UCSF Society of Hellman Fellows

The Society of Hellman Fellows is an endowed program at the University of California (UC) that provides research funding to promising assistant professors who show capacity for great distinction in their chosen fields. 

Hellman Fellowships are open to early-career faculty in a broad range of academic disciplines, and can range from $10,000 to $70,000. In 2020, after 25 years of funding the program, the Hellman family generously established an endowment to allow it to continue in perpetuity across UC’s ten campuses. Learn more about the Hellman Fellows.

Historically, UCSF disbursed between eight and ten Hellman Fellowships annually. Awards are made in basic, clinical, and translational research, and must be spent over a one- or two-year period. With the recent endowment, UCSF has expanded the program to include an additional four Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Fellowships per year, for researchers whose work demonstrates outstanding contributions to DEI and health equity. This expansion allows for up twelve Society of Hellman Fellowships per year.

The UCSF Society of Hellman Fellows is a highly respected and integral program, valued by the Fellows themselves, the broader campus community, and university leadership. UCSF is grateful to the Hellman Foundation for their tremendous support to maintain and grow this beloved program.

See the list of UCSF Hellman fellows.

This opportunity is available exclusively for early career UCSF faculty. A committee of past UCSF Hellman Fellows will review all applications and select up to twelve awardees.

Please find more information in our FAQ.

PURPOSE

• To provide short-term support for outstanding faculty at the assistant professor level whose work shows originality and promise of distinction
• To assist promising early career faculty who face challenges in advancing their work to the level of career development and eventual independence
• Awards can be made for basic, clinical or translational research.
• Four of the twelve awards are designated as Principles of Community Fellowships, with an additional purpose to advance health equity and the UCSF Principles of Community. This purpose may also be served by any of the awardees, but it is explicitly required for the Principles of Community fellowships.

ELIGIBILITY

• Assistant professors in tenure-track, In Residence, Clinical X, Health Sciences or Adjunct series who have made substantial progress in their research and demonstrated creativity, whose work needs further development to attract other support.
• Special preference will be given to those who face challenges in obtaining independent funding (e.g. research that takes longer to become established because of its complexity or innovation, or the demands of clinical practice).
• Please note:
  • The awards are specifically directed toward promising faculty who are in the second or third years of their appointment (start date between June 2023 and June 2025). Assistant professors of any start date (on or before the project start date) may still apply, but will be considered less competitive the further they are from the 2-3 year window.
  • The Hellman Fellows program will no longer consider difficult personal or family circumstances such as illness or unusual child-care responsibilities as special preferences for consideration.
  • It is expected that the Fellowship will contribute substantially to the conduct of the research by the recipient. Preference in allocation of Fellowships will be given to assistant professors who are not recipients of other young investigator awards, career development awards, or substantial start-up funds.
  • Awarded funds may not be used to replace state-funded faculty salary, but may be used to replace other salary support or the salary of employees (e.g., research staff).
  • Applicants from the Department of Family and Community Medicine are especially encouraged to apply.
  • The Hellman Fellows Fund intends these Fellowships as one-time awards. Anyone who has previously been awarded a Hellman Fellowship may not apply again.
• For Principles of Community Fellowships, applicants must also demonstrate:
  • Outstanding contributions to the Principles of Community at UCSF (opportunity.ucsf.edu/about/principles-community)
  • That their proposed project advances health equity

BUDGET AND PROJECT PERIOD

• Award Budget:
  • $40,000 - $70,000; most awards are made at $50,000
  • Budget requests over $50,000 will require additional justification.
• Project Period:
  • Funds are to be spent within two years from the date of Fellowship award.

SUBMISSION INFORMATION

Submit the following in ONE PDF file by 11:59 p.m., March 18, 2026, to [email protected]:

1. Proposal Cover Sheet with signatures

2. Project Summary addressing the aims of the project, broad strategy to be followed, and potential contribution to the field (4 page max, excluding references). Please indicate how your research demonstrates the following:

   a. Significance
   
   b. Innovation
   
   c. Contribution to career advancement, including why funding is needed prior to attracting other support

3. Statement of Special Challenges in Obtaining Funding (1 page max)
4. NIH Bio-sketch (5 page max, including publications) (grants.nih.gov/grants/forms/biosketch.htm)

5. Budget for project period (use PHS398 Form 4) (grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/fp4.pdf)

   a. This need not be a detailed budget and should only recite the principal elements of proposed expenditures.

   b. Fellowships cannot be used to replace state-funded salaries or state-funded resources otherwise provided by the administration to recruit or retain faculty.

6. Budget justification (applicable to all applications)

   a. Budget requests over $50,000 will require additional justification describing the special circumstances related to research (e.g., unusual travel expenses, need for equipment, etc.).

7. Three letters of recommendation from faculty members.
8. List of Current and Pending Support (amounts and sources), including a clear description of start-up package.
9. FOR RESUBMISSIONS ONLY: 250 words to address feedback from last cycle.

10. FOR PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNITY FELLOWSHIP APPLICATIONS ONLY:

    a. Principles of Community Statement to show how the applicant’s work demonstrates outstanding contributions to the Principles of Community at UCSF (½ page max).

    b. A brief statement (in addition to the narrative proposal) on how the proposed project advances health equity (½ page max).

    c. Check the “Principles of Community Fellowship” box on the application cover sheet.

Only applicants with a Principles of Community statement, language on health equity, and checked Principles of Community Fellowship box will be considered for Principles of Community Fellowships. Applicants pursuing outstanding work that meets the Principles of Community criteria may instead be selected as a “regular” Hellman Fellow. All Principles of Community applicants will be considered in both pools, but not all regular Hellman Fellowship applications will be eligible for Principles of Community Fellowships. No applicant can receive more than one fellowship.

Incomplete application packets will not be reviewed.

Review Criteria

1. Significance: Does the research proposal address an important and distinctive issue in research, medical education, clinical practice, or community engagement?

2. Investigator: Will the project further the applicant’s career development and faculty advancement?

   a. Does the proposed project fit within a coherent professional development plan for the applicant?

   b. Is the project likely to result in tangible, scholarly products (articles, new curricula, changes in clinical or educational practices, etc.)?

3. Need/impact on UCSF career: Would a Hellman award have unique strategic impact on advancing the applicant’s career?
4. Approach: Is the plan for conducting the proposed project logical, well described, and feasible?
5. Special circumstances: Does the applicant have special circumstances? Factors to consider in scoring special circumstances are whether the applicant’s scholarly program faces particular challenges because of its complexity, innovation, focus on disadvantaged populations, or other issues.
6. For Principles of Community Fellowships: Does the applicant meet all criteria required for general fellowships? Does their work demonstrate outstanding contributions to the Principles of Community at UCSF? Does their proposed project advance health equity?

The selection process for this opportunity is no longer being run through the Limited Submissions Program. Please contact [email protected] with any questions.

Internal Due Date: 11:59 p.m., Wednesday, March 18, 2026. This is a hard deadline.

Awardees will be informed by May 15, 2026.

See the UCSF Society of Hellman Fellows FAQ.

At UCSF, this program is managed by Corporate and Foundation Relations. For additional information on the UCSF application process or deadlines, please contact us.

Donate to the Society of Hellman Fellows.