For Prospective Postdoctoral Fellows

The King Center 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 background and lived experiences would enrich the breadth, inclusivity, and perspectives within academia or their field of study. Applications from 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.

The application to apply for fellowships starting in summer or fall 2026 will open in October 2025. 

See current and former Postdoctoral Fellows

Eligibility

Applicants must have received a PhD from an accredited university before the appointment start date. Visa sponsorship and work authorization is possible for successful applicants.

Although all are 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. Applicants should address their circumstances in their applications.

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, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, marital status or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.  

Evaluation and selection

Candidates will be evaluated by faculty reviewers in their own fields and in related fields. Reviewers will evaluate candidates according to their academic accomplishments, the alignment of their research agenda with the King Center’s mission, their potential contribution to the postdoctoral fellows program and the educational activities of the King Center, as well as their potential for faculty careers that will contribute to advancing diversity and equal opportunity through their teaching, research, and service.
 
Faculty reviewers will also consider the availability of a King Center Faculty Affiliate to provide relevant and field-specific mentoring.

Application

To apply, candidates must create an account on Slideroom, the application platform used by the King Center. Candidates will need to upload the following materials in PDF format:

• a CV
• a cover letter
• an education and background statement of no more than 500 words describing either your lived experiences, demonstrated values, perspectives, and/or activities that shape you as a scholar and would help you to make a distinctive contribution to critical issues related to global development; or your contributions to and/or demonstrated commitment to diversity and equal opportunity through your academic career
• a job market paper or academic writing sample

In your application, you will also be asked to select a King Center Faculty Affiliate from the list of mentors, 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 requested to provide contact details for three references. The 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.