2018/2019 Microsoft PhD Fellowship in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering and Mathematics in The US

Microsoft Research is on the lookout for exceptional students in computer science, electrical engineering, and mathematics, as well as interdisciplinary studies, to apply for the two-year PhD fellowship program for the 2018–2019 academic year. Department heads at universities in the United States and Canada should start preparing applications to nominate fellows now. The submission period is October 2–16, 2017.

The Microsoft Research PhD Fellowship Program has supported 122 fellows since the program was established in 2008, many of whom have gone on to work within the Microsoft Research organization. Others have gone on to perform pioneering research elsewhere within the technology industry or accept faculty appointments at leading universities.

Microsoft research offers PhD Fellowship Program for PhD Students in their second or third year of PhD studies in USA or Canada.

Offered annually? Yes

Eligible Field of Study: Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or Mathematics department

Eligible Countries: Student from any part of the world attending a United States or Canadian university

To be taken at (university): United States or Canadian university

Type: PhD, Fellowship

Eligibility Criteria:

• Applicants for the Microsoft Research PhD Fellowship Program must be nominated by their universities, and their nominations must be confirmed by the office of the chair of the eligible department. Direct applications from students are not accepted.
• Students must attend a United States or Canadian university and be enrolled in the computer science, electrical engineering, or mathematics department. If your department is within the scope of these areas but is titled differently, you are eligible.
• The proposed research must be closely related to the research topics carried out by Microsoft Research as noted in the Research areas tab. We are particularly interested in proposals related to Systems & Networking and AI (including Machine Learning, Computer Vision, and Robotics).
• Students must be in their second or third year of an eligible PhD program in the fall semester or quarter of 2017. The nominating university will be asked to confirm the student’s PhD program start date (month/year).
• A maximum of three applicants per eligible department, per eligible university, will be accepted. A total of nine applications per university will be allowed.
• Microsoft will have discretion as to how any remaining funds will be used if the student is no longer qualified to receive funding (e.g. if the student unenrolls from the program, graduates, or transfers to a different university).
• The recipient must remain an active, full-time student in a PhD program during the two consecutive academic years of the award or forfeit the award.
• A recipient of a Microsoft Research PhD Fellowship may not receive another fellowship from another company or institution for the same academic period. Fellows accepting multiple fellowships will become ineligible to receive continued funding from Microsoft.

Number of Awardees: A maximum of three applicants per eligible department, per eligible university, will be accepted. A total of nine applications per university will be allowed.

Value of Fellowship:

• The fellowship recipient award will cover 100 percent of the tuition and fees for two academic years (2018–19 and 2019–20).
• A stipend is provided to help cover living expenses while in school (US$28,000 for 2018–19 and US$28,000 for 2019–20).
• A conference and travel allowance is provided for recipients to attend professional conferences or seminars (US$4,000 for 2018–19 and US$4,000 for 2019–20).
• The award includes the opportunity to complete one salaried internship in 2018 with leading Microsoft researchers working on cutting-edge projects related to the recipient’s field of study.
• Fellowships are awarded to recipients for two consecutive academic years only and are not available for extension.

Duration of Fellowship: 2 years

Method of Application: 

• Applications must include: nominee’s thesis proposal or research statement, a one (1) page summary of their thesis proposal or research statement, nominee’s curriculum vitae, and three (3) letters of reference from established researchers familiar with the nominee’s research. Of these, one (1) letter should come from the student’s advisor. Only one (1) letter can be from a current Microsoft employee.
• Applications must be submitted via the online application tool in any of the following formats: Word document, text-only file, or PDF. Email or hard-copy applications will not be considered. All application materials must be submitted by the person who is designated as the application contact by the departmental chair’s office and must not be the applicant.
• Applications submitted to Microsoft will not be returned. Microsoft cannot assume responsibility for the confidentiality of information in submitted applications. Therefore, applications should not contain information that is confidential, restricted, or sensitive. Microsoft reserves the right to make public information from applications that receive awards, except those portions containing budgetary or personally identifiable information.
• Incomplete applications cannot be considered, and notification of incompleteness will not be made.
• Due to the volume of submissions, Microsoft Research cannot provide individual feedback on applications that do not receive Fellowship awards.

To apply, please submit via the online application tool at https://cmt.research.microsoft.com/MSRFellowship/.

Visit Fellowship Webpage for details

Scholarship Application Deadline: 16th October, 2017.

Sponsors: Microsoft Research