Deadline: June 30, 2026
Applications are open for the Simons Graduate Fellowships in Ecology and Evolution 2026. The purpose of these awards is to provide support for students entering U.S.-based Ph.D. programs with a plan to perform research in ecology and evolution.
While they will consider all projects in ecology and evolution, they are particularly interested in interdisciplinary research that jointly considers processes on both ecological and evolutionary timescales, or that links studies of ecology and evolution to other STEM fields, including physics, computer science, mathematics, chemistry and other areas of biology, especially genetics.
Funding
- Grant funding will be for a maximum of three years of financial support usable over a five-year fellowship period. Awards will total $265,800, including indirect costs (limited to 20 percent of modified total direct costs). This covers three years’ worth of full-time support within a five-year period.
Eligibility
- Applicants must be entering or applying for Ph.D. programs in biology or a subfield of the life sciences during summer or fall 2026, with matriculation to start no later than October 1, 2027. It is permissible for applicants to already hold a master’s degree, and it is encouraged that they hold a master’s degree in physics, mathematics, computer science or engineering.
- Individuals who already hold a Ph.D. or other terminal degree in ecology or evolution, or who have enrolled in such a Ph.D. program prior to summer 2026, are not eligible.
- Fellowships must be hosted at United States institutions, at a campus within the United States. In order to hold the fellowship, the fellow must maintain enrollment at the host institution throughout the award period. Individuals may not receive salary support from this fellowship concurrently with salary support from any other source.
- There are no citizenship requirements. Fellows are responsible for obtaining and maintaining the appropriate visa, if applicable.
- Simons Foundation employees who receive a W-2 (Wage and Tax Statement) from the Simons Foundation, including employees of the Flatiron Institute, may not apply as a principal investigator (PI) to any Simons Foundation or Simons Foundation International Requests for Applications (RFAs) released by the Simons Foundation.
Application
Fellowship applications must be submitted by the prospective fellow. Applicants must submit a letter of intent (LOI) by June 30, 2026, 12:00 p.m. (noon) Eastern time. LOIs must be completed electronically and submitted through the Simons Award Manager (SAM).
For more information, visit Simons Graduate Fellowships.
