Application deadline: Thursday, October 29, 2026, 2:00 p.m. ET

The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans support graduate students who are immigrants or the children of immigrants. Unlike most national fellowships, the program is open to every field and every type of full-time graduate or professional degree. Fellows also join a lasting community of New American leaders and attend an annual fall conference in New York City.

What the award provides

• Up to $90,000 in total support over one to two years of graduate study.
• Half of tuition and fees, up to $10,000 per semester.
• A stipend of up to $25,000 per year.
• All expenses paid for attendance at the Fellowship's annual Fall Conference.

Who qualifies as a New American?

• The program defines a New American as an immigrant or the child of immigrants. You may be eligible if you were born abroad and are a naturalized U.S. citizen, were adopted by American parents and granted citizenship, hold a valid green card, have been granted asylum or refugee status, or graduated from both high school and college in the United States — this last category includes DACA recipients.
• If you are a U.S. citizen by birth, you may be eligible if both of your birth parents were born abroad as non-citizens and were not eligible for U.S. citizenship at birth, or if you were raised by one immigrant parent with no contact from the other parent.
• Eligibility criteria are specific, and students often screen themselves out incorrectly. Review the full requirements at pdsoros.org/eligibility before deciding you do not qualify.

Additional requirements

• Must be 30 years or younger as of the application deadline. There is no minimum age.
• Must hold a bachelor's degree by fall 2027.
• Must be enrolled in, or applying to, a full-time degree-granting graduate or professional program at a U.S. institution. 
  • Online programs are eligible.
• Cannot have begun the third year of the graduate program you are applying to support. 
  • First- and second-year students are eligible.
• Fellows may not hold full-time employment during their studies and must maintain good academic standing.

Programs that are not eligible

Executive graduate programs, joint bachelor's/master's programs in which both degrees are awarded simultaneously, certificate programs, post-baccalaureate programs, and programs at institutions outside the United States.

Selection timeline

October 29, 2026 — Application closes, 2:00 p.m. ET
Mid-January 2027 — Finalists notified
February 2027 — Interviews
March 2027 — Winners announced
Fall 2027 — Fellowship begins

Full eligibility details and the application are at pdsoros.org.