The Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Science Postdoctoral Fellowship

Faculty Fellows - Nigeria Expansion Program

Schmidt Faculty Fellows 

The AI in Science Faculty Fellowship, a program of Schmidt Sciences at the University of Chicago, will host junior faculty at Nigerian universities interested in advancing and accelerating the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in the natural sciences. Faculty Fellows will be offered freedom and independence in pursuing their AI-related research, including the flexibility to change or expand their research focus and to work with multiple research groups while at the University. In addition, Faculty Fellows will receive focused training in AI/ML methods relevant to their research and will work collaboratively with their Nigerian and American colleagues on their chosen projects. Upon their return to Nigeria, Faculty Fellows will teach students and their colleagues the computational skills they have acquired while at the University of Chicago. This bi-directional exchange program will be complemented by the allocation of computational resources at the University of Chicago that will be available to Expansion Fellows both during their training and after they return to Nigeria. This program presents a unique opportunity for Faculty Fellows to become the leaders of the AI in Science movement in Africa.

This program is an extension of the Schmidt Postdoctoral Fellowship Program and will leverage existing programming. Faculty Fellows will participate in training activities, seminars, conferences, workshops, etc. They will form a cohort of top scholars across the natural sciences and will join an active and growing AI and science community that includes departments across the UChicago campus as well as Argonne National Laboratory, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, the NSF-Simons National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology, and the NSF-Simons AI Institute for the Sky. 

Program Details

Selected fellows will spend September to December 2025 at the University of Chicago for training and to initiate joint research projects. They will then return to their home institutions from December 2025 to March 2026 to continue their research with their own research teams and trainees. Finally, they will spend March 2026 to May 2026 at the University of Chicago to complete their training and joint research projects. There will be a culminating conference for all program participants in Nigeria in the summer of 2027. 

This program will provide an allowance for travel, housing, and living expenses while in Chicago. Additional support may be available upon request for fellows facing challenges with family care. 

Review of applications will begin on November 15, 2024 and will continue until all positions are filled. Finalists will be invited to an in-person interview in Lagos the week of March 17, 2025.

Qualifications

Fellows must hold a doctoral degree in the natural sciences, engineering, or a related field. They must also be faculty members at an accredited Nigerian University and have started a tenure track position no earlier than July 1, 2018. 

Application Instructions

Application review for these positions will begin on November 15, 2024, and continue until positions are filled. Applications must be submitted online through this link.

The following materials are required:

  • Cover letter indicating the candidate’s potential mentor(s) at the University, Argonne National Laboratory, or Fermilab, and briefly describing the candidate’s area of research.
  • A 2-3 page (excluding references) research statement describing the candidate’s research contributions, highlighting: the significance and potential impact of their past and planned research contributions in the natural sciences and engineering, a proposal for exploring AI’s potential role in their research, evidence of the candidate’s preparedness for our training program, and evidence of independence and engagement in activities (e.g., research, seminars, coursework) that span traditional disciplinary boundaries.
  • Candidate’s CV, including a list of publications and other research artifacts (e.g., publicly available software).
  • Three confidential letters of recommendation 
  • A letter from the candidate’s department chair expressing support for the candidate participating in this program if they are selected. 

Contact:

For questions about this application, please contact schmidtaiscience@uchicago.edu.

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

Do you need a doctoral degree to qualify? Yes

Can you be from Nigeria and working at a non-Nigerian university? No

Do you need to contact faculty mentors before applying? No, this is preferred but not required. Please submit an application even if you do not receive a response from a faculty mentor.

My letter writer has not received a link to upload a confidential letter. How can they upload a letter? You can ask your letter writers to submit confidential letters to schmidtaiscience@uchicago.edu

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