Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans

About the Open Call

To apply for the Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships, you’ll need to create an account and start the online application. You’ll fill out eligibility and demographic questions, share information about your educational and New American background, and then you will have to submit relevant transcripts, a resume or CV, two essays, and then register three to five recommendations. The application for the 2026 Fellowship is now open and due on October 30, 2025 at 2 pm ET. The 2026 Fellowship application is now open and will close on October 30, 2025 at 2 pm Eastern Time. For applicants who apply in the fall of 2026, once we review the applications, the top 77 applicants will be designated “finalists” and will be asked to appear for virtual interviews in late January and early February of 2026. 30 of the 77 finalists will be selected as Fellows and will be notified in March of 2026. The 2026 Fellows will be announced publicly in April of 2026 and they will begin to receive stipend and tuition support from the program in the fall of 2026, and they will also attend the Fellowship’s Fall Conference, all expenses paid, that October. PD Soros supports all types of full-time graduate and professional degrees at accredited institutions in the United States. You can apply when you’re applying to graduate or professional school, or when you’re in the first two years of the academic program you’re seeking funding for. You can apply more than once and the application is free. The first year of the Fellowship can’t be deferred. All application materials must be submitted online through the online application. We make no exceptions to the 2 pm ET application deadline. Our eligibility requirements include your status as an immigrant or a child of immigrants, your age, and your academic standing. We do not look at school, GPA, or test score range. All eligibility requirements should apply to you as of October 30, 2025. If named a finalist, you will be required to provide documentation of your eligibility. Webinar sessions are open to everyone with an internet connection and are held on Zoom. Most sessions will include an overview of the Fellowship, how to apply, selection criteria, the benefits of the Fellowship and the Fellowship community. Participants can submit questions during the sessions. Step 1. Collect necessary information: Confirm your eligibility, your demographic and contact information, your higher-education history, the graduate program(s) for which you seek support, recommendations (3 required, up to 5 accepted), required submissions: Resume, two essays, transcripts (college, graduate), scores of standardized tests (if they are or were required for admission to your graduate program), optional exhibits. We have minimized the official documents required to confirm eligibility, educational, and test results. If you are asked to be a finalist, however, we will specify the official documents that we will need from you before we can invite you to the finalist interviews. Essay Questions: Essay One (max 1000 words) – Tell us about your experiences as a New American, how your experiences as an immigrant or child of immigrants have informed and shaped who you are and your accomplishments. Essay Two (max 1000 words) – Tell us about your current and near-term career-related activities and goals, as well as why you decided to pursue the specific graduate program(s) and school(s) that you have. Standardized test scores are only required if they were needed for admission to your graduate program. Unofficial transcripts are sufficient for the application; official ones will be requested from finalists. Step 2. Request 3-5 Recommendations: Letters of recommendation educate and contextualize the achievements and choices of each applicant. All recommendations must be submitted by October 30, 2025 at 2:00 pm ET. Previous recommendations cannot be transferred. A letter signed by more than one person counts as one recommendation. Recommenders receive an email with instructions to access the application portal. The status will change to “Received” after submission. There is no page or word limit for recommendations. You can submit your application before your recommendations, but a minimum of three must be submitted by the deadline for a complete application. We do not accept any materials by mail or e-mail. All materials must be submitted through the online application system. Step 3. Submit an Online Application: The 2026 application cycle is now open. Applicants can access the portal here: https://pdsoros-fellowships.smapply.io/prog/2026_application_for_the_paul_and_daisy_soros_fellowships_for_new_americans_/ . The application will preserve formatting for uploaded and filled-in fields. No exceptions are made to the October 30, 2025, 2 pm Eastern Time deadline. After you apply: Our team of diverse readers will review applications and select the top 77 applicants as finalists. Finalists will provide documents to confirm eligibility and take part in virtual interviews in late January and early February of 2026. The 30 2026 Fellowship winners will be notified in March and announced in April of 2026. Fellows will begin to receive stipend and tuition support in Fall 2026 and attend an all-expenses-paid Fall Conference that October.

What is Offered

Stipend and tuition support for full-time graduate and professional degrees, and an all-expenses-paid Fall Conference.

Requirements

Applicants must be New Americans (immigrants or children of immigrants), meet age requirements (not explicitly stated, but implied as graduate students), and academic standing requirements. They must be pursuing or in the first two years of a full-time graduate or professional degree at an accredited U.S. institution. Required submissions include a resume/CV, two essays (each 1000 words max), college and graduate transcripts, and standardized test scores if required by their graduate program. Three to five recommendations are also required. Eligibility documentation will be required from finalists.

How to Apply

Applicants must create an account and complete the online application by October 30, 2025, at 2 pm ET. This involves filling out eligibility and demographic questions, providing educational and New American background information, and submitting transcripts, a resume or CV, two essays, and registering three to five recommendations. All materials must be submitted online through the application portal.