Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship is excited to announce a global call for research proposal submissions for its 2023 Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship program with funding of $15,000 USD and a 12-week paid internship. This Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship is currently running in Asia-Pacific, Canada, the United States, EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa), Latin America, Australia, and New Zealand.
About Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship
The Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship is an international initiative that seeks and supports the next generation of outstanding computing research talent. In order to create a more vibrant and diverse computing-related research community, Microsoft acknowledges the benefits of diversity in computing and wants to enhance the pipeline of talent obtaining advanced degrees in related subjects.
Over 700 fellows have received assistance from the Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship program over the past 20 years, many of whom have gone on to work for Microsoft. Others have moved on to do ground-breaking research in the technology sector abroad or take professor positions at prestigious institutions.
Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship is looking at new ways to support its academic alliances and bring together students and researchers to work together, share expertise, and explore new research topics. The goal of Microsoft is to enable everyone and every organization to do more. Students are urged to support this goal and seize chances to promote inclusive and varied cultures in their neighborhoods by applying for this fellowship
The Microsoft research program is a Global program but has different instructions for different continents. The application instruction for Africans is detailed below.
Eligibility
- Ph.D. students must attend an African university.
- The proposed research project must be in relation to one of Microsoft Africa Research Institute’s (MARI) thematic areas:
1. AI/ML/NLP/data science: Data is frequently limited and unbalanced in many practically relevant applications. Understanding how humans operate under these conditions and produce beneficial outcomes has a significant influence on a variety of real-world issues and provides us with profound insights into what it means to learn with data. We may expand our grasp of what is possible with the data at hand for a certain situation, from practical applications like NLP to comprehending the fairness and generality of outcomes. Microsoft is interested in how they work better with the limitations of data.
2. Health: Microsoft Research Program now has the chance to solve the inequities in the delivery of high-quality healthcare to all people and their access to it. This is made possible by developments in machine learning and AI. Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship Program is interested in comprehending and examining the areas where the technology may help close the gap, from enabling healthcare professionals to carry out their duties more efficiently to bridging the final mile to patients through technology-scaled delivery and access to high-quality healthcare.
3. Sustainability: Microsoft’s commitment to sustainability will be accomplished through employing cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to revolutionize how they monitor, model, and eventually aid in the resolution of global environmental concerns. MARI is using artificial intelligence and analytics to study and develop solutions to sustainability concerns. Microsoft welcomes your application if you are a student enrolled in an African university pursuing a Ph.D. degree in artificial intelligence, machine learning, statistics, or a related discipline with a focus on tackling challenges connected to sustainability.
4. Human-computer interaction: Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship is looking for Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) fellows to research Usability and Design issues in the areas of Work, Health, Sustainability & Society. HCI interns often lead and carry out research projects (online or onsite), usability studies, literature reviews, and intervention designs.
- Students must be in the second or later year of their Ph.D. program between August 2022 and July 2023, taking into consideration transfers, allowed leaves of absence, and so on.
- Ph.D. students must be enrolled at the institution at the start of the academic year 2023 or lose the award (i.e., beginning the third year of their program).
- Fellowships do not have the option of being extended. Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship will accommodate you if you need time away for family or medical reasons. If you are unclear if a specific requirement for time away will have an impact on the grant, please contact Microsoft Research Fellowships at msfellow@microsoft.com.
- The reward will be paid directly to the institution and distributed in accordance with the university’s procedures. If the student no longer qualifies for financing (for example, if the student drops out of the program, graduates, or transfers to a new university), Microsoft will have discretion over how any leftover funds are utilized.
- The funding is only available for use during the beneficiary’s time in the Ph.D. program; it cannot be used to assist the beneficiary in a job after graduation, such as a postdoc or teaching position. Applicants must confirm their Ph.D. program beginning month and year, as well as their estimated graduation month and year, in order to be considered for this fellowship.
- A Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship recipient who is subjected to disciplinary processes for unacceptable conduct, including but not limited to discrimination, harassment (including sexual harassment), or plagiarism, will have their funding withdrawn.
