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Ipacvisitinggraduatefellowships

IPAC Visiting Graduate Fellowship

Program Description

Established in 2013, the IPAC Visiting Graduate Student Fellowship (VGSF) offers six-month positions to graduate students who want to conduct PhD-level astronomical research in close association with IPAC scientists. Students gain applicable research experience with leaders in the scientific areas of exoplanets, galactic and extra-galactic studies, stellar formation, cosmology, and more.  

Visiting Graduate Fellows work at IPAC on the California Institute of Technology campus in Pasadena, California. The program duration is nominally February to August, with some flexibility on the start and end dates, during which a monthly stipend is provided. The exact number of fellowships awarded each year is decided based on available funding.

Application Instructions

The call for 2025 applications is now closed. The 2026 call will open in summer 2025.

 

Eligible applicants must fulfill all of the following requirements: 

  • Hold United States citizenship, national, or permanent resident status by the application deadline. Applicants may currently be enrolled at US or non-US institutions.
  • Currently enrolled in a PhD program in Astronomy or Physics.
  • Should have completed all classwork for a graduate program degree by December of the year the application is submitted.
  • Be available to spend 6 months at IPAC, nominally February to August, with some flexibility in the starting date.

Each applicant must submit:

  • A brief (~2 page) letter of introduction that includes:
    • Your current status as a graduate student and expected completion date
    • Description of your past research experience and current research interests
    • Please rank your top two IPAC research project choices and include your reasons for how they match your research interests
    • The approximate start date of your visit (nominally in February)
  • A one-page CV that includes experience you may have with astronomical and image processing software packages (e.g., Python, IDL, HIPE, AIPS, etc.)

Apply Now

In addition, we ask that a current professor or academic advisor familiar with the applicant’s work upload a letter of reference (PDF) using this page. This letter should also indicate that the applicant is available to visit IPAC during the proposed period, and address how well the visit would mesh with the applicant’s graduate education.

Submit Letter

Questions? Please contact the program coordinator, Dr. Jessie Christiansen, christia [at] ipac.caltech.edu

2025 Fellowship Research Projects

The 2025 list of research projects can be found here.

Past Fellowship Research Projects

Ipac Caltech

Policies

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