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Google Higher Ed Faculty AI Fellowship 2026 - No Stipend

Deadline No published cutoff - 2026 cohort applications were open in September 2026 106 days left · Hosted by Google for Education · Published

The Google Higher Ed Faculty AI Fellowship is aimed at university faculty who have already moved past trying AI tools and are changing how their department teaches, assesses and researches. Google for Education runs it, applications for the 2026 inaugural cohort are open, and the entry routes are unusual: you either receive a formal invitation through a personal nomination from a Google leader, or you put yourself forward through Google's own application portal. What you get is recognition, an ambassador role and an exclusive global network rather than money. Google publishes no stipend and no award figure anywhere on the fellowship page, and its FAQ states plainly that fellows must self-fund travel, accommodation, parking and any meals the fellowship does not cover during the in-person convening. Treat this as a professional platform with a cost attached, not as funding. The application itself is short but demanding: a portfolio of innovation in 4 to 5 bullet points, a 90-second video, one impact challenge you intend to solve, and a supporting letter from your Dean or Program Chair.

No award money published
No stipend
Higher ed teaching and research
Faculty
Applications open now
No cutoff
Run by Google for Education
Global cohort
How to apply Am I eligible? Official website

What is the Google Higher Ed Faculty AI Fellowship?

The Google Higher Ed Faculty AI Fellowship is Google for Education's attempt to find the professors who are already rewiring how their institutions teach with AI, and to turn them into a network. It is aimed squarely at university faculty, not at students, and the 2026 intake is the first cohort the programme has run. Applications are open as this guide goes up, and Google has published no closing date for them.

Two things make it unusual. The first is how you get in. Most fellowships have one door; this one has two. A Google leader can nominate you personally, which produces a formal invitation, or you can put yourself forward through Google's application portal without knowing anybody. Google runs a separate nomination form for the programme, so the invitation route is a real pipeline rather than a courtesy line in the copy. The second is what the fellowship is worth. There is no stipend, no grant and no published award figure. The return is a platform, an ambassador role, a global peer network and access to tools, and the costs FAQ confirms that fellows pay their own way to the in-person convening.

The application is short to read and hard to write. You give 4 to 5 bullet points and 150 words on your most innovative uses of AI, a 90-second video answering three set prompts, one impact challenge you intend to solve, and a letter from your Dean or Program Chair on Google's template. You can also list up to three professional contributions, such as publications, conference talks or service on an institutional AI committee. Notably, Google does not want your syllabi or proprietary course materials, which removes the usual intellectual property argument for not applying.

What the page does not tell you matters as much as what it does. The fellowship year is shown as a graphic with Q1, Q2 and Q3 columns and no dates on it. The convening has no published location. The cohort has no published size. If any of that decides whether you apply, ask Google directly through the portal rather than trusting a third-party listing, because several of them quote dates this programme has never published.

Who can apply

Eligibility

Your progress 0 / 6
  • ✓
    You teach or research in higher education
    Google describes the fellowship as a programme for university faculty integrating artificial intelligence into teaching, research and institutional innovation. Graduate students, administrators without a teaching or research role, and K-12 educators are pointed at other Google communities instead.
  • ✓
    You already use AI in your discipline
    The cohort is described as highly curated and designed for faculty already pioneering AI in their disciplines and research. Curiosity is not the bar here. You need work you can point at, whether that is a redesigned course, a published paper or a research workflow you rebuilt around AI tools.
  • ✓
    You can show evidence of AI-driven innovation
    Applicants are asked to demonstrate experience with AI-driven innovation and a commitment to advancing responsible AI in higher education. That evidence goes into the portfolio of innovation section of the application, capped at 4 to 5 bullet points and 150 words.
  • ✓
    You have a real institutional problem to solve
    Every applicant names one impact challenge at their institution or in their educational practice, related to assessment, policy or student outcomes, that they intend to work on during the fellowship. A vague ambition to explore AI does not fill this section.
  • ✓
    Your Dean or Program Chair backs you
    A letter of recommendation from your Dean or Program Chair is part of the application, written on a template Google provides. Your institution has to know you are applying and be willing to support your participation.
  • ✓
    You can cover your own costs
    Google states that fellows must self-fund travel, accommodation, parking and any meals outside of what the fellowship covers during the in-person convening. If nobody at your institution will fund a trip, settle that before you apply, because the fellowship itself does not.
What you get

Benefits

  • Ambassador role Lead peers on responsible AI at your institution
  • Global network Exclusive network of faculty pioneers
  • Platform for your work Opportunities to showcase your expertise
  • Resources and tools Advanced skills and tools for instructional practice
  • In-person convening Some meals provided at the convening
  • Impact challenge support Work on one named problem across the cohort
  • Stipend or honorarium None published
  • Research or project grant None published
  • Travel to the convening Self-funded
  • Accommodation Self-funded
  • Parking Self-funded
  • Meals not covered by the programme Self-funded
  • Application fee None charged
  • Convening location and dates Not published on the fellowship page
  • Nomination Personal nomination from a Google leader
  • Self-application Direct application through the Google portal
  • Nomination form Google runs a separate HE AI Fellows nomination form
  • Open enrolment Not available, every fellow is selected
  • Alternative if you miss out Google Higher Ed Faculty Groups are free and open to all
What to prepare

Document checklist

Documents gathered 0 / 7
  • ✓
    Portfolio of innovation
    A structured overview rather than a dossier. Google asks for 4 to 5 bullet points, 150 words maximum, on your most innovative applications of AI such as Gemini or NotebookLM, and how each changed teaching practice, research workflows or student outcomes.
  • ✓
    A 90-second video
    You introduce yourself and set out your vision for AI in higher education. Google wants three things covered: how you have moved beyond personal tool use to become a change agent, the high-impact challenge you intend to solve, and how you will lead peers on responsible AI.
  • ✓
    Your impact challenge statement
    One key problem at your institution or in your practice. Google groups the examples under assessment and evaluation, policy and ethics, curriculum design, and student outcomes, including AI literacy and the digital divide.
  • ✓
    Letter of recommendation
    From your Dean or Program Chair, using the template Google supplies with the application, confirming institutional support for your participation.
  • ✓
    Professional leadership and advocacy list
    Up to three professional contributions showing your influence in this field. Google names academic publications or white papers, conference presentations, and service on institutional AI committees or policy task forces.
  • ✓
    An application portal account
    The Apply now buttons send you to the Google for Education application portal at gfe-applications.com, which is sign-in walled. You create an account there before you can see or fill the fellowship form.
  • ✓
    Nothing proprietary
    Google says explicitly that full syllabi and proprietary course materials are not required, to protect your intellectual property and your institution's privacy. Keep sensitive data out of the descriptions you do submit.
Step by step

How to apply

Higher education faculty who are already implementing AI in teaching, research or institutional initiatives. If your AI work is still at the trying-things stage, the open Google Higher Ed Faculty Groups are the better first step and they need no application.
Entry works one of two ways. A Google leader can nominate you personally, which brings a formal invitation, or you can submit a self-application. Neither route is presented as stronger, and there is one application form behind both.
Four to five bullet points, 150 words maximum. Name the tool, name what changed, and give the result. Google asks you to keep sensitive data out and says it does not want syllabi or proprietary course materials.
Cover the three prompts Google sets: how you act as a change agent beyond your own classroom, the high-impact challenge you want to solve as a fellow, and how you will advocate for responsible AI with your peers. Ninety seconds is tight, so script it.
Pick a real problem in assessment, policy and ethics, curriculum design or student outcomes. The examples Google gives include rethinking assessment, building departmental AI guidelines that protect academic integrity, and AI literacy programmes that close the digital divide.
The recommendation letter uses a template Google provides, so send it to them with the deadline you have set yourself. This is also the moment to ask whether your department will cover travel to the convening, since the fellowship will not.
The Apply now buttons on the fellowship page open gfe-applications.com, where you sign in before reaching the form. Google publishes no closing date for the 2026 inaugural cohort, so submit rather than wait for a deadline announcement.
When

Deadline and timeline

Application deadline
No published cutoff - 2026 cohort applications were open in September 2026
106 days left
Now
Applications for the 2026 inaugural cohort are open on the Google for Education fellowship page, with no published closing date.
Q1 of the cohort
Google shows the fellowship year as a three-quarter timeline graphic. The first block covers selection and onboarding of fellows.
Q2 of the cohort
Fellows work on the impact challenge they named in the application and connect with the global cohort.
Q3 of the cohort
The in-person convening sits inside the programme year. Google does not publish its location or dates, and fellows fund their own travel to it.
Late 2026 onwards
Watch the fellowship page for a second cohort. Nothing about a 2027 intake is published yet, so treat any date you see elsewhere as guesswork.
Questions

FAQ

What is the Google Higher Ed Faculty AI Fellowship?

It is a Google for Education programme for university faculty who are integrating artificial intelligence into teaching, research and institutional innovation. Fellows join a global community of academic leaders working on responsible AI adoption, act as ambassadors on their own campus, and spend the fellowship working on one impact challenge they identify in their application. The 2026 cohort is the inaugural one.

Does the Google Higher Ed Faculty AI Fellowship pay a stipend?

No stipend, salary or award amount appears anywhere on the official fellowship page. The benefits Google lists are a platform, a network, recognition and access to tools and resources. Its own costs FAQ goes further and says fellows must be able to self-fund travel, accommodation, parking and any meals outside what the fellowship covers during the in-person convening, so the programme has a net cost for most applicants.

How do you apply for the Google Higher Ed Faculty AI Fellowship?

Two routes lead to the same application. You can receive a formal invitation through a personal nomination from a Google leader, or you can submit a self-application directly. The form asks for a portfolio of innovation of 4 to 5 bullet points, a 90-second video, an impact challenge and a letter of recommendation from your Dean or Program Chair. Everything is submitted through the Google for Education application portal, which requires a sign-in.

What is the deadline for the 2026 cohort?

Google publishes none. The fellowship page says applications for the 2026 inaugural cohort are open and points to a timeline graphic with Q1, Q2 and Q3 columns, but no closing date, cohort start date or convening date appears in the text. The December 2026 date on this page is a planning target so the guide stays visible, not a published cutoff. Apply as soon as your materials are ready.

Who is eligible for the Higher Ed Faculty AI Fellowship?

Higher education faculty who are actively exploring or implementing AI in teaching, research or institutional initiatives. Google asks for demonstrated experience with AI-driven innovation and a commitment to responsible AI in higher education, and describes the cohort as highly curated and designed for faculty already pioneering AI in their disciplines. No citizenship, residency or visa condition is published.

Can faculty outside the United States apply?

Google describes the fellowship as a global community and sets no country restriction on the page, so faculty outside the US appear to be in scope. The practical catch is the in-person convening: fellows pay their own travel and accommodation, and Google does not say where the convening happens. If you are far from a Google education hub, budget for that before you commit.

What is the impact challenge in the application?

One key problem at your institution or in your educational practice that you want to solve during the fellowship. Google sorts the examples into four areas: assessment and evaluation, policy and ethics, curriculum design, and student outcomes. Examples it gives include personalising content with AI, writing departmental guidelines that balance academic integrity with innovation, and building AI literacy programmes for students.

What if I am not selected as an AI Fellow?

Google runs Higher Ed Faculty Groups alongside the fellowship, and they are open communities with no prerequisites, nominations or certifications required, free of charge. They are aimed at the same audience of faculty, instructional designers and professional developers. Joining one is a reasonable route to the same peer network while you build the record the fellowship asks for.

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