Fellowships

The Huck institutes of the Life Sciences offer sabbatical fellowships for outstanding non-PSU faculty, industry professionals, and people from non-governmental organizations who are interested in exploring new lines of inquiry and investing in a longer-term, potentially transformational project with faculty and graduate students associated with one of the Huck Institutes Centers of Excellence.

Centers are focused in the broad areas of Genomic Science, Infectious Disease Dynamics, Plant Biology, Ecology and Neurosciences with additional areas in Metabolomics, Microbiome, Reproductive Biology and Health, and Chemical Ecology. Fellows are welcome to stay for a semester. In some circumstances, where stipend support is not available from a home institution or through a grant, financial support can be provided up to a maximum of $30,000 per semester to help offset local housing, transportation, or incidental expenses (reimbursed monthly and in accordance with Policy AC01 Visiting Scholars). We expect research expenses to be covered by the Penn State faculty host.

The following are the minimum eligibility criteria for a Huck sabbatical fellowship which is in accordance with Policy AC01 – Visiting Scholars and the Visiting Scholars Procedures):

• The proposed Visiting Scholar must be visiting from, and affiliated with, an outside (U.S. or foreign) university, institution, or business.
• The proposed Visiting Scholar must have a Ph.D. degree or equivalent.
• The faculty host must agree to serve as host of the proposed Visiting Scholar.
• Since the Huck sabbatical is intended to be for more than 14 days, the Visiting Scholar must undergo a successful background check (University Policy HR99 – Background Check Process). The background check must be completed prior to granting such Visiting Scholars access to University facilities.
• The Visiting Scholar must complete the Significant Financial Interest Disclosure Form in the event the Visiting Scholar will be responsible for University research during the visit.
• If the proposed Visiting Scholar is intending to arrive on a J-1 visa sponsored by the University, additional criteria must be met. Please consult with Global Programs to learn more about the minimum requirements for a J-1 visa. If the international Visiting Scholar is not requiring Visa support from the University, then they must submit an International Visiting Scholar Export Review Request Form available at the University Export Compliance website at least thirty (30) days prior to arrival at University facilities.
• As a condition of the visit, Visiting Scholars may be required to obtain personal health insurance. Request for exceptions to the minimum eligibility criteria must be made in writing and submitted to the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs for approval.
• Regardless of the duration or purpose of the visit, in order to comply with federal export control laws and regulations, and to comply with University Policy AD89, all proposed international Visiting Scholars are subject to an export review prior to arrival.

Visiting Scholars also are eligible for the following:

• Access to University facilities and resources (e.g., libraries, laboratories, etc.), as deemed appropriate by the Faculty Host and in accordance with University policies. The Faculty Host is responsible for informing the Visiting Scholar prior to arrival about the approved access to University facilities and resources.
• Office space, if deemed appropriate by the Faculty Host. The Faculty Host is responsible for issuing the appropriate office or laboratory key(s) and should be cognizant of the need to be cautious about issuing such access and must consider export control, conflict of interest, and other factors. Upon the completion of the Visiting Scholar’s term at the University, the Faculty Host must collect all keys issued to the Visiting Scholar.
• Penn State email address, paid for by the Faculty Host and available only to those Visiting Scholars whose visits to the University are fourteen (14) consecutive days or more, the primary purpose of which is to enable Visiting Scholars to send and receive electronic University correspondence. Upon completion of the Visiting Scholar’s term at the University, the University will disable the Penn State email address and all Penn State IT access assigned to the Visiting Scholar.
• University Identification Card (ID card), paid for by the Faculty Host, will be issued, via Identity Management Services in the Office of Information Security, to all Visiting Scholars whose visit to the University is at least thirty (30) calendar days. The primary purpose of the ID card is to enable Visiting Scholars to use University publicly accessible facilities, such as the Library. Upon completion of the Visiting Scholar’s term at the University, the Faculty Host or their designee must collect the University ID card from the Visiting Scholar. Please see University Policy HR102 (Separation and Transfer Protocol) for further information generally regarding the return of University property.

Fellows will be expected to be actively involved with a Center within The Huck Institutes, have an open invitation to weekly lecture series. In exchange, we encourage Fellows to consider running an informal graduate class for students and postdoctoral workers in the center and giving a talk or two about their research.

Application Process for Huck Sabbatical Fellows for Fourteen (14) Consecutive Days or More:

• Potential fellows should submit a full curriculum vitae along with the following one-page summary of their objectives and the name of the Center and faculty host they would like to work with to Brittany Grimes (e-mail: bng10@psu.edu) for review and approval by the Huck Executive Board.
• If approved, the host faculty's department will initiate the Letter of Invitation, Visiting Scholar Agreement, and the Significant Financial Interest Disclosure Form for the individual to complete and sign.
• The host department will submit the fully executed Visiting Scholar Agreement, Letter of Invitation, Significant Financial Interest Disclosure form, and full curriculum vitae in the online Visiting Scholar Request form for approval by the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs.
• If approved, the Visiting Scholar must successfully complete the University background check before commencing the visit.
• If a University J-1 visa sponsored by the University is needed, the faculty host's department will initiate the processing of the J-1 visa.

Please fill out the form below if you are interested:

• 2023 Huck Sabbatical Fellowship Form

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