Visiting Scholars Fellowships

Visiting Scholars Fellowships is sponsored by Russell Sage Foundation. This fellowship program enables scholars to spend an academic year in residence at the Russell Sage Foundation, dedicating their time to research and writing on topics related to human values in public and private life across humanities and social sciences.

Apply to be a Visiting Scholar | Russell Sage Foundation Apply to be a Visiting Scholar The Russell Sage Foundation’s Visiting Scholars Program provides a unique opportunity for select scholars in the social, economic, political and behavioral sciences to pursue their data analysis and writing while in residence at the foundation’s headquarters in New York City. Applications Due: June 2026.

Apply Now The foundation annually awards 15 to 17 Visiting Scholar fellowships. Applicants must be at least two years beyond the Ph. D.

when applying, and if selected, typically work on projects related to the foundation’s core programs (Behavioral Science and Decision Making in Context; Future of Work; Race, Ethnicity and Immigration; Social, Political and Economic Inequality) and special initiatives.

Recent scholars have addressed topics such as: the economic price mothers pay after having children (“the motherhood penalty”), the expansion of the alternative financial services (AFS) industry and its implications, the resurgence of border walls as an anti-immigrant tool in the context of rising right-wing and nationalist populisms, how legal status affects the lives of undocumented youth attending college, the consequences of right-to-work laws and other anti-union legislation passed in recent decades, exploring different definitions of racial and ethnic diversity and how recent demographic changes affect Americans’ efforts at cooperation, and efforts to reform U.S. law and policy on race and class marginalization.

Current and previous scholars represent the diversity of the social sciences including anthropology, economics, political science, psychology, and sociology, as well as many other related fields (e.g., behavioral sciences, criminal justice, demography, education, history, law, public and social policy, public health, social epidemiology, social work, statistics, and urban planning, among others).

The Visiting Scholar fellowship is one of the preeminent fellowships of its kind within the social sciences. During their time at the Foundation, scholars will interact with other scholars from a wide range of disciplinary backgrounds, as well as Visiting Journalists, Visiting Researchers, Margaret Olivia Sage Scholars, and RSF staff in programs, communications and publishing.

This residential fellowship requires significant Foundation resources and scholars are expected to fully engage in the intellectual life of RSF. For that reason, scholars are expected to be in their office at least 75 percent of the days that RSF is open. The 10-month residential fellowship runs from September 1st through June 30th.

The Foundation also welcomes applications for half-year visits to occur during the 5-month period from either September through January, or February through June.

Scholars are provided with an office at the foundation, a computer and software, access to research materials including online journals and databases, and salary support of up to 50 percent of their academic year salary – up to a maximum of $150,000 for the full year, or $75,000 for half of the year – when unavailable from research grants or other sources.

RSF support will be limited to less than 50% when funds from other sources (including university sabbatical support) provide more than 50% of the academic year salary. Scholars who reside outside the greater New York City area are provided with a partially subsidized apartment near the Foundation offices. If scholars are fully funded by external sources, the RSF apartment may be fully subsidized.

Childcare subsidies are also available for children below the age of 13. In exceptional cases, applicants may request more than 50% of their current academic salary (up to a maximum of $150,000) when their employer does not provide paid sabbaticals.

The following circumstances will receive consideration when sabbatical support or funds from other sources are not available: (1) tenure track faculty within 7 years of having completed a PhD (excluding time off for parental leave); (2) scholars in non-tenure track research positions (excluding post-doctoral fellows); or (3) researchers at non-profit organizations, government agencies, or other similar research-focused positions.

Because of the high cost of living in New York City, RSF provides a minimum salary for scholars who are offered a fellowship. Under certain circumstances and conditional on the guidelines above, those earning less than $100,000 per year may receive a salary supplement from RSF that is in addition to its standard 50% contribution.

The sum of the supplement and the scholar’s annual salary would total $100,000 for the fellowship period ($50,000 for one term visitors). Review Requirements and Other Information: Working Group Applications Applications are typically due at the end of June for a fellowship period starting in September of the following calendar year. All applications must be submitted through the portal.

New accounts must be created at least one week before an application deadline. Activating a new account may take up to two business days. Submit a five-page proposal describing the project to be undertaken while in residence at the Foundation.

No more than 5 single-spaced pages, with standard 12-point font and 1-inch margins—excluding up to 2 pages of references and figures/tables). Submit an up-to-date abbreviated CV (5 pages maximum). We do not accept supplementary application materials such as papers and recommendations.

*New accounts must be created at least one week before an application deadline. Activating a new account may take up to 5 business days.

Go to the Fluxx Application Portal Russell Sage Foundation Fellows Vice President, Tax & Income Supports Division, Urban Institute Professor of Sociology, University of Massachusetts Amherst Assistant Professor of Economics, University of Pittsburgh Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill