Visiting Fellowship Program Details

Deadline for Applications: March 9, 2026

All applications must be submitted using Slideroom. The France-Stanford Center for Interdisciplinary Studies invites proposals for the Visiting Fellowship in the Humanities or Social Sciences for research to be conducted during the period between September 1, 2026 and August 31, 2027.

Notification of fellowship recipients will occur in late spring/early summer

Overview

The goal of this program is to encourage exchanges between scholars in the humanities and/or social sciences based at Stanford and those based at educational or research institutions in France or another francophone country. The fellowship is meant to support visits for a duration to be determined by agreement between the applicant and the host institution (between two and six months). Applicants are responsible for identifying the department at Stanford or in another educational or research institution in which they seek to pursue the fellowship.

Eligibility

Humanities and/or social sciences are eligible

All projects in the humanities and/or social sciences are eligible. There is no requirement that the research address French or francophone topics.

Completed a PhD or equivalent

Fellowships are available to scholars who have completed a PhD or equivalent (a degree requiring three or more years of graduate training) no more than seven years from the date of applying for the fellowship and who hold either a tenure-track/permanent position, a lecturer/researcher position or a postdoctoral position

  • Stanford-based scholars interested in pursuing a research project at an educational or research institution in France or another francophone country
  • Scholars based at an educational or research institution in France or another francophone country who are interested in pursuing a research project at Stanford.
  • Fellowship applicants are responsible for securing any necessary permissions for their research
First time applicants

Priority will be given to first time applicants.

Citizenship

Please note that there is no citizenship requirement for these fellowships: applicants need not have either French or US citizenship

Application Procedure

Please note that the procedure outlined above is solely for the purpose of obtaining a fellowship from the France-Stanford Center. All applicants must obtain separate and independent approval from the department that they intend to visit prior to applying to the France-Stanford Center Fellowship Program.

Applicants should submit the following documents:

Application form
Letter to the France-Stanford Center Director

A letter to the center’s director describing your research project and plans during the proposed visit. Letter should detail very specifically the scope of your research project, and should identify the individual who agrees to serve as your official “sponsor” and indicate the length of your visit (between two to four months) (1-2 pages).

Letter of endorsement

A letter of endorsement from your official sponsor detailing plans to integrate you into the host community (1-2 pages)

Recommendation letter

A recommendation letter from your home institution supervisor, discussing the merits of the proposed visit. Advisor should upload the letter directly into Slideroom (1-2 pages).

Resume (1 page)
Budget (1 page)

Additional Program Details

Funding

Research project length: 2 to 6 months. Maximum funding available: 

  • 2 month visit: up to $10,000.
  • 3 month visit: up to $12,000.
  • 4 month visit: up to $14,000.
  • 6 month visit: up to $15,000

 

Stanford Visiting Scholar/Visiting Postdoctoral Scholar Status and Privileges

More information on Visiting Scholars/Visiting Postdoctoral Scholars at Stanford can be found in the Research Policy Handbook for Visiting Scholars and the Research Policy Handbook for Visiting Postdocs. Fees and privileges associated with this title are determined by the University and cannot be modified at the discretion of the France-Stanford Center.

Visa Information for Stanford Visiting Scholar/Visiting Postdoctoral Fellows

All visitors to Stanford who receive fellowship support (including from the France-Stanford Center) must obtain a J-1 Visa through the Stanford host department. The total cost of applying for such a visa is approximately $500. More information can be found at the Department of State travel website.

  • $200 to be paid by the France-Stanford Center or the Stanford host department to the Stanford Bechtel International Center for the preparation of the visa request form (DS-2019).
  • $50 to be paid by the France-Stanford Center or the Stanford host department for mailing the documents via international courier to the visitor.
  • $220 to be paid directly by the visitor to the US government (SEVIS fee). Fee will be reimbursed upon arrival at Stanford as part of the fellowship stipend.

Please note as well that Stanford requires all who apply for a J-1 Visa to prove that they are able to pay $2,500/month in living costs. Details on funding requirements can be found at Bechtel.

Visitors to Stanford are responsible for ensuring that they obtain the J-1 visa by working with the Stanford host department. All visitors to France are strongly advised to visit France-Visas and VFSGlobal to find out more information on visa requirements and application, and ensure that they have the appropriate visa required for entry.

Tax Information

Fellowship stipends are considered taxable. More information on tax withholding can be found on Fingate: Administering Postdoc Fellowship Pay. Non-U.S. residents may be eligible for tax exemption on fellowship stipends if their country of residence has an existing tax treaty with the US. More information can be found on Fingate: Claim Tax Treaty for Fellowship Payments. Tax information for international students and scholars can be found at Bechtel's page on taxes.

Logistical Information

The France-Stanford Center is unable to assist visitors with finding housing either at Stanford or in France. Visitors to Stanford may consult the following sites for housing information near Stanford University: the Community Housing site, SUpost and Craigslist to search for housing listings. The France-Stanford Center has no office space for visitors at Stanford or in France and is unable to provide computers. Visitors are responsible for paying for copying, postage, long distance telephone calls, faxes, or making arrangements directly with the department hosting them. Health benefits are not provided.

Allowable and Unallowable Expenses

Grants awarded by the Center may be used only for expenses required specifically for this collaboration. 

  • The grant may be used for travel, lodging, and living costs (including childcare) associated with research or training, as well as for research-related services (e.g. duplication costs, purchases of microfilm, digitization of documents, production of questionnaires/surveys, human subject costs, data entry, transcriptions of interviews, running focus groups, etc.).
  • The grant may not be used for the purchase of equipment (e.g. computers, recording equipment, etc.), supplies, or software. It may not be used to pay for tuition fees; the costs of book translations and book publishing; or to cover conference registration fees.
  • It may not be used to provide salary payments in any form (e.g., to fund coordinators or principal investigators for their work in setting up collaborations, to fund administrative staff, or to provide stipends for post-docs involved in collaborations). 

Please note as well that the center sets strict limits on the price per ticket. These vary depending on the direction of travel and time of year. Please see the budget template for details.

Questions?

Questions can be directed to:

  •  fgriffit [at] stanford.edu (Fiona Griffiths), Center Director
  • emeng [at] stanford.edu (Emily Engstrand), Program Manager
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