The purpose of the Society is to give scholars at an early stage of their scholarly careers an opportunity to pursue their studies in any department of the University, free from formal requirements. They must be persons of exceptional ability, originality, and resourcefulness, and should be of the highest calibre of intellectual achievement, i.e. manifesting extraordinary creativity and shaping the future direction of their chosen field. These Junior Fellows are selected by the Senior Fellows, with whom the President and Provost of the University, and the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, ex officio, administer the Society. Those elected receive three year fellowships.
The Society was organized in 1933 under the terms of a gift from A. Lawrence Lowell, then President Emeritus of Harvard. This gift was made in memory of Mr. Lowell’s wife and is known as the Anna Parker Lowell Fund. Mr. Lowell was convinced of the value of informal discussions between scholars in different academic fields. Hence, from the time of its foundation, the Senior and Junior Fellows have met for dinner every Monday night during term-time, and they are frequently joined by visiting scholars. Junior Fellows also lunch together twice a week.
To be eligible for a Junior Fellowship, a candidate must be at an early stage of their scholarly career. People of any nationality and interested in any field of study are accepted. Most Junior Fellows receive the Ph.D. just prior to the start of the fellowship. If still pursuing the Ph.D., Junior Fellows should be at the dissertation stage of their theses and be prepared to finish their degrees within a year of becoming fellows. If already a recipient of the degree, they should ideally not be much more than a year past the Ph.D. at the time the fellowship commences. Candidates may be renominated.
The number of Junior Fellows at any one time normally is limited to thirty-six, and usually twelve are chosen each year. The term of appointment is three years, and no extensions are granted. During the academic year, Junior Fellows are required to reside in Cambridge or close-by neighboring communities and to regularly attend all of the weekly lunches and dinners. Junior Fellows are expected to work full-time in the office or lab space provided to them by the University during term time. Junior Fellows are not subject to examination, are not required to make reports, receive no credit for courses, and may not be candidates for any degree other than the Ph.D. Those who are still pursuing the Ph.D. should have completed their routine training for advanced work and should be well along in the writing of their theses before becoming Fellows. They may complete the writing of their theses and proceed to such final or special examinations as the universities of their candidacies may require, and may be granted the degree of Ph.D.
Junior Fellows are selected for their resourcefulness, initiative, and intellectual curiosity, and because their work holds exceptional promise. They are free to devote their entire time to productive scholarship. They may undertake sustained projects of research or other original work, or they may devote their time to the acquisition of accessory disciplines, so as to prepare themselves for the investigation of problems lying between conventional fields. Because of this complete freedom of choice and action, it is important that candidates should have demonstrated their capacity for independent work.
During 2025/2026 the stipend for Junior Fellows in their first year is $101,000. The facilities of most branches of the University, both for instruction and for research, are open to Junior Fellows. Candidates whose research requires substantial laboratory space or extensive equipment should explore arrangements with the appropriate members of the faculty at Harvard for the necessary support. If there is any problem in this regard candidates should inform the Chair.
Additional information about the nominations and applications for the Junior Fellowship can be found on the Nomination Procedure section of our site. For a downloadable brochure regarding the Society and the Junior Fellowship, please click the link at the bottom of this page.
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