Lemann Center Visiting Fellowship Program at Stanford

Application process and requirements

First stage

Applicants – Visiting Scholars and Visiting Student Researchers - should fill out an online application form (see below) and upload the following documents:

1) Resume (click here for more about how to write a resume): The document must be 2 pages and in English. The file should be saved in PDF or Word format. The applications that do not follow these conditions will be rejected without review.

2) Statement of purpose & research interests. The document should address the following items:

Part 1:

• your commitment to the field of education;
• your background experience in the field of education;
• your long-term goals and ambitions.

Part 2:

• your goals as a Visiting Scholar / Visiting Student Researcher at the Lemann Center;
• research questions or projects that you intend to investigate while at Stanford;
• how the Lemann Center professors could help with your research;
• the challenges and potential to investigate these research questions during your stay at Stanford;
• how your research questions can contribute to the improvement of education in Brazil.

The document should be no more than 3 pages and must be in English. The file should be saved in PDF or Word format. The applications that violate these conditions will be rejected without review.

3) In the online application form, you must upload at least one sample of your work. In addition, you may want to upload one academic publication (for example, a paper or a book chapter), and/or one portfolio of a patent or invention, and/or other publications (such as a report or a website).

4) Referrals:

Visiting Scholar applicants – a letter of recommendation is not required. Instead, enter two names and contact information for referrals in the application form.

Visiting Student Researcher applicants – a maximum of two recommendation letters is required. We strongly recommend that the letters be written by someone who has worked closely with you, not by renowned professionals who do not know you well. The letters must have at most 2 pages and must be in English. The file should be saved in PDF or Word format. The letters should be uploaded on your application form or uploaded by your recommenders directly using the link below.

The applications that violate these conditions will be rejected without review.

Note: We want people who can describe you and your work in detail. A common mistake is to ask for letters from “famous” people in Brazil who do not know you well or will write a very short letter. We are not necessarily impressed by the fact that famous or powerful people know you, we want to hear from people who have worked closely with you and know about your potential and prior accomplishments.

Links for the first stage of the application process:

Application form: Visiting Scholar and Visiting Student Researcher program applicants should use this form to enter their information and upload the required documents (resume, statement of purpose, statement of research interests, and publications).

Visiting Scholar/Student Application

Recommendation form: this link should be used by the letter-writers to upload the reference letter and to answer questions about the applicant’s work.

Recommendation form

Second Stage

Selected applicants will be contacted via email for an interview by the Lemann Center professors. The interview will be conducted in English.

Because of the large number of applications we receive, we are unable to notify applicants who have not been chosen to move forward.

Those who are not admitted to the program can reapply in the future.

The Fellowship Award

FULLY FUNDED by Lemann Center category:

• Visiting Scholar: the fellowship award will provide up to US$2,000 for an airline ticket (round trip), plus a US$16,500 award for most living expenses for the entire 3-month period.  
• Visiting Student Researcher: the fellowship award will provide up to US$2,000 for an airline ticket (round trip), plus a US$15,000 (including tuition) award for most living expenses for the entire 3-month period. 

SELF-FUNDED and PARTIALLY FUNDED by Lemann Center category:

• Visiting Scholar: can combine funds from different sources and must present proof of US$3,000 per month for living expenses during the period of visit, in accordance with US policy and Stanford policy. Please get in touch with us if you need more explanations about this issue. (*)
• Visiting Student Researcher: can combine funds from different sources and must present proof of approximately US$3,900 (including tuition) per month for living expenses + tuition during the period of visit, in accordance with US policy and Stanford policy. Please get in touch with us if you need more explanations about this issue. (*)

(*) This award may or may not include Lemann Center funds. 

Note: Fellowship payments are subject to around 14% federal income tax, which is not covered by the Lemann Center.

How do we decide if an applicant will have full or partial funding?

Our decisions about funding depend on several factors, including:

• How much funds we have in that given year.
• The needs of individual research projects at the Lemann Center.
• Availability of funding opportunities in Brazil. For example, many possible applicants can get full or partial funding from CAPES, CNPq, Ciências Sem Fronteiras, or from their own universities.
• Having your own funding does not automatically increase your chances of being selected.

Monthly Living Expenses

The approximate monthly living expenses recommended for one person living a basic lifestyle at Stanford for 2023/2024 are:

• US$ 2,000 for lodging and food.
• US$ 1,063 for tuition (only needed for Visiting Student Researchers).
• US$ 250 for campus health facilities fee.
• US$ 1,656 for health insurance.
• Note: Fellowship payments are subject to around 14% federal income tax, which is not covered by the Lemann Center.

All these amounts are APPROXIMATE and, given normal and/or seasonal price variations (especially for rent), can be up to 20-30% higher in some cases. We strongly recommend applicants to look online for housing prior to coming to Stanford to have an idea about the final cost of living, especially for applicants coming with their families. 

Please note that the amounts above are based on a single person needed and do not include family members.

The Lemann Center fellowship amount is established to provide a reasonable standard of living in the Stanford area for one person, compatible with the average fellowship of students or post-doctoral researchers. This means that you should not necessarily expect to keep your standard of living from Brazil, regardless of the stage in your career.

All Lemann Center fellowships will be processed and paid according to regular Stanford policy. Payments will be made monthly.

For more information, please visit https://ed.stanford.edu/scholars/visiting for Visiting Scholars and https://ed.stanford.edu/scholars/vsr for Visiting Student Researchers.

Scholars and Students are expected to bring their own personal computers. 

Area of interest

Applicants’ interests must be aligned with the research areas of the Lemann Center faculty directors. The applicants should discuss in the statement of purpose how their research interests are aligned with the work of the Lemann Center professors.

We encourage applicants to visit the Lemann Center website and the websites of our faculty. Read their research papers and get as much information as possible about current research projects.

Activities during the period of stay

Visiting Scholars must conduct original research, prepare publications, engage in other types of projects, and attend Lemann Center weekly meetings and seminars. The program is designed for scholars to work together with LC faculty on projects of interest.