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Members of the Yale School of the Environment (YSE) community have easy access to a curated list of global, external funding opportunities for graduate students and postdocs using this new database.  The service is maintained by a collaboration among the School’s Offices of Admissions and Financial Aid, Career and Professional Development (CPD), and Research.

The database contains detailed information on research grants, internship stipends, travel funds, tuition scholarships, and other awards of interest to members of the School’s community.  Opportunities and deadlines are updated frequently - please check back regularly.  We do our best to keep the content of the database current, but if you see an opportunity that appeals to you and whose deadline has passed, click the associated link to see if a new competition has been announced.

If you are aware of a funding opportunity and it is not listed, please forward a link to Pamela Welch for inclusion.  Let’s crowd source the listings so that we have the most comprehensive database available.

Do you have questions or want to provide feedback?  Contact any of the YSE External Funds DB team members:

Watch this video on how to navigate the External Fund Database. It’s a quick walkthrough to help you get started!

Open Funding Opportunities

Organization Summary Open Deadline Low High
Smithsonian Institution Fellowship Program (SIFP) - Graduate Student Fellowships
A 10-week, in-residence fellowship offering $10,000 for graduate students to conduct independent research using Smithsonian collections, facilities, and staff expertise. Open to eligible master’s students in fields such as environmental science, anthropology, earth sciences, biology, history, materials research, and related interdisciplinary areas.
 October 15, 2026 $10,000
Smithsonian Institution Fellowship Program (SIFP) - Postdoctoral Fellowships

A one-year postdoctoral fellowship offering a $57,000 stipend, plus health, relocation, and research expenses, for early-career scientists conducting research in areas such as ecology, biological conservation, systematics, paleobiology, climate change, habitat loss, and invasive species. Fellows may often stay for a second year, with continued funding contingent on satisfactory progress, and applicants are encouraged to coordinate with a SERC scientist before applying.

 October 15, 2026 $57,000
Smithsonian Institution Fellowship Program (SIFP) - Predoctoral Fellowships

A one-year fellowship providing a $45,000 stipend plus allowances for Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral candidates conducting dissertation research at the Smithsonian. Applicants must have completed preliminary coursework and exams, with all doctoral requirements except the dissertation met by the start of the appointment.

 October 15, 2026 $45,000
Laura Bassi Scholarship

Scholarship for editorial assistance

 November 15, 2026 $500 $2,500
Association of American Geographers (AAG): Research Grants

The application window for the 2027 grants will reopen in 2026.

Research grant of up to $500 for geography research or fieldwork (excluding Masters or Doctoral dissertation research)

 November 15, 2026 $500
American Philosophical Society (APS): Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research
The Lewis and Clark Fund encourages exploratory field studies for the collection of specimens and data and to provide the imaginative stimulus that accompanies direct observation.
 November 16, 2026 $100 $5,400
American Society for Environmental History (ASEH) - Hal Rothman Dissertation Fellowship

The Hal Rothman Research Fellowship supports PhD students in environmental history with a $1,000 award for research and travel in 2026. Open to graduate students in any PhD program worldwide.

 
 September 1, 2026 November 20, 2026 $1,000
American Museum of Natural History: Frank M. Chapman Grants

Grants for research in several aspects of ornithology are supported by the Fund. Three categories of grants are available from the Fund, based on a competitive evaluation of the nature and quality of the proposed research.

 November 30, 2026 $1,000 $3,500