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Programs
Fellowships

Kathleen L. Miller Graduate Fellowship

Fellowship

Application Deadline
April 14, 2026
Award Amount
Up to $5,000 per award

This fellowship supports research in fields generally neglected for want of a "profitable market," including diseases and conditions commonly defined as rare, newly emerging or re-emerging, or epidemic in lower- and middle-income countries, particularly those affecting people living in poverty. The fellowship provides an enduring memorial to Dr. Kathleen L. Miller, who earned her Ph.D. in immunology from UC Berkeley and built a career focused on neglected diseases such as malaria and schistosomiasis, which affects 240 million people worldwide primarily in poor communities. Though Kathy's career and passion for world travel took her around the globe, her fondness for Berkeley brought her back to work at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and later Chiron Corporation, where she made important research breakthroughs before her potential was cut short by a genetic heart arrhythmia at age 44. This fellowship honors her legacy by supporting growth in the areas to which she devoted her attention: encouraging female science students and scientists, strengthening the UC Berkeley campus, and improving the health and lives of people affected by emerging and neglected diseases.

Applications are open for 2026 - 2027 CEND Fellows. Submit one fellowship application to be considered for all CEND fellowships.

Eligible Applicants

Masters or doctoral students in any discipline, including but not limited to the life sciences, chemistry, engineering, environmental sciences, math and information sciences, economics, business, policy, and public health are eligible for the fellowship. 

To apply, you must be mentored by a UC Berkeley affiliated investigator. Individuals from communities underrepresented in the biomedical and public health sectors are particularly encouraged to apply.

Applications are open for 2026 - 2027 CEND Fellows. Submit one fellowship application to be considered for all CEND fellowships.

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Upload required documents

Please upload all required documents for this fellowship. Documents must be clearly labeled.

  1. Curriculum Vitae (Max 2 pages)
  2. Current Research: Project background, aims, methods, and technical and health significance (1 page)
  3. Professional Development Proposal (½ page)
  4. Budget: All expected expenses related to professional development costs. This can be for a side research project or software/equipment/reagents not funded through your PIs lab, travel to a conference or for a research exchange, etc. (½ page)
  5. Recommendation from a faculty mentor (1 paragraph)
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Add any additional notes

Please let us know anything that is important about you or your application that might fall outside of this standard format.

Submit Application

When you have competed all of the above steps, please submit your application.

You will receive a confirmation email of your application and the documents you have submitted. if you do not receive a confirmation email, please contact us.

If you’d like to make a change or add additional materials, reply back to the confirmation email.

Evaluation

Evaluation will be based on technical merit, the relevance of the project to emerging and neglected infectious diseases, and the alignment of the proposed project with the student's academic goals.

As part of the application, you must develop a brief research proposal with the guidance of one or more faculty mentors at UC Berkeley (or UCSF if you are a UC Berkeley PhD student completing dissertation research at UCSF). Applications will be reviewed by a panel of CEND faculty members.

Research proposals should clearly identify the fellow’s role in the project (as distinguished from the roles of faculty mentors or members of the lab), the specific objectives of any time spent abroad, the deliverables expected by the end of the fellowship, and distinguish between work completed at UC Berkeley versus abroad. Students are encouraged to spend time in lower- and middle-income countries when it aligns with their research goals.

For all inquiries about this Fellowship or to add additional documents or make changes - please reach out to:
CEND