Overview of
the UCSF Fellows Program:
The UCSF Fellows Program brings exceptionally promising
young scientists to UCSF in a special capacity, in which
they establish independent research programs with the sole
mandate to do their best science. UCSF Fellows are small
group leaders with Principal Investigator status in the
University, which enables them to obtain extramural grant
support to support the growth of their programs, and thus
are of a special class of "Faculty Fellows" markedly
distinct from traditional postdoctoral fellows. This
program seeks recently graduated Ph.D.'s or M.D.'s whose
potential as investigators indicates they would benefit
from a sheltered independence. Institutional support is
granted for five years and is sufficient to maintain a
small laboratory of two to four members. UCSF Fellows
enrich our interactive intellectual community with their
enthusiasm and sole focus on research, and are at the same
time mentored by our community. Former and current UCSF
Fellows have been resoundingly successful in formulating
extraordinarily creative and vital research programs. The
combination of independence, singular focus, and effective
mentoring facilitates the development of remarkable young
scientists, who are becoming the next generation of
scientific leaders, both at UCSF and in the larger
biomedical research community.
Several other well-established Fellows programs around the
country, including those at the Whitehead Institute,
Carnegie Institution, and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory,
have similar aims yet distinct intellectual environments.
UCSF is known for its collegial spirit, wide breadth of
biological and medical sciences, and interdisciplinary
approaches, characteristics ideally suited to the concept
of the Fellows program. We encourage the best and brightest
students and postdocs to explore the nomination procedure
with their current mentors.
