Harvard Radcliffe Fellowship 2027 - $78,000 Stipend

A nine-month residential fellowship at Harvard Radcliffe Institute, which serves as Harvard University's institute for advanced study. Each year it brings together scholars, scientists, writers and artists from across the arts, humanities, social sciences and sciences to work on ambitious independent projects in Radcliffe Yard. Fellows get a stipend, an office or studio in Byerly Hall, and a full-time Harvard appointment as a visiting fellow for the year.

Fellows receive a stipend of $78,000 for the nine months plus $5,000 to cover project expenses. On top of that, fellows may be eligible for relocation, housing and childcare funds, and healthcare support is made available as needed. If you want Harvard undergraduates as Research Partners, Radcliffe covers their hourly wages. US citizens and permanent residents coming from a US home institution can choose to have the stipend paid through that institution rather than directly.

There are two, both at 5pm Eastern. Applications in the humanities, social sciences, creative arts, and nonfiction and journalism are due 10 September 2026. Applications in science, engineering and mathematics are due 1 October 2026. Both are for the 2027-2028 fellowship year, which runs 1 September 2027 to 31 May 2028. All applicants are notified by email by the end of March 2027.

Yes. Radcliffe encourages applicants from around the world, and Harvard University typically sponsors J-1 scholar visas for Harvard Radcliffe Fellows. The eligibility criteria are about your degree, your publication record and your professional achievement rather than your nationality. You will need to be able to relocate to the Cambridge or Boston area for the nine months.

No, and Radcliffe says so directly: the programme is not intended to serve as a postdoctoral fellowship. Applicants in the academic fields need a doctorate awarded at least four years before the fellowship starts, so December 2023 or earlier for the 2027-2028 year, along with a real publication record. Anyone currently enrolled in a doctoral or master's programme is ineligible, with a narrow exception where the dissertation has been accepted and the degree is forthcoming.

Neither. Radcliffe accepts applications from individuals across career stages and does not require academics to have tenure. Independent scholars, artists and writers with no institutional affiliation at all are explicitly welcome, and the discipline-specific criteria for the creative arts and journalism are built around professional track record rather than academic position.

Yes. Fellows must reside in the Cambridge or Boston area for the full September to May period so they can take part in weekly fellows' talks, professional development workshops and social events. Travel is expected to fit inside the two scheduled breaks, five weeks in winter and one week in March, and any absence longer than two weeks during term needs permission from the Executive Director. Fellows who run labs elsewhere typically manage them by videoconference and visit once or twice during breaks.

Yes, in groups of no more than two, working collaboratively on the same project through the fellowship year. A successful pair takes two fellowship places, with two stipends and two offices. Each person registers separately, submits their own application marked as a group with the collaborator's name, email and application ID, and sends their own CV and work sample. Both upload the same project proposal with a note explaining the collaboration, and both must independently meet the eligibility criteria for their field.