2027-28 King Center on Global Development Graduate Student Fellowships

The Stanford King Center on Global Development offers graduate students one or two quarters of fellowship support in the form of tuition and a graduate student stipend. Qualified Stanford student applicants (PhD students with TGR status) must be pursuing dissertation research on topics related to global poverty and development.

Preference is given to applications from Stanford graduate students who are in their final year and who are completing their dissertations or students who are seeking to spend a quarter or more conducting research off campus. Applications from students who have experienced setbacks in their research due to the pandemic and need an extra year to graduate are also welcome to apply.

Application deadline 

The application deadline is Sunday, April 11, 2027 at 11:59pm for graduate student fellowships during the 2027-28 academic year. 

Please note: The letter of recommendation has the same due date as the application and must be submitted as a PDF file. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that their letter of recommendation is submitted by the application deadline.  

Letter writers may submit their recommendations as soon as their information is put into SOLO by the applicant, and *before* the applicant has submitted their application. Out of courtesy to the faculty, applicants should request letters at least two weeks before the deadline.

Application

To apply, Stanford PhD students with TGR status must submit an application through SOLO. The application includes the following materials:

• Dissertation proposal: Up to five pages describing your research question, a brief literature review, and the overall design of your study(ies).
• Project description: If you are applying before your final year, a two-page description of the project you will work on during the quarter(s) for which you are requesting funding. This is not required for students applying for funding for their final year.
• Funding request: The number of quarters of funding requested and the quarter(s) in which you would like to use the fellowship (autumn, winter, spring, or summer).
• CV or resume
• Stanford transcript: An unofficial copy is acceptable.
• Letter of recommendation: One letter from your thesis supervisor or academic mentor. The letter must be submitted by the faculty member through SOLO by the application deadline.

 All application materials must be submitted as PDF files.

Award timing

Awards will be announced within one month of the application deadline.

Eligibility and requirements

• Stanford PhD graduate students who will have TGR status at the time of award are eligible to apply.Students may not defer this award to a future academic year. This award must be used for quarters during the upcoming  academic year. 
• Students should only consider applying if they plan to use the award during the next academic year.
• This fellowship may not be held concurrently with any other graduate fellowship or assistantship.

Recommendation letters

Faculty recommendation letters have the same deadline as the fellowship application. You are responsible for ensuring that your letter of recommendation is submitted by the application deadline.

You will request recommendation letters within your application on the SOLO platform. When you enter a faculty member's information, SOLO will immediately send the faculty member a link to submit their letter. Letters should be submitted as PDF files.

Faculty can submit their letters of recommendation at any time after receiving the link; they do not need to wait for you to complete and submit the application.

This means that out of courtesy to your faculty mentor, you should initiate the application early enough to give your recommenders advance notice, even if you plan to finalize your application closer to the deadline. We recommend entering your letter writer information in SOLO at least two weeks before the application deadline.

Award Conditions and Requirements

Before receiving fellowship funding, recipients must submit:

• A 100-word abstract of their dissertation research
• A short biography, written in the third person, for use on the King Center website and in materials for donors
• A headshot photograph for use on the King Center website and in King Center materials

Within one year of completing your fellowship quarter, fellowship recipients must submit a final completion form that summarizes their research progress and future academic plans. This information may be shared with donors, should be written in non-technical language, and should include:

• Dissertation research topic
• Short summary of the research
• Research findings and contributions
• How the fellowship enhanced or supported the research
• The stage of the research
• Next steps, including future academic and/or professional career plans and anything that may be of interest to our donor(s)

Acknowledgement of the King Center for funding support

If you receive funding, you are required to acknowledge the King Center's support in publications and other professional communications. This includes working papers, journal articles, presentations, interviews, media coverage, social media, and other public communications, as well as identifying yourself as a King Center funding recipient where appropriate. 

Read the acknowledgment guidelines.

Funding recipients may also be asked to present their research at a workshop or seminar organized by the King Center, and are encouraged to present a poster at the annual Global Development Research Symposium.

Questions?

Please contact the King Center at kingcenter_programs@stanford.edu with any questions.