For Prospective Postdoctoral Fellows

The King Center on Global Development’s Postdoctoral Fellows Program offers fellowships to outstanding new PhD recipients who have a demonstrated ability to generate high-quality, policy-relevant research on critical issues related to global development.

The program is intended for promising new PhD recipients—coming from fields such as computer science, earth systems science, economics, engineering, health policy, political science, and sociology—to pursue policy-relevant research on topics related to international development and poverty alleviation. Postdoctoral fellows should expect to be active members of the community of development researchers at Stanford University, and within the King Center as mentors to students in our programs.

The King Center’s Postdoctoral Fellows Program particularly encourages applications from scholars from low- and middle-income countries, as well as from others whose perspectives and lived experiences would enrich the breadth, inclusivity, and perspectives within academia or their field of study. Applications from candidates of all backgrounds are welcome.

The King Center provides a competitive fellowship stipend, plus support for travel and research expenses. Postdoctoral fellows are also eligible to apply for Global Development Research Funding at the King Center.

Applications for fellowships starting in 2027 will be available by November 2026. 

See current and former King Center Postdoctoral Fellows

Eligibility

Applicants must have received a PhD from an accredited university before the appointment start date. J-1 Research Scholar visa sponsorship is possible for successful applicants; however, we do not support H1-B visas.

Although everyone is welcome to apply, reviewers may give greater weight to applicants who do not currently hold a postdoctoral fellowship or tenure-track faculty position, or to those with PhDs from institutions other than Stanford. Please address your particular circumstances in your application.

Stanford is an equal opportunity and affirmative action institution and welcomes applications from all qualified applicants. Consistent with its obligations under the law, Stanford prohibits unlawful discrimination on the basis of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, reproductive health decision-making, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military status, or any other characteristic protected by law. 

Evaluation and Selection

Candidates will be evaluated by faculty reviewers in their own fields and in related fields. Reviewers will evaluate candidates based on:

• Academic accomplishments
• Alignment of their research agenda with the King Center’s mission
• Potential for contribution to the postdoctoral fellows program and the educational activities of the King Center
• Potential for faculty careers that will bring additional dimensions to issues related to global development through their teaching, research, and service

Faculty reviewers will also consider the availability and expressed interest of a King Center Faculty Affiliate to provide relevant and field-specific mentoring.

Application

To apply, you must create an account on Slideroom, the application platform used by the King Center. Upload the following materials in PDF format:

• CV
• Cover letter
• Education and background statement of no more than 500 words describing your lived experiences, demonstrated values, perspectives, and/or activities that shape you as a scholar and would help you make a distinctive contribution to critical issues related to global development
• Job market paper or academic writing sample

In your application, you will also be asked to select a Research Hub and a King Center Faculty Affiliate within that hub, and to write two to three sentences outlining the area of overlapping interest between your research interests and the faculty mentor you have identified. There is no need to reach out to faculty at this stage in the application process.

You will also be asked to provide contact details for three references. The SlideRoom application platform will send emails directly to your three references requesting that they upload their recommendation letters through a provided URL that will connect the uploaded documents to your online application. 

Letter writers may submit letters of recommendation at any time after receiving the link and do not have to wait for you to complete and submit the application. Please submit recommender names early, even if you plan to finalize your application closer to the deadline.

Questions?

Please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page.

If you still have questions about the Postdoctoral Fellows Program after reviewing the Frequently Asked Questions page, please contact the King Center at kingcenter_programs@stanford.edu.