immigrants and children of immigrants—who are poised to make significant contributions to US society, culture or their academic field. Each Fellow receives up to $90,000 in financial support over two years, and they join a lifelong community of New American Fellows.

Postdoctoral Fellowships

Nominations are invited for the twenty third annual Michelson Postdoctoral Prize Lectureship, to be held Fall 2019 in the Dept of Physics, Case Western Reserve University. This prize is awarded annually to a junior postdoctoral scholar active in any field of physics. The winner will spend one week in residence at Case and deliver 3 technical lectures and a colloquium. The lectureship carries an honorarium of $2500 plus all travel expenses.
Description The Lederman Fellowship at Fermilab is intended to attract exceptional postdoctoral candidates who have demonstrated outstanding ability in research and who, in addition, have a strong interest in education and outreach. Lederman Fellows are free to choose any area in Fermilab's broad experimental program for performing their research, including research in neutrino physics, research at the Large Hadron Collider, astroparticle physics, and research in intensity frontier experiments such as Muon g-2 and Mu2e. In recognition of Leon Lederman's commitment to the teaching of physics at all levels, fellows are also expected to participate in educational outreach efforts, for example through the Saturday Morning Physics program. Candidates not selected for the Lederman Fellowship may be considered for other Research Associate opportunities at Fermilab. Eligibility Details are specified in the Advertisement when a new opening becomes available. In general, candidates should either: Have obtained a Ph.D. in an appropriate field after September 1, 2018. or Expect to obtain a Ph.D. in an appropriate field by September 1, 2020. Term of appointment The appointment is for an initial term of three (3) years and there exists the possibility for renewal for an additional two (2) years upon completion of a successful review after the first two (2) years.
The Wilson Fellowship is awarded on a competitive basis and is intended to support strong, assistant professor-level physicists early in their careers. It provides unique opportunities for self-directed research in experimental physics through work on the Fermilab particle physics experiment of the candidate's choice. The Fermilab experimental program includes collider physics, studies of neutrino, muon, and astroparticle physics, as well as R&D and planning for experiments at future colliders and high intensity beams. Eligibility The successful candidate will be a Ph.D. physicists of exceptional talent with at least two years of post-doctoral experience. Term of Appointment The Wilson Fellowship provides an annual salary fully competitive with a university assistant professorship. The appointment is for an initial term of three (3) years and there exists the possibility for renewal for an additional two (2) years upon completion of a successful review after the first two (2) years; thereafter, the potential exists for eventual appointment without term limit.

Through its Fellowship Programs, the Ford Foundation seeks to increase the diversity of the nation’s college and university faculties by increasing their ethnic and racial diversity, maximize the educational benefits of diversity, and increase the number of professors who can and will use diversity as a resource for enriching the education of all students.

Predoctoral, Dissertation, and Postdoctoral fellowships will be awarded in a national competition administered by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on behalf of the Ford Foundation.

Postdoctoral

This fellowship provides recent graduates (within the past two years) opportunities to work on the experimental research program of the Physics Division, including high-energy collider physics; direct dark matter searches; cosmology using Type Ia Supernovae, baryon acoustic oscillations, and the cosmic microwave background; rare decay experiments; and neutrino physics. In all these areas the Physics Division follows a long tradition of advanced detector development as well as data analysis. As employees of Berkeley Lab, Chamberlain fellows work in a research environment synonymous with scientific excellence. Thirteen Nobel Prizes are associated with Berkeley Lab, 8 of them in physics. The Fellowship honors Owen Chamberlain (Nobel Prize 1959), who, together with Emilio Segre, Clyde Wiegand, and Thomas Ypsilantis, discovered the anti-proton at the Berkeley Bevatron in 1955. Berkeley Lab is a truly multidisciplinary environment, with sixteen scientific divisions in addition to Physics, and extensive ties with the adjacent University of California, Berkeley including many centers and activities (for example BCG and BEPP. Berkeley Lab divisions include Accelerator Technology and Applied Physics, Nuclear Science, Engineering, Computational Research, Scientific Networking, and the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center.
Point your career towards Los Alamos: work with the best minds on the planet in an inclusive environment that is rich in intellectual vitality and opportunities for growth.
The mission of the MIT Pappalardo Fellowships in Physics is to sustain a distinguished, on-campus postdoctoral fellowship program for the Department that identifies, recruits and supports the most talented and promising young physicists at an early stage of their careers. This initiative was made possible by the encouragement and generosity of Mr. A. Neil Pappalardo (EE '64), an MIT alumnus with a long history of generosity to both the Institute and the Department of Physics. The program traditionally appoints three new Fellows per academic year for a three-year fellowship term each. Fellows are selected by means of an annual competition for which candidates cannot apply directly, but must be nominated by a faculty member or senior researcher within the international community of physics, astronomy or related fields. All MIT Pappalardo Fellows in Physics are provided with: complete independence in selection and focus of research direction within the MIT Department of Physics throughout their three-year fellowship term; active faculty mentoring fostered by weekly luncheons and monthly dinners with faculty and guests during the academic year, which promotes scientific exchange and professional growth for the Fellows; a competitive annual stipend with an annual cost-of-living increase, combined with $5,000 per year in discretionary research funds; and MIT Medical Affiliate health insurance coverage for Fellows and their dependents.

