2025 Funding Opportunities for Doctoral Students and Postdoctoral Fellows

We are looking for individuals who have demonstrated academic excellence and potential for innovation in human performance research. Human performance research includes physical and cognitive performance, and encompasses many research areas; thus, we welcome applications from across many different disciplines. We value those who have a demonstrated capacity for outreach and leadership. Students and postdoctoral fellows who are committed to a career in the field of human performance will be given the highest priority.

• Doctoral Students: Doctoral students enrolled in their second year or later are eligible to apply. You must be active in a Stanford PhD program during the tenure of your fellowship. This must be reflected in your Stanford transcript.
• Postdoctoral Scholars: In order to apply, individuals must:
  • Have an existing postdoctoral appointment at Stanford or have a mentor at Stanford who is willing to supervise their postdoctoral fellowship. If the applicant is not already appointed as a postdoctoral scholar at the time of the application deadline, the faculty advisor must submit a letter committing to supervise the scholar via the SlideRoom application portal.
  • Be able to begin their appointment in Fall 2025, having received their PhD and met other Stanford requirements for postdoctoral scholar appointment by that time.
  • Be within their first four years of postdoctoral research.

Identify a faculty advisor for the fellowship (either your current advisor or a prospective Stanford faculty advisor).

• Faculty mentors must be Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance Faculty Affiliates. Any faculty member can become a Faculty Affiliate.
• Faculty advisors acknowledge:
  • Postdoctoral appointments and supervision of postdoctoral fellows are the responsibilities of the candidate’s faculty advisor and their home department, in alignment with Stanford guidelines.
  • The candidate’s faculty advisor and their home department at Stanford, not the Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance, must assume responsibility for securing and maintaining visas or other permits required for international scholars, if applicable.

All of the following documents must be uploaded in Slideroom. Please be sure to click “submit” when all documents are complete. You should receive a confirmation email with a confirmation number after submitting.

More information about each document is provided in the sections that follow. Note the formatting requirements for the research plan and CV.

• Human Performance Research Plan (up to 4 pages, including figures, but not including the title page or references). Remember to adhere to the font and other styling information below.
  
• Other Support and Leveraging (if relevant)
• Short Answer Questions (up to 250 words per response)
• Curriculum Vitae (up to 2 pages). Remember to adhere to the font and other styling information below.
• Recommendation Letters (number of letters depends on applicant type)
• Academic Transcript(s) (required of doctoral students only) 

1. Human Performance Research Plan (up to 4 pages, including figures, but not including the title page or references). The research plan must use 11 pt Arial font, 1 inch margins, and be single-spaced.

We are seeking proposals for research projects that will expand our knowledge of the science of human performance. Proposals for fundamental scientific exploration and translational work are welcome, and we define human performance broadly, including both physical and cognitive performance. It is not our intent to fund projects that focus purely on disease. We encourage projects that advance our understanding of female athlete health and performance.

• Title Page should include the project title, applicant name, primary advisor, all team members’ home departments, and a brief (100 word max) summary of the project in lay language.
• We encourage you to include images and figures in your proposal.
• The plan should consist of the following sections:
  • Background and motivation
  • Specific aims
  • Proposed approach
  • Significance (especially with regards to human performance)
  • References
• Have a project with a female athlete research focus? You can be considered for the Postdoctoral Fellowship for Female Athlete Research by indicating your interest in the SlideRoom application.

2. Other Support and Leveraging (if relevant)
Describe any sources of additional funding (present forms of tuition, stipend funding, grants etc.). Please let us know if you are applying for any other funding simultaneously.

3. Short Answer Questions (maximum of 250 words per response)

• Why are you interested in participating in this program? Include reason(s) you selected your mentor and project, and how participation in this program would impact your future career.
• We wish to welcome a cohort of fellows who have a diversity of experiences and skills. Share something about yourself or your experiences that you feel allows you to bring a unique perspective to the program.

4. Curriculum vitae (up to 2 pages in length). Your CV must use 11 pt Arial font, 1 inch margins, and be single-spaced.

5. Recommendation Letters: Asking faculty for references should be one of the first things you do for your application. We recommend giving your faculty a reminder for uploading their letters to the SlideRoom application portal to ensure you receive your letters on time.

All letters must include a statement regarding how the work relates to human performance and the interdisciplinary nature of the proposal.

6. Academic Transcript(s)

• Doctoral Students: We require an unofficial copy of your Stanford transcript including Winter 2025.
• Postdoctoral Scholars: We do not require transcripts for postdoctoral scholars.

• 100% of your support for one year, paid as an RA-ship over 4 quarters with the option to renew for a second year. The annual compensation amount is similar to that for other fellowships offered on-campus. For the 2024-25 year, the compensation is $13,700 per quarter.
• The Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance pays tuition for 8-10 units for Autumn, Winter, and Spring quarters, plus Summer tuition for 3 units.
• If the student is eligible for TGR, the Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance pays TGR tuition for four quarters.

• Annual compensation paid over 4 quarters for one year with the option to renew for a second year. The annual compensation amount for the 2024-25 year is $81,180 plus benefits. 

• All fellows are eligible to apply for travel funds to present their research at a scientific conference (up to $2000). 
• All fellows are eligible to apply for funds to make their published work open-access (up to $2000).

Graduate Students: Yes, applicants should be part of a lab and have a primary advisor.

Individuals applying for the postdoctoral fellowship: Applicants must already be a postdoctoral fellow with a lab at Stanford OR have a commitment for a postdoctoral appointment at Stanford that begins by Fall 2025. The faculty member offering the postdoctoral appointment should indicate in their letter their commitment to supervise the candidate.

Here’s how the process would work for candidates who have not yet started a postdoctoral appointment at Stanford (e.g., external candidates or Stanford PhDs who want to continue at Stanford as a postdoc):

1. 1. Postdoc candidates will reach out to faculty mentors if they are interested in working in their lab. They should mention that Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance is providing fellowships for female athlete research and human performance research, in general, to address potential concerns about funding.
   2. Faculty would assess if the candidate is a good fit for female athlete research and their lab. If so, faculty would commit to having the candidate join their lab contingent on being awarded the fellowship and write a letter of support for their application to the fellowship.
   3. The candidate would then apply to the fellowship program.
   4. If the candidate is awarded the fellowship, the faculty’s department would handle the paperwork for appointing the postdoc, and the Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance would provide the annual compensation amount plus benefits.

Yes, international postdoctoral candidates will be considered and are welcome to apply. However, the candidate’s faculty advisor and their home department at Stanford, not the Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance, must assume responsibility for securing and maintaining visas or other permits required for international scholars.

Read more about the 2024 fellows, 2023 fellows, or 2022 fellows and their projects.