USA Scholarships
NITMB Fellows Program 2027 - 3-Year Chicago Fellowship
The NITMB Fellows Program is a three-year appointment at the NSF-Simons National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology, the joint Northwestern University and University of Chicago institute that sits in the John Hancock Center on North Michigan Avenue. Fellows run their own research programme at the point where mathematics, statistics and computation meet living systems, with a salary, research and travel stipends, guaranteed places at NITMB workshops, and no teaching obligations at all. You need a doctorate finished by 1 September 2027 and you must be less than seven years past your PhD. The portal opens on 1 September 2026 and closes on 15 November 2026 for full consideration, with review continuing after that until every position is filled.
What is the NITMB Fellows Program?
The NITMB Fellows Program buys you three years of research time in Chicago with nothing else attached to it. No teaching, no course prep, no service load. The NSF-Simons National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology runs it, and the institute itself is a joint venture between Northwestern University and the University of Chicago, paid for by the National Science Foundation and the Simons Foundation. Its offices are in the John Hancock Center on North Michigan Avenue, which is a strange and rather good place to do mathematics.
The premise is narrower than a general postdoc and that is the appeal. NITMB wants people who will build new mathematics, statistics and computational theory out of biological questions, rather than people who will run standard models over a biology dataset. Any area of biology is fair game. The call is aimed at researchers trained in mathematics, computer science, statistics or theoretical biology, and it says outright that prior experience with biology is a plus but not a requirement. If you have spent your PhD on probability, statistical physics or applied dynamics and have started wondering what living systems would do to your tools, you are exactly who this is written for.
Two conditions decide whether you can apply at all. Your doctorate must be finished by 1 September 2027, the day appointments start, and you must be less than seven years past it. Beyond that, the application is short: a one-page cover letter, a CV of two to three pages, four to five pages on the research you would pursue and who at the institute you would pursue it with, a separate list of publications and preprints, and three letters from faculty or senior research scientists. Everything goes through MathJobs, in 11-point type with half-inch margins.
The portal opens on 1 September 2026 and 15 November 2026 is the cutoff for full consideration, with review carrying on afterwards until all positions are filled. Two things the call leaves open are worth an email to [email protected] before you commit a fortnight to the application. It advertises a competitive salary and generous research and travel stipends without naming a figure, and it says nothing at all about citizenship or visa sponsorship, which matters if you would need a US work visa for a salaried post. Ask early. Then spend your real effort on the four to five pages in the middle, because that is the part that decides this.
Eligibility
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✓A doctorate finished by 1 September 2027Your degree does not have to be in hand when you apply, but it must be completed by the day the appointment starts on 1 September 2027. Final-year PhD candidates are the core audience for this call, so a defence scheduled for spring or summer 2027 is fine.
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✓Less than seven years past your PhDThe call is explicit about this. The fellowship is for people less than seven years post-attainment of the doctoral degree, which keeps it aimed at early-career researchers rather than established faculty looking for a sabbatical post.
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✓A doctorate in a listed fieldMathematical and physical sciences, biological sciences, computer science, engineering or related fields all qualify. Training in mathematics, computer science, statistics or theoretical biology is what the institute is looking for, and prior experience with biology is described as a plus rather than a requirement.
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✓Research that builds new mathematics around biologyFellows run independent programmes focused on developing new mathematics and statistics relevant to biological challenges. Any area of biology is open. What matters is that the work creates theory rather than only applying existing tools to a dataset.
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✓Named potential collaborators at NITMBThe research description has to say who at the institute you would work with. NITMB draws its faculty from Northwestern and the University of Chicago, so read the membership lists and name people whose questions actually connect to yours.
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✓Three referees at faculty or senior scientist levelYou need three letters from faculty members or senior research scientists active in your field. They upload directly to MathJobs, and their letters are due by the same 15 November 2026 cutoff as the rest of your file.
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✓Able to be based in ChicagoThis is an in-person post. Offices sit at 875 N Michigan Ave in the John Hancock Center, and the point of the institute is the daily contact between mathematicians and biologists across two campuses. There is no remote version of the fellowship.
