August 2008
| Fellowship Application Login | Frequently Asked Questions |
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)-sponsored Einstein Fellowship Program provides an opportunity for highly qualified, recent postdoctoral scientists to conduct independent research that is broadly related to the scientific mission of the NASA Physics of the Cosmos program as addressed by any of the missions of this program. These include high energy astrophysics relevant to the Chandra, Fermi (formerly GLAST), XMM-Newton, INTEGRAL, and IXO (formerly Constellation-X) missions, cosmological investigations relevant to the Planck and JDEM missions, and gravitational astrophysics relevant to the LISA mission. This research can include new observations or archival studies with these missions as well as related theoretical studies and studies of sources from these missions at other wavelengths. The main criterion for proposal selection is the contribution of the proposed research program to the scientific return of the Physics of the Cosmos missions. A Fellow's program in this area may be specifically appraised for continuation of the fellowship after the second year. Each Fellow will choose the United States host institution in which the research will be conducted.
The Fellowship provides support for up to three years at an annual stipend of approximately $60,500 plus benefits (as described below), and some allowance for travel and other research costs. Contingent upon NASA funding, up to 10 Einstein Fellowships will be awarded in 2009.
Proposals will be reviewed by an independent panel of scientists. The Einstein Fellowship Program is administered by the Chandra X-Ray Center (CXC) for NASA, in cooperation with institutions throughout the United States. Awards will be made to support each Einstein Fellow through a Host Institution designated by the Fellow.
An application for the Fellowship consists of a research proposal and supporting documentation, as described below. Applicants must have received their Ph.D. or equivalent degree in 2006 or later. The deadline for receipt of applications is FRIDAY NOVEMBER 7, 2008 (5:00 pm EST). Award offers will be made by February 1, 2009, with the Fellowships expected to begin in September, 2009.
Applicants must have received a Ph.D., Sc.D., or equivalent doctoral-level research degree in astronomy, physics, or a related discipline after January 1, 2006. Applicants who have not yet formally received their degree must present evidence of having completed the academic requirements before commencing the Fellowship.
Einstein Fellowships are open to citizens of the United States and to English-speaking citizens of other countries. [Note: The United States is defined as the 50 states and the District of Columbia.] Qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, creed, color, age, sex, or national origin. Women and minorities are strongly encouraged to apply.
Contingent upon the availability of funding from NASA, Einstein Fellowships are awarded through grants to Host Institutions. Applicants may select any United States institution for carrying out their research as long as the choice is suitably justified in their proposal. Justification is particularly important in cases where the selected institution is the institution at which the applicant earned his/her degree, or is the current home institution of the applicant.
A faculty member or a member of the scientific staff of the Host Institution shall serve as the principal contact for scientific purposes and will be the Principal Investigator of the Fellow's grant for administrative purposes.
In order to avoid a concentration of Fellows at any one institution, only one Fellow from each annual competition will be approved for any single institution. For this reason, applicants are asked to propose three prospective Host Institutions, in order of preference. As part of the application procedure (described in detail below), an endorsement letter from the first-choice Host Institution is required. No prior endorsement from the two alternative institutions is required.
The purpose of designating second- and third-choice institutions in the application is to provide the program with flexibility should there be an oversubscription of winners at any single institution. Barring this circumstance, it is expected that winners will utilize their Fellowships at their first-choice institutions.
In general, Fellows will work full-time on the research programs proposed in their applications and will be in residence at the proposed Host Institution during the entire period of the Fellowship. However, should a Fellow decide to work at an institution other than the original Host Institution, upon approval from the Director of the CXC through the Einstein Fellowship Program Office, the grant to the Host Institution will be closed on an equitable basis (termination for convenience), and the grant awarded to the new Host Institution.
The initial annual stipend for a Einstein Fellow will be approximately $60,500 and will be subject to annual review and adjustment. In addition, the Einstein Fellow can receive health insurance, relocation costs, and moderate support (up to $15,000 per year) for travel, computing services, publications, and other direct costs.
It is expected that Fellows will devote their full-time effort to their research programs. No additional stipend, salary, or other remuneration may be accepted from another appointment, fellowship, or similar grant during the period of the Fellowship. Einstein Fellows shall not be offered a housing subsidy or allowance beyond what is routinely offered to astronomy and physics post-docs or fellows connected with that institution.
Contingent upon the availability of funding from NASA, Einstein Fellowships are awarded through grants to Host Institutions for up to a three-year period. Funding will be provided initially for the first 2 years of the Fellowship. Renewal for third year will depend on a review of scientific activity, particularly as related to Physics of the Cosmos research.
These Fellowships are analogous to research fellowships or similar temporary programs at the postdoctoral level at universities. They are not intended to be, nor to compete with, permanent professional career positions.
It should also be understood that a Einstein Fellowship carries with it no guarantee of observing time on Physics of the Cosmos missions.
Awards are made on the basis of a review of the applicant's research proposal as well as the curriculum vitae, list of publications, summary of previous and current research, and three letters of reference. The details of the application are described fully below.
The deadline for application for the current cycle is FRIDAY NOVEMBER 7, 2008 (5:00 pm EST). All application materials, including those not sent directly by the applicant, must be received at the CXC by this date. Incomplete applications and/or applications received after November 7, 2008, will not be considered. We strongly suggest that applicants begin the online application process early so all questions and issues that arise from this process are resolved before final submittal of application materials. All questions, including technical questions, related to our online program, may be directed to fellows@head.cfa.harvard.edu.
Note: After logging in to the online application, select "View Status" to check what is still incomplete before your final submission. All edits and changes to your application are accepted until the final deadline.
Applicants should complete the entire application on the web, including the uploading of files listed below. If you are unable to apply online, contact fellows@head.cfa.harvard.edu.
The online application process begins with your initial registration that
includes providing an email address and self-generated password. After
your password is verified, select "Edit Application" to enter your Personal
Data, File Uploads, and References.
More information about registering for the first time is given in the
FAQ section.
The applicant should upload the following files directly through the webpage:
All materials submitted must be in at least 11-point fonts.
Files must not be more than 10 Mbt in size.
Note: pdf files can be uploaded into the application. Use the "Browse" button or type the full path and file name in the box provided. For best results, upload pdf files. If you are unable to do so, plain text files are acceptable.
You may review previously loaded files by clicking on the link provided. When prompted for username and password, use the email address and password you used when registering.
Be sure to check the latex'ed (pdf) version of the application at the website, particularly the cover page, to see that it latex'ed properly. ``Bad" latex characters (% $ &) must be escaped, e.g. \%.
Each applicant must formulate a specific research plan that is related to Physics of the Cosmos (PoC) science and is generally compatible with the research activities of the Host Institution. The proposed research need not be based directly on PoC data, but its relevance to PoC science must be stated clearly and unambiguously. Relevance to the PoC missions will be interpreted broadly, and encompasses both observational and theoretical research.
The text of the research proposal should be AT MOST THREE PAGES in length, with 1-2 additional pages allowable for references, figures and tables. Reviewers will be instructed to ignore any pages in excess of the stated limits. It is valuable to reviewers if the proposal includes a plan showing how the work is expected to progress throughout the three years. The proposal material which is sent to reviewers is duplicated in black and white. If it is essential that figures be in color, 15 hardcopies of the research proposal must be received by 5:00 pm EST November 7, 2008 by:
Einstein Fellowship Program Office
Chandra X-ray Center
60 Garden Street, MS 4
Cambridge, MA 02138
U.S.A.
Applicants must arrange for their research proposals to be read and approved by a faculty member or member of the scientific staff of the first-choice Host Institution (the Science Contact), and endorsed by an official of the first-choice Host Institution. The endorsement should be sent directly to the CXC by the first-choice Host Institution BEFORE THE APPLICATION DEADLINE. The institutional endorsement is necessary to indicate that adequate facilities will be provided for the Einstein Fellow, but does not ensure selection by the Einstein Fellowship Review Panel. This endorsement should consist of an endorsement letter from an authorizing official (typically the department chairperson) of the first-choice Host Institution. A possible endorsement letter is as follows:
Einstein Fellowship Program Office
I am writing in regard to [applicant's name]'s application for a Einstein Fellowship. We have reviewed his/her research proposal entitled "[program title]" and are pleased to endorse it and to inform you that we will welcome him/her here and offer him/her support and facilities should a Fellowship be offered. Dr. [science contact's name] has agreed to serve as his/her Science Contact.
Sincerely yours,
Chairperson
These letters must be received by the application deadline. Pdf or Word documents are preferred. Plain text is also acceptable.
The procedure for submitting endorsement letters is as follows:
This is what the letter writer sees at the URL provided:
2 buttons are provided:
The "Submit Letter" button must then be clicked to complete the submission.
After a successful submission, a screen comes up to indicate the new document.
The letter writer will also receive a confirmation email.
Applicants are responsible for ensuring that the endorsement letter has been received. Use the "View Status" feature to check for the receipt of each letter of reference.
If the host institution requires that someone other than the Science Contact submit the endorsement letter, he/she may email it to Fellowship Program Office at fellows@head.cfa.harvard.edu or send it to:
Einstein Fellowship Program Office
Chandra X-Ray Center
60 Garden Street, MS 4
Cambridge, MA 02138
U.S.A.
Applicants should arrange for letters of reference to be submitted by three individuals familiar with their scientific abilities, whose names are to be listed on the standard application form. APPLICANTS SHOULD EMPHASIZE TO THEIR REFEREES THAT THE LETTERS MUST BE RECEIVED AT THE CXC BY NOVEMBER 7, 2008 (5:00 pm EST), in order for the review panelists to be able to see the letters.
These letters should be pdf (preferably) or Word documents. Plain text is also acceptable.
The procedure for submitting reference letters is as follows:
This is what the letter writer will see at the URL provided:
Two buttons are provided:
Click on the Upload letter button, and a box to provide the file location for the letter is supplied. DO NOT hit the return after providing the file location.
The "Submit Letter" button must then be clicked to complete the submission.
After a successful submission, a screen comes up to indicate the new document.
The letter writer will also receive a confirmation email.
Applicants are responsible for ensuring that letters of reference have been received. Use the "View Status" feature to check for the receipt of each letter of reference. If your referee is unable to upload a copy of your reference electronically, he/she may email it to Fellowship Program Office at fellows@head.cfa.harvard.edu or send it to:
Einstein Fellowship Program Office
Chandra X-ray Center
60 Garden Street, MS 4
Cambridge, MA 02138
U.S.A.
Requests for additional information on application procedures and supporting documents can be made in the following ways:
World Wide Web: http://cxc.harvard.edu/helpdesk/
e-mail: fellows@head.cfa.harvard.edu
The Einstein Fellowship Program Office at the CXC will receive all application materials and supporting documents. These will be reviewed by the Einstein Fellowship Review Panel in January 2009.
The evaluation and recommendation by this external review panel forms the basis on which the Director of the CXC grants the Einstein Fellowship awards.
Offers for Einstein 2009 Fellowships will be made by the Director of the CXC on or about February 1, 2009, and acceptance or refusal must be made on or before February 15, 2009. After this date other offers may be made if some Fellowships are not accepted.
The Einstein Fellowship should generally begin by September 1, 2009, but other starting dates may, in individual cases, be jointly negotiated with the Fellow, the Host Institution, and the Einstein Fellowship Program Office. All Fellowships must in any case commence by the end of 2009.
Non-U.S. nationals will normally apply for an Exchange Visitor visa sponsored by their Host Institution. For Immigrant visas, the awardee must apply independently. Foreign nationals who intend to work at U. S. government institutions should ensure that they are eligible to work at their chosen Host Institution.
The Host Institution and the individual Einstein Fellow are responsible for complying with matters related to income taxes.
A health insurance program must be provided by the Host Institution for the Fellow. Funding for this purpose may be requested in the submitted budget consistent with the Host Institution policies on this matter.
It is the responsibility of the Fellow to become familiar with the policies of the Host Institution concerning these matters.
After the selection process, Fellows and Host Institutions will be notified of the intent to award a fellowship grant to the Host Institution. The Host Institution should then submit a formal budget, signed by an authorizing official, to the SAO Grant Awards Section. Allowable budget expenses include health insurance, relocation expenses (first year only), and direct support costs, such as expenses for the Fellow's professional travel during the appointment, computing services, publication costs, and other direct research costs.
In preparing the budget, an institution's indirect cost rate may not be applied against either the fellowship stipend or the health insurance.
Note: A budget should not be submitted with the Fellowship application. Detailed budget instructions will be mailed to successful applicants and their Host Institutions.
Publication in refereed journals is highly encouraged. Einstein Fellows should identify themselves as such and should acknowledge the Einstein Fellowship grant as follows: "Support for this work was provided by NASA through the Einstein Fellowship Program, grant xxxxx."
What happened to the Chandra and GLAST Fellowship programs?
Both the Chandra and GLAST Fellowship programs now fall within the scope
of the Einstein Fellowship program. (Note that GLAST is now Fermi.)
How do I apply?
Applications are accepted online until
November 7, 2008, 5:00 pm EST, through our website.
How do I register online?
Go to the
Einstein Fellowship Application Login page
and select "Update Account." On that screen, select "Register" and you
will be asked for your name and a password of your choice. The
"Register Now" button will register you.
When is the deadline?
The deadline is November 7, 2008, 5:00 pm EST.
It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure that
all materials, including letters of recommendation, are received by the
deadline.
Incomplete applications -- and/or applications received after November 7, 2008
-- will not be considered.
Who is eligible?
You must have received your PhD after January 1, 2006.
You must receive your PhD before beginning the Fellowship.
If awarded a Fellowship, you must begin it before Dec. 30, 2009.
Where are the Application Instructions?
They are online on the Application Procedure web page.
What will I see on the Application website?
After registering or logging into the website the window will offer you
several choices, among them:
What if the PDF file is not created?
The first thing to check is that "bad" latex characters (% $ &)
have been escaped, e.g. \%.
How should letters of recommendation be submitted?
Letters of reference should be submitted by
three "referees" familiar with your scientific abilities
and must be received by the application deadline,
November 7, 2008, 5:00 pm EST. They
should be pdf (preferably) or Word documents, or plain text.
Applicants are responsible
for ensuring that letters of reference have been received.
Use the "View Status" feature to check for the receipt of a
reference letter.
The steps in submitting a letter are:
Einstein Fellowship Program Office
Chandra X-Ray Center
60 Garden Street, MS 4
Cambridge, MA 02138
U.S.A.
What does a letter writer see?
When the letter writer goes to the url provided for uploading
the letter 2 buttons are provided:
The letter writer will also receive a confirmation email.
What format is required for uploading files?
Files should be in pdf format. If this is not possible, plain text
is acceptable.
How should endorsement letters be submitted?
Applicants must arrange for their research proposals to be read and
approved by a faculty member or member of the scientific staff
of the first-choice Host Institution (the
Science Contact), and endorsed by an official of that
institution, typically the department chair.
The endorsement should be sent directly to
the CXC by BEFORE THE APPLICATION DEADLINE.
Pdf or Word documents are preferred. Plain text is also acceptable.
The procedure for submitting endorsement letters is as follows:
Applicants are responsible for ensuring that letters of reference have been received. Use the "View Status" feature to check for the receipt of each letter of reference.
If the host institution requires that someone other than the Science Contact submit the endorsement letter, he/she may email it to Fellowship Program Office at fellows@head.cfa.harvard.edu or send it to:
Einstein Fellowship Program Office
Chandra X-Ray Center
60 Garden Street, MS 4
Cambridge, MA 02138
U.S.A.
Can I edit my application online?
Yes, you can access the application as many times as you want until
the deadline. You can enter more information or edit existing information
each time. You can upload new files to replace existing ones until
the deadline.
How can I tell if my Fellowship Application is complete?
After logging in, use the "View Application Status" button. Any
incomplete items are marked in red.
Note that if letters of
reference have not arrived, it is your job to see that the
referees send them in.
If my password does not work, what should I do?
On the "Fellowship Application: Login" page select "Reset Password"
and a new password will be emailed
to you if you have already successfully registered.
What should I do if I notice an error in my application after I submit it?
Until the deadline, you can access the application to make corrections,
including uploading new versions of the pdf files.
What if I have other questions?
Please send us a question at:
World Wide Web: http://cxc.harvard.edu/helpdesk/
e-mail: fellows@head.cfa.harvard.edu
Last modified: 08/24/11