What is the Mistletoe Fellowship? 

The Mistletoe Research Fellowship (MRF) was officially created in 2018 and is the flagship initiative of the Momental Foundation. This professional development program awards research grants to postdoctoral fellows and advanced Ph.D. candidates as well as providing opportunities to collaborate with startups with a high potential for social and humanitarian impact.

The Mistletoe Research Fellowship offers a unique career and funding opportunity to postdoctoral scholars and Ph.D. candidates by combining $10,000 in unrestricted research funding with professional development training via remote entrepreneurial collaboration. All Mistletoe Research Fellows participate in two programs designed to build communication and project management skills that will help them to succeed and work more effectively with outside collaborators, whether they seek industry careers or to pursue a position in academia:

  1. The Unfettered Research Grant
  2. The MRF Startup Collaboration

Accepted fellows attend a required three-day onboarding Match Workshop where they connect to their fellowship cohort, meet MRF Startups and match to their MRF Team.

  • MRF In-Person Match Workshop (California TBD, Nov 3-6, 2023)

Who Is Eligible? 

Postdoctoral scholars and advanced Ph.D. candidates from a small cohort of R1 partner universities:

  • Postdoc participants must remain full-time postdoctoral fellows throughout the 2023-24 academic calendar year. 
  • Ph.D. candidates should be "all but dissertation" and maintain full-time status with stipend support for the duration of the 2023-24 academic calendar year. 
  • Open to most STEM fields and some fields of Social Science. 
  • Prior MRF recipients can reapply, provided that they still meet the eligibility requirements and completed the MRF program in good standing.

Detailed eligibility requirements can be found on the MRF website.

Interested Applicants apply directly to the Momental Foundation.

What is the application window? 

The application window is currently closed. The next call for applications will open Spring 2024.

Further Information

For more information about the Mistletoe Fellowship, including the application process, visit the Mistletoe Foundation website or contact the Graduate School Fellowship Office.