Benefits
- Appointment length Three years
- Salary Competitive, paid post
- Research and travel stipends Included
- Teaching obligations None
- Office at 875 N Michigan Ave Provided
- Acceptance to NITMB workshops Guaranteed
- Salary figure published in the call Not disclosed
- Access to Northwestern and UChicago campuses Included
- Mentorship from NITMB leadership and faculty Included
- Leadership and outreach roles Open to fellows
- Start date 1 September 2027
- Relocation allowance Not stated in the call
- Visa sponsorship terms Not stated in the call
- Remote or part-time appointment Not offered
Document checklist
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✓Cover letter, one pageA single page. Say who you are, what you would work on at NITMB, and why the institute rather than a standard departmental postdoc is the right home for that work.
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✓Curriculum vitae, two to three pagesShort by academic standards, so cut anything that is not education, positions, awards, talks and the work that shows research promise. Your publication record goes in a separate file.
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✓Description of research interests, four to five pagesThe heart of the application. Set out the research programme you would pursue at the institute and name potential collaborators inside NITMB. Five pages is the ceiling, not a target.
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✓List of publications and preprintsSubmitted separately from the CV. Include preprints, since early-career mathematical biology moves faster than journal timelines and reviewers expect to see what is currently under review.
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✓Three letters of recommendationFrom faculty members or senior research scientists active in your field. Reference writers submit them through MathJobs themselves, so send your research description to each of them before you ask.
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✓Documents formatted to the stated specEvery file uses 11-point font, single spacing, and margins of at least half an inch. It is a small thing that reviewers notice, and shrinking the font to fit more text works against you.
How to apply
Deadline and timeline
FAQ
What is the NITMB Fellows Program?
It is a three-year research fellowship at the NSF-Simons National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology in Chicago, funded by the National Science Foundation and the Simons Foundation and hosted jointly by Northwestern University and the University of Chicago. Fellows run independent research programmes that develop new mathematics, statistics and computational theory around biological questions, working alongside NITMB faculty from both universities.
Who is eligible for the NITMB Fellows Program?
You need a doctoral degree completed by 1 September 2027 in mathematical and physical sciences, biological sciences, computer science, engineering or a related field, and you must be less than seven years past your PhD. Training in mathematics, computer science, statistics or theoretical biology is what the call is aimed at. Prior work in biology helps but is not required.
How much does the NITMB Fellows Program pay?
The institute advertises a competitive salary plus generous research and travel stipends, and it does not publish a figure in the call. Fellows are salaried research staff rather than stipend holders, with an office at 875 N Michigan Ave and no teaching duties. If the exact number matters to your decision, email [email protected] and ask before you spend a week on the application.
When is the NITMB Fellows Program 2027 deadline?
The submission portal opens on 1 September 2026 and applications must be in by 15 November 2026 for full consideration. Review then continues until all positions are filled, so a late application is not automatically dead, but it is competing against a pool that has already been read. The three reference letters are due on MathJobs by the same date.
Can international applicants apply for the NITMB Fellows Program?
The call lists no citizenship or residency restriction, and it says nothing about visa sponsorship either way. Since this is a salaried appointment based in Chicago, anyone without existing US work authorisation would need the host university to sponsor a visa. That is worth confirming with [email protected] before you apply rather than after an offer.
How long is the NITMB fellowship and where are fellows based?
Three years, starting 1 September 2027. Fellows work from the institute offices in the John Hancock Center at 875 N Michigan Ave in Chicago and have access to both the Northwestern and University of Chicago campuses. It is an in-person post, and the cross-campus contact is the reason the institute exists.
Do NITMB Fellows have to teach?
No. The call states there are no teaching obligations, so the whole three years goes to research. Fellows do take part in institute life, with guaranteed acceptance to NITMB workshops and the option of leadership roles in institute activities and outreach, but none of that is a teaching load in the usual sense.
How many NITMB Fellows are selected each year?
The institute does not publish a target number, and the call says review continues until all positions are filled. The published second cohort ran to seven fellows, which gives you a rough sense of scale. Fellows arrive from probability, statistical physics, applied mathematics, evolutionary genetics and related fields, so the competition is broad rather than narrow.
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