Description

The Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science invites department chairs, faculty, advisors, professors and research scientists at institutions around the world to submit online nominations for Miller Research Fellowships in the basic sciences. The Miller Institute seeks to discover and encourage individuals of outstanding talent, and to provide them with the opportunity to pursue their research on the Berkeley campus. Fellows are selected on the basis of their academic achievement and the promise of their scientific research. Miller Fellows also have a keen curiosity about all science and share an appreciation for an interdisciplinary experience. The Miller Institute is the sponsor and the administrative home department for each Miller Fellow who is hosted by an academic department on the Berkeley campus. All research is performed in the facilities provided by the host UC Berkeley academic department(s). A list of current Miller Research Fellows is available on our website: miller.berkeley.edu.

The Kathryn A Day Miller Postdoctoral Fellowship Award

This award, named for the former Chief Administrative Officer of the Institute, is intended for an outstanding Miller Fellow who has also demonstrated efforts towards community building and outreach in support of science. For consideration for this Award, please indicate by selecting the corresponding checkbox located on the Fellowship Application Form, and briefly state: 1) your previous work in the areas of community building and outreach in support of science and 2) As a postdoc, your future plans for science outreach. Eligible recipients for the Kathryn A. Day Miller Postdoctoral Fellowship will be selected through the established Miller Fellowship program competition.

Qualifications:

Miller Research Fellowships are intended for exceptional young scientists of great promise who have recently been awarded, or who are about to be awarded, the doctoral degree.

The Ph.D. degree cannot be received before January 1, 2025 and must be received by August 31, 2027. Miller Fellows are expected to begin their Fellowship shortly after being awarded their Ph.D. A short period as a post-doctoral fellow elsewhere does not exclude eligibility, however, candidates who have already completed substantial postdoctoral training are unlikely to be successful except in unusual circumstances. Postdocs cannot have had more than two years of postdoctoral experience from other institutions at the time of their proposed fellowship start date. Candidates cannot have been employed as an assistant professor, associate professor or professor to be eligible. Per the terms of the gift establishing the Institute, a nominee cannot hold a paid or unpaid position on the Berkeley campus at the time of nomination or throughout the competition and award cycle, which can run through the end of February. Nominees who are non-US citizens must show eligibility for obtaining J-1 Scholar visa status for the duration of the Miller Fellowship. Non-US citizens will be required to prove English language proficiency prior to award. The Miller Institute does not support H1B visa status. Neither the Miller Institute nor the host department(s) are responsible for visa related fees for the Fellow. The Fellowship term must commence between July 1 and September 1 of the award year. Eligible nominees will be invited by the Institute to apply for the fellowship after the nomination has been reviewed and accepted. Direct applications and self-nominations are not accepted. ALL nominations must be submitted online.

Terms of Appointment

• Miller Fellowships are granted for a period of three years, generally beginning August 1 and ending on July 31. Starting dates must commence between July 1 and September 1 of the award year. A candidate cannot hold a paid or unpaid position on the UC Berkeley campus at the time of nomination or throughout the competition award cycle, which can extend to the end of February. Award term deferrals are not permitted; Fellows must start their term between July 1 and September 1, 2027.
• The Institute provides a stipend of $95,000 with 3% annual increases; the full salary range during this three-year award is approximately $95,000 - $106,000. This stipend is not to be construed as salary for teaching or for duties rendered to the University of California. Miller Fellows also receive a research fund of $10,000 per annum to be used in support of research during the Miller Fellowship, for a total initial package of $105,000.
• Miller Fellows are entitled to all normal holidays observed by the University and are granted an annual bank of 24 days of personal time off. Personal time does not carry forward.
• Twelve days of sick leave are granted annually.
• There is provision for travel to (but not away from) Berkeley for Miller Fellows and their immediate families. An additional allowance of $3,000 is allowed for the transport of personal belongings.
• Benefits including medical, dental, vision, short term disability and life insurance are provided, with Miller Fellows making a small contribution towards the premium. Long term disability is voluntary. Campus offers childcare reimbursement for qualified dependents annually in the amount of $2700 for 2026.
• All University of California postdocs are exclusively represented by the UAW an are subject to the terms of the contract.
• Approximately ten to twelve Fellowships are awarded each year.
• Candidates will be notified of the results of the competition between mid-December and mid-February, and a general announcement of the awards will be made in the spring.
• The total value of this award for 2027-2030, including the stipend, the amount that the Institute covers for the Fellows's benefits, research fund, and the travel + relocation allowance is estimated at $378,000.

Nomination Instructions

Nominations are accepted from department chairs, faculty advisors, professors or research scientists who can attest to the scientific potential of the Miller Fellow candidate. Nominations are accepted from individuals at institutions around the world and are not limited to faculty at the University of California. Nominations cannot be made by an individual candidate, a student or a postdoc. Nominations will be accepted beginning in May. To be considered, complete nominations must be submitted online by September 10, 2026. Nominators will need the following information about their candidate to complete the online process:

• Nominee's complete and full legal name (Do not use nicknames)
• Nominee's preferred, correct, and active e-mail address which will be active throughout the competition process. The nominee e-mail address cannot be changed later.
  *Please consult with your candidate beforehand to be certain that the email address you provide in your nomination is their correct one and that it will be valid post-Ph.D. residency (from now to beginning of next year). Notification of nomination and application information is sent to this email address.
• Nominee's current institution
• Nominee's preferred mailing address including postal code
• Nominee's telephone number
• Nominee's Ph.D. institution
• Nominee's (expected) Date of Ph.D. (month and year required). * Ph.D. must be received by 8/31/27. PhDs cannot have been received before 1/1/2025.
• Nominator's recommendation and judgment of nominee's potential. The letter must be specific to the Miller Fellowship, have a current date and be on institution letterhead or the nomination will be declined. It should then be uploaded as a PDF file and will be automatically included in the candidate's file as an additional letter of reference when the application is submitted.

The Executive Committee finds it helpful in the nomination letter to have the candidate compared with others at a similar stage in their development. The Fellowship is highly competitive and the letter should be persuasive. Successful Miller Fellows exhibit an energetic curiosity for their science and a desire to participate in the Miller Institute community. Should a nominee submit an application, the nomination letter will serve as an additional letter of reference. Upon successful submission of your nomination, an email notification will be sent within 24 hours. Submitted nominations will be reviewed and eligible nominees will be notified via the email provided by the nominator. Please inform your nominee to expect an email from millerfellows@millerfellows.com within 3 business days and to check their spam filters if necessary.

Following the submission of a nomination, invited nominees will be directed to apply:

Instructions for completing the Miller Research Fellowship Application

• Direct applications are not accepted. All candidates must be nominated online first.
• The DEADLINE FOR RECEIPT OF ALL APPLICATION MATERIALS, INCLUDING LETTERS OF REFERENCE, is: OCTOBER 9, 2026. Only complete applications will be reviewed.
• The Fellowship term must commence between July 1 and September 1 of the award year.
• Ph.D. must be awarded and proof furnished to the Miller Institute before the start of the Fellowship. Therefore, if you will not receive your Ph.D. before August 31, 2027, you will not be eligible for an award. Due to campus policies restricting the period of eligibility for postdoctoral positions, candidates may not have received their PhDs before 1/1/2025.
• An applicant cannot hold a paid or unpaid position on the UC Berkeley campus at the time of nomination or throughout the competition award cycle, which can extend to the end of February for some candidates.
• References will receive a system-generated email notifying them of your application with instructions for uploading their letter on your behalf. It is suggested that you inform your references to expect an email from the millerfellows@millerfellows.com email address and to check their spam filters if necessary. It is the applicant's responsibility to verify reference email addresses and to ensure their willingness to upload a letter prior to the application deadline date.
• Candidates are REQUIRED to propose a potential UC Berkeley Faculty Host in the application. A support letter from a UCB Faculty Host is required by the Executive Committee.
• Candidates' files may be reviewed by potential host departments for consideration for positions other than the Miller Research Fellowship.
• Approved departments are found here(PDF file).

Completed applications are due October 9, 2026, 11:59pm (-7 GMT)

Miller Research Fellowship Applications Process Timetable