The Simons Institute is a major international venue for collaborative research in theoretical computer science and related fields. The Institute is housed in Calvin Lab, a dedicated building on the UC Berkeley campus, and provides a vibrant and welcoming environment for visiting researchers. In each academic semester, the activities of the Institute are largely focused on specific research programs, each of which attracts around sixty long-term participants ranging from senior scientists to graduate students. Created in 2012 through a grant from the Simons Foundation, the Institute opened its doors in Fall 2013.

In Summer and Fall 2025, the Institute will host the following research programs:

• Summer 2025: Cryptography 10 Years Later: Obfuscation, Proof Systems, and Secure Computation 
• Fall 2025: Complexity and Linear Algebra; and Algorithmic Foundations for Emerging Computing Technologies

Descriptions of these programs and other information about the Institute can be found on our Research Programs page.

Eligibility: Programmatic research fellowships are intended for exceptional young scientists (within at most five years of the award of their PhD at the start of academic year 2025). Applicants who already hold junior faculty or postdoctoral positions are welcome to apply. In particular, applicants who hold, or expect to hold, postdoctoral appointments at other institutions are encouraged to apply to spend one semester as a Simons Institute research fellow, subject to the approval of the postdoctoral institution. Graduate students will be considered only if the expected PhD completion date is before the start of the program.

The Institute expects to award about eight fellowships for each program in 2025, with one or two appointments for a full academic year. In each semester of residence, each Fellow will normally participate in one of the ongoing programs at the Institute. 

In addition, the Institute co-hosts joint fellowships, in which a fellow spends a period (typically one semester) as a Simons Institute fellow and is also appointed to a research position at a partner institution. Postdoctoral positions at partner institutions are available (see sidebar). Applicants interested in such a joint fellowship should submit both a Simons Institute fellow application and an application at the partner institution. In addition, applicants should indicate their interest in a joint fellowship in the last textbox of the application form below. For questions about positions at a partner institution, please contact that institution directly.

Salaries and benefits are competitive, and assistance with visas and housing will be provided. The Institute particularly encourages applications from women and minority candidates. 

The applications for Fall 2025 are now closed.