ABF/AccessLex Institute Doctoral Fellowship Program in Legal & Education
Listed on 2026-02-23
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Education / Teaching
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Academic, University Professor
Overview
Applications for the ABF/Access Lex Institute Doctoral Fellowship Program in Legal & Higher Education for the 2026-27 academic year are now open.
The American Bar Foundation (ABF), in partnership with Access Lex Institute, is committed to developing the next generation of scholars interested in empirical and interdisciplinary research on legal and higher education. Since 2017, the ABF has hosted doctoral and postdoctoral fellows in the ABF/Access Lex Fellowship Program in Legal & Higher Education. The purpose of the fellowship is to assist emerging scholars who are studying issues of access, affordability, or value in legal and higher education.
This fellowship program seeks to cultivate a professional network of scholars who will produce innovative, objective, empirical, and interdisciplinary research in the field. The ABF invites applications for one doctoral fellowship that will begin in September 2026.
The Doctoral Fellow will receive an annual stipend of $48,000. The Fellow will not be an employee of the ABF and must retain benefits, including healthcare, through their home institution. The Fellow will have access to a modest research account to reimburse expenses associated with research, travel to meet with advisors, or travel to conferences at which papers are presented. Reasonable relocation expenses may be reimbursed.
TenureThe Fellowship will be awarded for one year, beginning September 1, 2026. There is a possibility that the Fellowship may be continued for a second year, beginning September 1, 2027, if the ABF receives renewed external funding to support it.
ConditionsFellowships are held in residence at the ABF and are full time. Because this is a full-time program, the ABF does not allow fellows to hold concurrent fellowships, but we support fellows to apply for research grants. Fellows are expected to participate fully in the academic life of the ABF so that they may develop close collegial ties with ABF faculty and other scholars in residence.
EligibilityApplications are invited from outstanding students who are candidates for LLM degrees, SJD degrees, and Ph.D. degrees across a broad range of disciplines, who will have completed all doctoral requirements except the dissertation by September 1, 2026. Doctoral research must address significant issues in the field and show promise of a major contribution to social scientific understanding of legal or higher education.
Students from underrepresented minority groups and those attending schools not typically represented among law faculty are especially encouraged to apply. While there are no citizenship requirements for this fellowship, please note that we do not have the institutional capacity to sponsor visas, and the ABF is unable to advise on individual visa matters. If you have questions, we encourage you to discuss your circumstances with the international student services office at your institution.
Applicants must include:
- Awareness of and ability to articulate understanding regarding diversity broadly conceived, and historical, social, and economic factors that influence the under representation of particular groups in academia. Life experience may be an important aspect of this understanding.
- A track record, calibrated to career stage, of engagement and activity related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Specific details about these activities should be provided, including goals, strategies,…
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