Eligibility Criteria

• Nominees for the New Faculty Fellowship Program must be nominated by their universities, and their nominations must be confirmed by a letter from their university Provost’s office. Direct applications from new faculty members are not accepted.
• No more than one nomination from each university will be accepted. An emphasis is placed on nominations from departments working on computing research areas and on areas that involve the innovative application of computing.
• Applications may only be submitted through the online application system at https://microsoft.redwhale.com/index.asp by the application contact designated by the university Provost’s office.
• Nominees must hold a tenure-track faculty position in a U.S. or Canadian research university, and may be no more than six years from the completion of their most recent Ph.D., Sc.D., or M.D. Ph.D.
• Nominees must be new faculty members in the first, second, or third year of their first faculty appointment.
• Three (3) letters of recommendation are required from established researchers familiar with the nominee’s research. Of these letters, one (1) letter of recommendation should come from within the nominating institution, and the other two (2) letters should come from outside the nominating institution.

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Application Process

• Applications will be accepted only when submitted through the online application system at https://microsoft.redwhale.com/index.asp, starting in October 2008.
• All application materials should be submitted by the person designated as the application contact by the university Provost’s office. See the Required Application Information section below for a detailed list of the required application content.
• Applications submitted to Microsoft will not be returned. Microsoft cannot assume responsibility for the confidentiality of information in submitted applications. Therefore, applications should not contain information that is confidential, restricted, or sensitive. Microsoft reserves the right to make public information from applications that receive awards, except those portions containing budgetary or personally identifiable information.
• Applications must be received no later than 12:00 noon, Pacific Daylight Time (PDT), November 3, 2008. The online application system at https://microsoft.redwhale.com/index.asp will no longer be active after the application deadline.
• The 2009 New Faculty Fellowship awards will be announced in spring 2009.
• Due to the volume of submissions, Microsoft Research cannot provide individual feedback on applications that do not receive Fellowship awards.

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Required Application Information

Authorized Nominator Information

The “Authorized Nominator Name on Behalf of the Provost” is the person named as the application contact by the university Provost’s office, and should be a person other than the nominee.

• Institution Name
• Provost Name
• Authorized Nominator Name on Behalf of the Provost
• Primary email address of the Nominator
• Primary phone number of the Nominator
• Primary mailing address of the Nominator

Nominee Information

• Nominee Name
• Nominee Title
• Nominee Department
• Primary email address of the Nominee
• Primary phone number of the Nominee
• Primary mailing address of the Nominee Institution Name

Application Questions

Microsoft Research recognizes that advancing the state of the art takes different forms when working in interdisciplinary research areas. Strong interdisciplinary research is welcomed and will receive due consideration in the review process.

• What is the innovative merit of the nominee’s research?
  (Maximum word count = 250)
• How does the nominee’s work have the potential to advance the state of the art?
  (Maximum word count = 300)
• How is the university currently supporting the nominee’s work?
  (Maximum word count = 100)
• Does the nominee’s current work receive funding from other grant sources? If yes, please list.
  (Maximum word count = 50)
• Provide a statement detailing the hypothesis, objectives, and methodology of the nominee’s research work and plans. Include a brief description of how the award funds would be used.
  (Maximum word count = 650)

Application Attachments

• A brief letter from the Office of the Provost authorizing the application, confirming that the nominee named in the letter is the sole nominee from the institution, and providing the name of a second person who will serve as the application contact on behalf of the university.
  (Maximum word count = 50)
• Three (3) letters of recommendation are required from established researchers familiar with the nominee’s research. Of these letters, one (1) letter of recommendation should come from within the nominating institution, and the other two (2) letters should come from outside the nominating institution.
  (Maximum word count of recommendation letters = 500)
• Nominee’s curriculum vita.

For more information about eligibility criteria or the application process, see the New Faculty Fellows Frequently Asked Questions.

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