The NASA Postdoctoral Program offers US and international scientists the opportunity to advance their research while contributing to NASA’s scientific goals.  The NPP supports fundamental science; explores the undiscovered; promotes intellectual growth; and encourages scientific connections.

Selected by a competitive peer-review process, NPP Fellows complete one- to three-year Fellowship appointments that advance NASA’s missions in earth science, heliophysics, planetary science, astrophysics, space bioscience, aeronautics and engineering, human exploration and space operations, and astrobiology.

Applicants must have a Ph.D. or equivalent degree in hand before beginning the fellowship, but may apply while completing the degree requirements. U.S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents, and foreign nationals eligible for J-1 status as a Research Scholar may apply.

Stipends start at $60,000 per year, with supplements for high cost-of-living areas and for certain academic specialties. Financial assistance is available for relocation and health insurance, and $10,000 per year is provided for professional travel.

Applications are accepted three times each year: March 1, July 1, and November 1.

Current Cycle Deadline:
November 1, 2020, 6:00 PM
U.S. Eastern Time

Please send any questions to: npphelp@usra.edu

 

Award offers for the NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowships are normally made on or around February 1. However, due to the partial federal government shutdown, review panels for the program have been delayed because many NSF employees were not permitted to work during the shutdown. We will complete the review of proposals and make offers as soon as possible. Further updates will be posted here. Contact Harshal Gupta Email: hgupta@nsf.gov Phone: 703-292-5039
ORNL’s Distinguished Staff Fellowship program aims to cultivate future scientific leaders by providing dedicated mentors, resources, and enriching research opportunities at a national laboratory. Fellowships are awarded to outstanding early-career scientists and engineers, new to ORNL, who demonstrate success within their academic, professional, and technical areas.

The Schmidt Science Fellows Program, in association with the Rhodes Trust, has announced the 2021-2022 fellowship competition. The postdoctoral program provides participants with a stipend of $100,000 and features two core components: full-time postdoctoral research and a global meeting series. The program aims to expose participants to new scientific breakthroughs, new fields of studies, new micro-cultures, and new ideas that they will take with them throughout their lives. “We encourage our fellows to take a scientific risk this year and to think broadly and deeply about where across the globe they undertake their interdisciplinary pivot.”

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for nomination to the Schmidt Science Fellows application process, candidates must meet the following requirements:

Have conducted their graduate degree in the natural sciences (Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Earth Sciences), Engineering, Mathematics, or Computing – and all sub-disciplines therein.

Have completed, or expect to complete, all of the requirements for the conferral of their PhD in one of these fields between June 1, 2021 and July 30, 2022.

Be available for the entire period of the 2022 program, from July 2022 to September 2023 including attendance of the Global Meeting Series (whether virtual or in person, as conditions allow, and including additional virtual programming).

Be nominated by a designated senior official at one of our nominating partner institutions.

Selection Criteria

• Extraordinary Achievement - Clear record of academic achievement of the highest quality in the sciences and an extraordinary degree of intelligence.

• Scientific Curiosity - High degree of intellectual curiosity combined with energy and creativity; a record of continuous innovation and/or use of new technologies.

• Alignment with the Program - Interest in pursuing a year or more of postdoctoral study in a field different from the applicant’s Ph.D. discipline and a belief that interdisciplinary science and the taking of appropriate scientific risks are important for the advancement of discovery.

• Collaborative Spirit - Demonstrated history of effective collaboration with diverse team members.

• Global Ambitions - Desire to use one’s personal talents and science to make a positive difference in society and the world.

