Chateaubriand Fellowship 2026–27: France PhD Research Funding & Eligibility

Chateaubriand Fellowship 2026–27 at a Glance

The Chateaubriand Fellowship is a grant offered by the Embassy of France in the United States. It is designed for doctoral students enrolled at U.S. institutions who want to conduct part of their dissertation research in France and strengthen collaboration between U.S. and French research teams.

Eligibility for the 2026–27 Call

The central eligibility rules are consistent across both tracks:

• Doctoral status: applicants must currently be working toward a PhD.
• U.S. university enrolment: applicants must be registered at an American university.
• Citizenship: U.S. citizenship is not required.
• French nationality: French citizens and dual French citizens are not eligible.
• Research in France: the fellowship-supported research must be carried out in an appropriate French host institution or laboratory.
• Co-supervision: the U.S. and French advisors must agree to co-supervise the relevant part of the doctoral research.
• French language: French proficiency is not a universal programme requirement; the host institution decides whether it is needed for the proposed work.

The fellowship is reserved for doctoral researchers and is not open to bachelor’s or master’s students.

STEM/Health vs Humanities and Social Sciences

STEM and Health Track

The STEM/Health track supports doctoral research in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, biology and health-related fields. Research should be carried out in a French university, engineering school, public research laboratory or comparable research environment.

Duration and timing

The 2026–27 STEM fellowship supports a research stay of 4 to 9 months. The stay must begin between 1 September 2026 and 30 April 2027.

Funding

• Monthly allowance: up to €1,850 per month, depending on other financial support received during the stay.
• Travel: support for one round-trip airfare to France.
• Health insurance: support for insurance while abroad.

Co-sponsorship by the applicant’s U.S. university or French host institution is encouraged.

Can the STEM stay be split?

Yes, but only with approval from the Office for Science & Technology. A split stay must still total at least four months in France, and the Fellow must secure other funding for the second round-trip flight. The programme supports only one round trip.

Humanities and Social Sciences Track

The HSS track supports dissertation research across the humanities and social sciences, including law, political science, economics and related disciplines.

Four-month fellowship formats

• Fall: 1 September–31 December.
• Spring: 1 January–30 April or 1 February–31 May.

Funding

• Monthly allowance: €1,704 per month.
• Airfare: round-trip travel between the United States and France, booked exclusively by Campus France Paris, with coverage up to €1,410 when the programme’s travel-date conditions are satisfied.
• Health insurance: coverage for the fellowship period.

French Host and Co-Supervision

Applicants are responsible for identifying an appropriate French host professor, research laboratory or higher-education institution.

The U.S. doctoral advisor and French host advisor must agree that the relevant part of the dissertation research will be carried out in France under co-supervision.

What the U.S. agreement letter should show

The letter should confirm the U.S. advisor’s agreement to the France-based research period and explain how the stay benefits the student’s project, the home research group and the collaboration with the French host.

What the French invitation should show

The invitation should identify the host institution, research unit and supervisor, describe existing or planned collaboration, explain the value of the mobility period and show how the candidate will be integrated into the French research environment.

Is cotutelle required?

No. A formal joint PhD or cotutelle agreement is not required for the Chateaubriand Fellowship. Applicants already working under such an arrangement may submit the agreement as optional supporting documentation where relevant.

2026–27 Application Documents

STEM/Health application

The official STEM application requested:

• contact information;
• degree history and transcripts, with unofficial transcripts accepted;
• publication history;
• past fellowships and other fellowship applications;
• summary of thesis research in the United States;
• summary of research to be performed in France;
• a detailed description of the thesis research, including the French component, limited to three pages;
• letter of agreement from the U.S. thesis advisor;
• letter of invitation from the French project advisor;
• at least one recommendation letter from a professor who is neither the U.S. nor French advisor, with a second recommendation optional; and
• French host-laboratory contact information and collaboration details where applicable.

HSS application

The HSS application requested:

• contact and academic background information;
• main academic accomplishments;
• summary of the U.S. research project;
• summary of the France-based research project;
• detailed research-project description;
• letter of agreement from the U.S. research advisor;
• letter of invitation from the French advisor, including planned fellowship dates;
• up to three recommendation letters; and
• copies of academic transcripts.

Incomplete HSS applications are not reviewed.

How Selection Works

STEM/Health

STEM applications are assessed for the academic relevance of the research, the student’s command of the subject, the value of the France-based research period, the background of the research collaboration and the project’s contribution to France–U.S. academic exchange.

Humanities and Social Sciences

HSS uses a two-stage selection process. Experts mandated by the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research first assess the scientific quality of each project. Only applications rated “A” at this scientific-review stage proceed to the final round.

The final selection committee then considers scientific quality, overall application quality, contribution to French–U.S. research dialogue, geographic distribution and diversity of disciplines and research topics.

Université Clermont Auvergne partnership

For 2026–27, one STEM fellowship and one HSS fellowship were offered in partnership with Université Clermont Auvergne.

The STEM partnership covered areas including climate, biodiversity and health. The HSS partnership covered disciplines such as literature, history, communication, economics and law, with themes including democracy, gender, the Anthropocene and socio-economic vulnerability.

Visa and Practical Rules for Selected Fellows

Most Chateaubriand Fellows planning to stay in France for more than 90 days need a long-stay visa. The official fellow-resources page directs selected Fellows to begin with the France-Visas online application and then complete the required visa appointment through a VFS Global centre.

Depending on the host arrangement and status, Chateaubriand Fellows commonly use a student, intern or scientific long-stay visa. Selected Fellows should follow the visa instructions applicable to their individual host arrangement rather than choosing a category solely from general guidance.

French-language planning

French is not universally required, but applicants should still confirm whether their laboratory, archive, field site, interviews or institutional processes require French-language competence.

What Prospective Applicants Should Do Now

The 2026–27 competition is complete, and a 2027–28 deadline has not yet been published on the official programme site.

1. Monitor the official Chateaubriand website for the next call.
2. Identify a potential French host well before applications open.
3. Discuss co-supervision with your U.S. doctoral advisor.
4. Build a project that clearly explains why the research period in France is academically necessary.
5. Plan recommendation letters early, noting that STEM and HSS have different letter requirements.
6. Recheck the next call’s stipend, travel, visa and timing rules before submitting.

Students can also review CareerAidHub’s PhD opportunities, scholarships, and research grants and funding.