- Ph.D. candidates submitting a proposal should be able to talk about their research in English (both verbally and in writing).
Benefit
- For the academic year 2022-23, $15,000 USD are granted to assist students in doing research as part of their Ph.D. thesis work.
- A 12-week paid internship at the Microsoft Africa Research Institute (MARI) will be granted to eligible participants.
- There will be opportunities to network with Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship teams and gain mentorship.
Requirement
The below outlines the information necessary to submit your proposal in our submission portal.
1. You will be asked to answer the questions below in the form:
- Your name, email, country, university, and department
- Primary area of research (from those listed below)
i. AI/ML/NLP/data science
ii. Health
iii. Sustainability
iv. Human-computer interaction - Thesis proposal or research statement title
- Month and year entered the Ph.D. program and expected graduation date (you must be entering your second year or beyond sometime between August 2022 – July 2023)
- URL to your professional website (optional, but strongly recommended; you are encouraged to make certain it is up-to-date)
- One to three academic conferences you are most likely to attend
- Self-assessment of the Statement of Good Standing: “I declare I have never been disciplined for inappropriate behavior, including, but not limited to discrimination, harassment (including sexual harassment), or plagiarism. If I am selected to receive funding under Microsoft’s Fellowship program, during my funding time period, I agree to inform Microsoft should I be subjected to disciplinary proceedings for inappropriate behavior, including but not limited to discrimination, harassment (including sexual harassment), or plagiarism which would result in forfeiture of funding under Microsoft’s Fellowship program.”
2. You will be asked to upload 3 documents:
You will upload your resume, thesis or research statement, and one-page summary separately. The allowed proposal submission types are docx, doc, and pdf. Proposals must be presented in English. Hardcopy or email submissions won’t be taken into consideration. Use the convention listed below to name the separate files. Your file name should contain both your first and last names accordingly, each separated by an underscore (for example, Jane_Smith_cv.docx).
- Curriculum vitae – file name: cv
- A brief and simple thesis proposal or research statement (no more than two pages, including references, and a font size of no less than 10 points) is advised. that is the file name should be Thesis.
- The Description of the abovementioned research statement or thesis proposal is it should not be more than 150 words; the font size not lesser than 10-point and the file name: Summary
3. You will be asked to request 2 letters of recommendation (the third one being optional) through the submission portal:
- Send the email request to your two or three recommenders as soon as possible using the submission portal, adding the contact information (name, affiliation, and email), to give them enough time to write a letter. Their deadline is June 7, 2022, at 7:00 PM UTC, the same time as your submission deadline. They should be well-known scholars who are acquainted with your study (at least one of them must come from your principal academic adviser or supervisor, and only one letter from a Microsoft employee is permitted).
- Once you submit your request through the submission portal, the recipient will be sent a unique URL where they may submit a letter of reference on your behalf.
Please be aware that You and your recommenders might need to check your trash folders to locate emails from our site. Here is a list of the several system emails addresses you may add to your allowed email LIST
4. Microsoft cannot guarantee the confidentiality of any data provided in the proposals. Therefore, sensitive, confidential, or restricted information should not be included in proposals. Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship maintains the right to provide information about winning proposals to the public, with the exception of any sections that include financial or personally identifying information.
5. Incomplete proposals will not be considered.
6. Due to the volume of submissions, Microsoft cannot provide individual feedback on proposals.
Proposal Requirement
Your proposal for Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship must have the following to qualify for entry:
- Accomplishment, impact, and alignment with the work that is done at Microsoft Research.
- Highlight papers you have published and any awards you have received.
- Describe the impact that your research will have on others and how this award will enable your research.
Overview
Types of opportunity: Funding
Deadline: 9th June 2023
Worth: $15,000 USD
Open to: All
Duration: 12 weeks
Organizer: Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship
Country: Global
Inquiry
- watch a video about the Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship program 👇 https://youtu.be/T4Q-XwOOoJc
- For questions click FAQ
- For questions regarding proposals, contact Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship at msfellow@microsoft.com.
- For more information Visit the Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship
