David H. Smith Conservation Biology Postdoctoral Research Fellowship

The David H. Smith Conservation Research Fellowship Program seeks to develop future world leaders and entrepreneurs who are successful at linking conservation science and application. Smith Fellowships provide two years of postdoctoral support to outstanding early-career conservation scientists.

This Fellowship is designed to enable early-career scientists to improve and expand their research skills, to direct their research efforts toward problems of pressing conservation concern, and to avail themselves of unique research opportunities by working closely with conservation practitioners. The Fellow is expected to design, initiate, and conduct an original applied research project developed in collaboration with both an academic mentor and a conservation practitioner mentor.

Fellowship Benefits

• Two year annual salary of $72,100 (2026) and $74,263 (2027), and research and travel funds totaling $40,000.

• Participation in 6 professional development retreats with targeted workshops and training opportunities.

• Lifetime membership in the Society for Conservation Biology including subscriptions to Conservation Biology and Conservation Letters.

Eligibility

These fellowships are available to post-doctoral researchers (of any nationality) affiliated with a United States institution, proposing research that addresses pressing conservation issues for the United States. To be eligible individuals must have completed their doctorate within the past three years or by the time the award is made.