Google PhD Fellowships directly support graduate students as they pursue their PhD, as well as connect them to a Google Research Mentor.
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. Google's research teams impact technology used by people all over the world; people of a wide range of backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
Award Details
The fellowship provides
- Up to 2 years of fellowship support
- US $85K per year: $70K Cost of Education allowance towards tuition and fees and $15K stipend to be used for living expenses, travel and personal equipment (effective from 2025 for new recipients)
- Google Research Mentor
Process
Universities may nominate up to four eligible students. An internal selection committee will determine the University's 4 nominees. Students may apply by submitting all application materials including at least two letters of reference by the internal deadline of Monday, May 5, 2025.
Eligibility
- Students must have completed graduate coursework in their PhD by the beginning of the academic year in which the fellowship begins (Fall 2025).
- 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.
Research Areas of Focus
The Fellowships are awarded to students who represent the future of research in the fields listed below. Please see here for complete descriptions.
- Computer Architecture
- Algorithms and Optimization
- 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
Important Dates
Internal application deadline: Monday, May 5, 2025
Selected proposals will be submitted to Google prior to the close of the application portal on Thursday, May 15, 2025.
Application Materials
Students are advised to request letters of recommendation as a first step to their application. Please see 4 below.
- Cover sheet signed by the Department Chair confirming the student passes the ALL eligibility requirements:
- Student is a full-time graduate student pursuing a PhD at the submitter's institution.
- Student has completed graduate coursework by the Fall of the award year (Fall 2025).
- Student is not already supported by a comparable industry award (Government or non-profit organization funding is exempt).
- Student is not a Google employee and does not have any members of this student's household that is a Google employee (spouse, parent, children).
- Student is not a prior recipient of a Google PhD Fellowship.
- Student CV with links to website and publications (if available)
- Short (1-page) CV of the student's primary advisor
- 2-3 Letters of Recommendation from those familiar with the nominee's work (At least one from the thesis advisor). Letters must be submitted in the application portal by letter writers by the May 5 deadline. Students are advised to begin an application in the system portal (link below) and request letters of recommendation as a first step in their application. Late letters will not be accepted.
- Research/dissertation proposal (Max 3 pages excluding references)
- Research Impact student essay (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.
- Leadership student essay (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. It can mean being a mentor to others, acting as the person in charge of a specific task, or taking the lead role in organizing an event or project. Think about what you accomplished and what you learned from the experience. What were your responsibilities? Did you lead a team? How did your experience change your perspective on leading others? Did you help to resolve an important issue? Leadership doesn’t necessarily have to be limited to school activities. For example, do you help out or take care of your family?)
- Transcripts of current and previous academic records (Official preferred; unofficial accepted)
Please complete all application materials via the application portal here.
Students should prompt their letter writers as soon as possible so they may upload their letters in the application portal by May 5.
Review
Applications are evaluated on the strength of the research proposal, research impact, student academic achievements, and leadership potential. Research proposals are evaluated for innovative concepts that are relevant to Google’s research areas, as well as aspects of robustness and potential impact to the field. Proposals should include the direction and any plans of where your work is going in addition to a comprehensive description of the research you are pursuing.
In Canada and the United State, East Asia and Latin America, essay responses are evaluated in addition to application materials to determine an overall recommendation. Research should align with Google AI principles: https://blog.google/technology/ai/ai-principles/
More information available here.
Contact
Please send any questions to ogpafellowships@virginia.edu