Africa-China Post-Doctoral Fellowship 2027-2028 (Funded)

Overview

The Africa-China Post-Doctoral Fellowship 2027-2028 is an 18-month, three-semester fellowship offered by the Africa-China Initiative (ACI) at the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, in partnership with the Center for African Studies at Howard University. Its purpose is to expand African scholarship, expertise and perspectives on Africa-China relations, and more broadly Africa-Asia and Global South relations, by supporting research by an early-career scholar and strengthening teaching at both universities and across the Washington, DC area.

The fellow must live in the Washington, DC area for at least 18 consecutive months and will spend about half their time at Georgetown and half at Howard. The fellowship begins in the Spring Semester of 2027, in January 2027, and ends at the close of the Spring Semester of 2028, in June 2028. It is funded through an ACI grant from the Henry Luce Foundation and administered by Georgetown University.

What you get

The fellow is paid at a rate of $72,000 a year plus benefits. One round-trip domestic or international flight is provided for the whole fellowship period. If funds are available, there may be opportunities for domestic travel within the US to at least one academic conference or workshop.

Who can apply

The fellowship is open to non-tenured and tenured holders of a PhD from an accredited university, with a particular interest in early- and mid-career scholars with broad international experience and a strong Africa-China research record. Applicants should have relevant research in history, political science, international relations, global studies, sociology, economics, anthropology or related fields. They are assessed on the originality and quality of their scholarship and their record on Africa-China issues. Interests of particular note include human mobility, climate change and natural resource extraction, trade and debt, shifting global power dynamics, and transregional engagements between Africa and China.

How to apply

Applicants submit a cover letter, a CV, two reference letters, a 500-word research or publication proposal for the fellowship, and a writing sample such as a dissertation chapter, book chapter or article.

Key dates

The application deadline is November 15, 2026, and the reference letters must be received by October 31, 2026.