• Character and Leadership - Genuine and demonstrable potential for science leadership, displaying perseverance, resilience, a moral compass, and a galvanizing force of personality. For more information, please see the Foundation’s selection criteria pages.

Yale Application Procedure

The Graduate School may nominate up to seven recent graduates/students for Schmidt Science Fellowships. The internal competition application deadline is Monday, May 31, 2021 at noon (EDT). Complete applications, including one letter of recommendation, must be received by this date for the application to be considered.

The application should include:

1. Schmidt Science Fellow internal application coversheet.

2. A description of the applicant’s dissertation research with an emphasis on why the research represents a significant advance in the applicant’s field and current/future benefits to society (up to one page).

3. Short, one- or two-paragraph statements addressing the six criteria listed above (up to a total of two pages).

4. A statement (up to one page) describing what field, different from the dissertation field, the applicant plans to study and a tentative plan of study. The applicant may change this in the final application, if selected as a Yale nominee.

5. Updated CV or resume. 6. A letter of recommendation from the applicant’s dissertation adviser addressing the six selection criteria listed above.

The applicant should submit items 1-5 together as a single PDF document to GSASadministrativedean@yale.edu. The dissertation adviser should independently submit a letter of recommendation to the same email address.

Next Steps

Applicants will be notified by July 1 as to whether they have been nominated to the Foundation. Nominees will be instructed to register their intent to apply online, using a unique access code provided to them. They will then have until August 31, 2021 to submit a full application.

Additional information can be found at https://schmidtsciencefellows.org/.

The Stanford Science Fellows program is focused on incubating new directions in foundational scientific research by an interdisciplinary community of independent postdoctoral scholars from around the globe, driven by a sense of wonder about the natural world.
The Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science is pleased to announce the Kathryn A. Day Miller Postdoctoral Fellowship Award. This award was established through a major pledge to the Institute by Professor Randy Schekman and Professor Sabeeha Merchant in honor of Kathy’s dedicated service to the Institute over a 30 year career. Kathy’s wishes are to support an outstanding young Miller Fellow. Eligible recipients will be selected through the established Miller Fellowship program competition and priority consideration will be granted to candidates who have demonstrated efforts towards community building and outreach in support of science. Kathy Day began her University of California career at UC Santa Barbara where she simultaneously obtained her Master’s Degree in Education. Following her 5 years in Southern California, she moved to the Bay Area with her family and was hired by Professor Fred Wilt to be the administrative head of the Miller Institute. Over the three decades of her service to the University and the Institute, she helped foster the overall growth of the program. Miller Fellowships expanded from 2 to 3 year terms, the Miller Senior Fellowship Program began, and the Annual Interdisciplinary Symposium was created. Kathy was dedicated to building a sense of community, particularly among the Miller Fellows. Picnics, hikes, field trips and social gatherings were key to developing these long-lasting relationships. Randy Schekman, Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology and recipient of the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2013, was appointed the first Miller Senior Fellow in 2008. He has long been associated with the Miller Institute as a host to both Miller Fellows and Visiting Miller Professors. Professor Sabeeha Merchant, Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology and Plant and Microbial Biology, was a Miller Institute invited speaker at the 2019 annual symposium. Through their generosity, this new fellowship program has been established to continue their desire to support scientific research at the highest levels. Nominations for the Kathryn A. Day Miller Postdoctoral Fellowship award will be accepted during the Fall competition cycle for awards in the following Academic Year. Complete instructions will be made available on the Miller Institute website at: http://miller.berkeley.edu/fellowship.
The Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics (KICP) announces its 2020 Postdoctoral Research Fellowship competition. Scientists receiving a PhD in physics, astrophysics, or related fields between May 2016 and September 2020 are invited to apply. Successful applicants will conduct original research in experimental, observational, numerical, or theoretical cosmological physics in areas of interest to the KICP faculty. KICP Fellows are appointed to renewable one-year terms, for up to three years. Our positions carry a salary and benefits package comparable to other prize fellowships.
This Fellowship is awarded by the Physics Fellowship Committee to a recent Ph.D. recipient in experimental physics to enable him/her to work either independently or in close association with present members of the Physics Department in areas of mutual interest. The Fellowship has a two-year term. In years when the Fellowship is being offered, ads should be placed and flyers printed and distributed in October, with an application deadline of mid-December. This fellowship is not currently taking applications.