Deadline: July 6, 2026
Applications are open for the Urban Studies Foundation International Fellowships 2026. The scheme is intended to serve the USF’s over-arching strategic mission to advance global urban studies. Supporting over eighty Fellows from over twenty countries, the scheme has also contributed enormously to the USF’s goals of supporting early-career researchers, strengthening scholarship of the Global South, fostering collaboration, and developing excellent urban research.
Through promoting the global exchange and mobility of both individuals and ideas, the scheme also aims to intervene in the production of knowledge in a manner that both champions epistemic justice and elevates new understandings of diverse global realities. In the longer-term, the scheme works towards cultivating the research leadership and capacities of tomorrow.
Beyond supporting the Fellow in achieving their published outputs, the USF expects that prospective Mentors and host organisations should be capably invested in contributing to these wider outcomes and impact of the International Fellowship scheme. This includes demonstrating the value added by the Mentor and host both during and after the Fellowship period, which must include the provision of a stable and productive working environment for the Fellow during their visit. It should also include integrating the Fellow into relevant research communities and networks, ensuring that long-lasting connections can be built to support future collaboration. It is expected that Fellows must be fully released from any existing obligations and/or responsibilities in order to benefit from the time and space that the Fellowship will provide.
Benefits
- The financial support of the Fellowship is intended to meet accommodation and subsistence needs while staying at the host university, return travel, and assistance towards some research costs. There is also a small budget available for the Mentor to engage with the Fellow’s home institution(s), network(s), and/or research site(s).
- Shortlisted candidates may also apply for a small supplemental grant if they have extra-ordinary costs arising due to caring responsibilities or disability, provided they have contacted the USF in advance of applying to discuss their requirements. Fellowships should begin no earlier than four months after the deadline for applications, and no later than fourteen months after the application deadline.
Eligibility
- Applicants must be early-to-mid-career urban scholars holding a PhD awarded within the preceding ten calendar years (by the submission deadline).
- They must be nationals of any country present on the current OECD DAC list of ODA recipients, and be formally affiliated to/working within a research organisation based in any of these countries (note: individuals based in high-income territories are not eligible to apply, even where these are associated with an ODA-listed country).
- Candidates must have already completed primary data collection and analysis, and be ready to write-up their findings as academic publications (this award is not intended to support proposals involving new primary data collection or analysis).
- The work must represent a clear and valuable contribution to the field of urban studies, and proposals outside of this field will not be considered.
Application
The application must include:
- Applicant information: contact details, recent education, recent academic roles, a short career statement, proof of nationality, and the names and contact details of two academic referees.
- Proposed fellowship information: dates, mentorship, and host organisation arrangements.
- Budget: all cost items and suitable evidence for any items above GBP 500.
- Research proposal: outline of the planned research, intended outputs, the reasons for the choice of the host organisation, and a statement of how the candidate’s chosen mentor will support and facilitate the proposed research.
- Applicant CV listing academic achievements and publications (3 pages maximum).
- Short CV from the mentor which includes any previous mentoring experience (3 pages maximum).
- Mentor’s supporting letter stating their willingness to act as a Mentor to the Fellow, and detailing the suitability of the host organisation for the proposed Fellowship in reference to the Host Organisation and Mentorship Guidelines (2 pages maximum).
For more information, visit USF International Fellowships.
