Google PhD Fellowships directly support graduate students as they pursue their PhD.
Nurturing and maintaining strong relations with the academic community is a top priority at Google. The Google PhD Fellowship Program was created to recognize outstanding graduate students doing exceptional and innovative research in areas relevant to computer science and related fields. Fellowships support promising PhD candidates of all backgrounds who seek to influence the future of technology. Our research teams impact technology used by people all over the world and we encourage people of a wide range of backgrounds to apply. We currently offer fellowships in Africa, Australia, Canada, East Asia, Europe, India, Latin America, the Middle East, New Zealand, Southeast Asia and the United States.
PhD students from Africa, Australia, Canada, East Asia, Europe, India, Latin America, the Middle East, New Zealand, Southeast Asia and the United States, must be nominated for the fellowship by their university. Applications must be submitted by an official representative of the university during the application window. Please contact your department or graduate school for more information on the internal nomination process.
Canada and the United States: Universities may nominate up to four eligible students.
Deadlines:
- Duke Internal: March 26, 2026
- Nomination Deadline: April 30, 2026
Google PhD Fellowship students are a select group recognized by Google researchers and their institutions as some of the most promising young academics in the world. The Fellowships are awarded to students who represent the future of research in the fields listed below. Note that region-specific research areas will be listed in application forms during the application window.
- Algorithms and Optimization
- Computer Architecture
- Health Research
- Human-Computer Interaction
- Machine Learning and ML Foundations
- Machine Perception
- Natural Language Processing
- Privacy, Safety, and Security
- Quantum Computing
- Software Engineering and Programming Languages
- Systems, Networking, and Cloud Computing
General Eligibility Requirements (All Regions):
- Students must remain enrolled full-time in the PhD program for the duration of the Fellowship or forfeit the award.
- Google employees, and their spouses, children, and members of their household are not eligible.
- Students that are already supported by a comparable industry award are not eligible. Government or non-profit organization funding is exempt.
- Past awardees from the PhD Fellowship program are not eligible to apply again.
Canada and the United States
- Students who have completed graduate coursework in their PhD by the academic award year when the Fellowship begins.
Students cannot apply directly to the program; they must be nominated by an eligible university during the application period.
- Up to 2 year Fellowship
- US $85K per year towards education costs (tuition and fees), living expenses, travel, and personal equipment (effective from 2025 for new recipients)
Xi He - Privacy and Security
Owing to the sponsor's restriction on the number of applications that may be submitted from Duke, anyone wishing to pursue nomination should submit the following materials as one PDF.
- Cover sheet signed by the Department Chair confirming the student passes eligibility requirements. (See FAQ "What are the eligibility requirements for students?")
- Student essay response (350-word limit) to: "Describe the desired impact your research will make on the field and society, and why this is important to you. Include any personal, educational and/or professional experiences that have motivated your research interests."
- Student essay response (350-word limit) to: "Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes, or contributed to group efforts over time. (A leadership role can mean more than just a title...)"
Please submit internal materials through My Research Proposal. (Code ILN) https://www.grantinterface.com/sl/9i29IO
Instructions for creating an account (if needed) and submitting your materials: https://ctsi.duke.edu/about-myresearchproposal