Overview

The Eric and Wendy Schmidt Postdoctoral Award for Women in Mathematical and Computing Sciences (“Israeli Women’s Postdoctoral Award”) supports promising women in Israel who wish to pursue a postdoctoral fellowship in the mathematical and computational sciences or engineering at a major institution outside of Israel. Each award recipient will receive a grant of $50,000 upon beginning a postdoctoral or early career research fellowship in her discipline at a major institution located outside of Israel. The fellowship is expected to start within a year of the award announcement, with a possibility of being awarded another grant of the same amount for a second year based on research progress and Program guidelines. This award is intended as an income supplement (and not a replacement of the hosting institution stipend/salary) that should enable recipients to pursue and focus on their research while maintaining other obligations.

The ultimate goal of the Israeli Women’s Postdoctoral Award is to increase the number of women faculty members in the fields of mathematical and computational sciences and engineering positioned at Israeli research universities. To achieve this goal, the award provides important opportunities for Israeli women to gain research experience abroad. Gaining such experience will provide exposure to broader trends in a researcher’s field, increase visibility and participation in professional networks, and establish a position in the global field, which will be key to helping the recipient secure a tenure track position in academia upon her return to Israel.

Approximately 10 women per year will be competitively selected for this award. An international committee of distinguished researchers assists in evaluating the applications and identifying the award recipients.

Nearly 50 women have received the Israeli Women’s Postdoctoral Award since the inception of the program in 2016, with awardees taking postdoctoral positions at a variety of institutions, including Harvard, University of Washington, École Normale Supérieure, University of Basel, Princeton, University of Melbourne, and University of Oxford. As an early indication of success, the program has seen at least seven past awardees successfully start tenure track positions at Israeli Universities.

This award is made possible through funding from The Eric and Wendy Schmidt Fund for Strategic Innovation.

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants should be women who plan to complete their PhDs at an Israeli University the subsequent year and would like to apply for a postdoctoral fellowship abroad for the following year. To be eligible, the applicants’ research must be in the areas of mathematical and computational sciences or engineering.

The Program will award each recipient US $50,000. The award will only be made to women who accept an offer of a fellowship in her discipline outside of Israel within a year of the award announcement. Awards will then be paid at the start of their stay abroad. Support will be offered for one year with a possibility of extending the award at the same amount (US $50,000) for the following year, based on research progress and Program guidelines. For women who are approved for a second postdoctoral year, the Program also will assist in paying for a return trip to Israel to reinforce ties with one or more universities.