"Kempner Institute Research Fellow"

The Kempner Institute at Harvard University seeks applicants for Kempner Institute Fellows who will begin their appointments in September 2026.

The Kempner Institute is a community of scholars who work across boundaries and fields to advance our understanding of intelligence, broadly speaking. Kempner Institute Fellows will join a dynamic community to learn, collaborate, and discover. They will seek to fundamentally and radically advance our understanding of Natural and Artificial Intelligence.

We seek candidates with demonstrated ability and creativity who study one or more of the following areas:

• Foundations of intelligence, including mathematical and computational models of intelligence, cognitive theories of intelligence, and the neurobiological basis of intelligence.
• Research and development of new AI or ML methodologies or models from an engineering perspective, as well as scientific studies focused on understanding deep learning. This includes the development of novel applications of artificial intelligence, covering areas such as LLMs, generative AI models, computational biology, and the analysis of high-dimensional neural and behavioral data.

The Fellowship is intended for early-stage scientists and will provide them with opportunities for intellectual growth in a highly interdisciplinary and collaborative environment. The Institute encourages scholars to work between fields and laboratories, with support from preeminent experts at the Institute and at Harvard, more generally. Furthermore, Fellows will have access to world-class computational facilities.

Fellows will be appointed for a term of up to 3 years. They will receive salary and research support, office space, compute resources and engineering support. They will benefit from a wide and deeply engaged community of scientists, as well as access to the breadth of resources and facilities available to members of Harvard University.

For more information about the Kempner Institute Research Fellows program, please visit our website at https://kempnerinstitute.harvard.edu/.

Basic Qualifications: To be eligible, a candidate must be, at the earliest, in the final year of their Ph.D. training and able to formally complete, defend, and receive their Ph.D. by the time the fellowship starts. Fellows must have received their PhD no earlier than September 1, 2023 and no later than September 1, 2026.

Contact Information: Heidi Osterhout, Contact Email: KempnerInstitute@Harvard.edu

Special Instructions: Please submit the following items in PDF format no later than 11:59pm EST Wednesday October 1st, 2025: 1. CV, highlighting any publications and conference abstracts relevant to the mission of the Kempner Institute. 2. A list of two to three proposed mentors from current faculty associated with the Kempner Institute or working on machine learning, artificial intelligence, or computational neurobiology at Harvard. 3. A research proposal of no more than 3 pages (1500 words not including references) outlining plans for research to be performed at the Kempner Institute. 4. A personal statement of no more than 2 pages (1000 words) which includes a brief description of: Your PhD research and past accomplishments, How your work fits at the interface of the Kempner Institute research areas, How you will interact with the Kempner Institute community. 5. References – 3 required: Please give the emails of three individuals who can describe your work and your potential for future discoveries. Referees will be contacted to submit the letters directly to the Kempner Institute. The application will not be considered complete until all letters have been received.

Candidates will be invited in mid-November to give a presentation on both past and proposed work. Following the presentation candidates will interview with Kempner Institute community members. Presentations and interviews will be virtual.