International Student Research Fellowships
The HHMI International Student Research Fellowships support outstanding international graduate students who are pursuing a PhD in the United States and have demonstrated high potential to be research pioneers and scientific innovators.
NOTE: HHMI will not be holding any future competitions for the fellowship. The final competition year was 2016.
The HHMI International Student Research Fellowships program facilitates the research training of outstanding international predoctoral students (not U.S. citizens, noncitizen nationals, or permanent residents) pursuing a PhD in the United States in the biomedical and related sciences, including physical and mathematical sciences. These students often have difficulty receiving funding to support their studies, as they are not eligible for federal fellowships, training grant support, or other governmental opportunities that are generally reserved for U.S. citizens.
Fellows have been nominated, either in their second or third year of PhD study, by U.S. institutions that host one or more HHMI investigators. Fellows are supported for up to three years (or until the fifth year of study) while engaged in doctoral dissertation research. HHMI chose to fund the third to fifth years of graduate school because, by this time, most students have chosen a graduate adviser, identified a research project, and demonstrated their potential for success in the lab.
The majority of students who have completed the fellowship have gone on to receive a PhD, and those who participate in related networking activities, such as attendance at HHMI science meetings and conferences, have formed collaborations across labs and gained postdoctoral appointments in HHMI investigator labs.
International Student Research Fellows
Jie Xu, 2011 International Fellow, Canada
“The fellowship has definitely enriched my experience and given me more confidence. It opened up so many doors for me in terms of getting to work with really cool people and people wanting to take me under their wing and work with me." Jie Xu 2011 International Fellow, Canada.
Image by Kevin Wolf / AP
Sriram Chandrasekaran, 2011 International Fellow, India
“Applying for the fellowship was a great experience. Writing about my proposed research helped me think about the big picture and where I want to go after I get my Ph.D. And actually getting the fellowship helped give me the confidence to apply for other grants and postdoctoral fellowships.” Sriram Chandrasekaran 2011 International Fellow, India.
Image by Kevin Wolf / AP
Wenqi Han, 2011 International Fellow, China
“Even though my PI has money to support me, the fellowship lets us use his grant money for doing more research.” Wenqi Han 2011 International Fellow, China.
Image by Kevin Wolf / AP
Joel Zylberberg, 2011 International Fellow, Canada
“The fellowship allowed me to really focus on getting my dissertation finished without having to work as a teaching assistant. It also allowed me to finish my Ph.D. faster, and once I finished I was better networked in the community, which has really been helpful in getting my current job.” Joel Zylberberg 2011 International Fellow, Canada.
Image by Kevin Wolf / AP
Nataly Moran Cabili, 2011 International Fellow, Israel
“The support I got allowed me to travel to three of the big meetings in my field last year. I presented posters and met people and I think it really extended my network. It really contributed to my everyday work and my relationship with other people in the field.” Nataly Moran Cabili 2011 International Fellow, Israel.
Image by Kevin Wolf / AP
