Provostial Fellows

The Stanford Provostial Fellows program brings early-career scholars to Stanford University. The program launched with an inaugural cohort in the fall of 2021, with five fellows appointed by the provost in subsequent years to three-year terms. Fellows in any university school engage in research about the societal impacts through a disciplinary lens, teach one course per year, and participate in the intellectual life of their departments and programs across the university. Beginning with an inaugural conference in the fall of 2022, fellows are involved in milestone projects with scholars within their academic discipline.

About the Program

Stanford Provostial Fellows

Stanford announced in June 2020 a new program to bring early-career scholars of race and ethnicity to the university. This ambitious program, part of the broader Stanford IDEAL initiative, aims to support the work of early-career researchers who will lead the next generation of scholarship in various academic disciplines.

Cohorts of four to five recent PhD recipients who are among the most promising emerging scholars in their respective disciplines are selected each year by a committee of Stanford faculty and appointed by the provost to a three-year term. Fellowships may be in any university school. Fellows are assigned to departments and schools where they work with a faculty mentor and colleagues, teach one course per year, and expand their research. Fellows also engage with the intellectual life of the program and the broader university community.

Fellows bring new ideas, methodologies, and perspectives that enrich the community of scholars at Stanford, and they organize an annual conference that engages scholars at the forefront of scholarship in the study of race and ethnicity.

How to Apply

2026-2027 Stanford Provostial Fellowship Program Application Information

Currently, the program is not accepting applications for the 2026–27 academic year. We appreciate your enthusiasm and encourage you to check back for future opportunities.

Wishing you the best as you pursue a faculty career and advance your goals.

Inquiries about this program can be directed to facultydevelopment@stanford.edu. Please include “Stanford Provostial Fellows” in the subject line.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the fields of study eligible for consideration?
Are fellows expected to be on-campus?
Is a scholar eligible for consideration if they will finish their PhD at some point after the application deadline?
Should applicants apply to departments/programs or apply with broad interests, and if selected, allow the committee to assign them to a specific department?
What types of written samples are acceptable?
Is there a page limit for the requested statements of teaching and research interests?

1. What are the fields of study eligible for consideration?

Scholars interested in any field of study are accepted. Early career fellows should have received their terminal degree (PhD, JD, MFA, EdD, DSW, etc.) before the start of the fellowship.

2. Are fellows expected to be on-campus?

Fellows are required to live in the Bay Area for the duration of their appointments. Fellows are also expected to be active participants in the cohort of fellows including attending regular meetings and events, to engage in the intellectual life of their department, and to connect with other relevant centers, institutes, and programs throughout the Stanford community.

3. Is a scholar eligible for consideration if they will finish their PhD at some point after the application deadline?

Eligibility for the IDEAL Fellowship requires that you have completed your terminal degree when the fellowship begins and that you are within three years of having received your degree at the start of the fellowship.

4. Should applicants apply to departments/programs or apply with broad interests, and if selected, allow the committee to assign them to a specific department?

Applicants should indicate an area of interest. The online application form does allow applicants to include multiple departments of interest.

5. What types of written samples are acceptable?

Please use the following guidelines for the written samples provided:

Authorship: Second or third co-author of an article, dissertation or book is acceptable for this process. First or sole-authored works are preferred.
Books and/or manuscripts: first and last chapters
Articles (published/unpublished): entirety