VISITING SCHOLAR FELLOWSHIP at ARCHBOLD

Archbold will award fellowships of up to $3,000 to visiting scholars for the 2027 field season. The number of fellowships and award amounts will vary depending on the length of study, project needs, and number of proposals received. Awardees will be eligible for free shared housing or discounted private housing based on availability.

Overview

Archbold is a not-for-profit biological field station whose mission is to build and share the scientific knowledge needed to protect the life, lands, and waters of the heart of Florida, and beyond. We are devoted to ecological research, conservation, and education, and our 20,000 acres of natural areas encompass outstanding examples of Florida fire-dependent ecosystems with many endemic, imperiled species, as well as a working cattle ranch. Our staff of about 65 works across eight primary research programs, including Agroecology, Avian Ecology, Conservation of Military Landscapes, Entomology, Herpetology, Limnology, Plant Ecology, and Predator-Prey. We engage visiting scientists, interns, and collaborators in place-based science (both basic and applied), including studies that focus on rare species persistence, disturbance ecology, and human-natural systems ecology.

The purpose of the visiting scholar program is to invite and encourage early-career scientists (graduate students and post-docs) to conduct research at Archbold, contribute to Archbold’s vibrant research community, and make use of the distinctive places, long-term data, collections, expertise, and conservation partnerships that make Archbold a strong platform for place-based science. Previous recipients have worked on research questions across various ecosystems (e.g., scrub, grasslands, wetlands), organisms (e.g., plants, birds, herps, mammals, microbes), and subdisciplines (e.g., population ecology, behavioral ecology, agroecology).

We welcome applications regardless of the applicant’s familiarity with or prior experience working at Archbold.

Applications will be judged on a combination of relevance to Archbold’s mission and strategic priorities, intellectual merit, feasibility, potential impact, and the extent to which Archbold is especially well positioned to support or benefit from the proposed work.

Eligibility
Applicants should already be enrolled in a graduate program or appointed as a postdoctoral scientist and studying in any area of field biology. The proposed work must involve research conducted at Archbold (including the Station or Buck Island Ranch) and/or the immediate area and include at least 4 weeks (cumulative over one year) based on-site at Archbold.

Previous awardees are not eligible for an award. However, Archbold might consider giving the same individual one award for graduate work and another for a further graduate degree or post-doc work, based on scientific merit and at the discretion of the scientific staff. Additional details
Award funds may be used to offset costs of travel, supplies, food, or other field-related expenses, or a stipend. Archbold facility use fees are waived. Awardees are eligible for free shared housing or discounted private housing at Archbold based on availability. Awardees can elect to either receive the funds directly (which will generate a 1099 tax form) or establish an account at Archbold to cover non-stipend research expenses.

The awardee must secure the appropriate Federal or State permits for their work before starting but need not have them in hand to apply. If not already obtained, the status of any required permits should be explained in the application. Any studies involving vertebrates at Archbold require an animal use protocol approved by the IACUC of the researcher’s home institution, as well as submission of an Archbold Animal Use Application at least 6 weeks prior to the anticipated start date of the research.

Awardees will be required to submit a Final Report to Archbold, including a summary expense report, within 1 year of receiving an award. They will also be invited to give a seminar describing their work, typically at the Annual Research Symposium. Fellows should acknowledge Archbold Biological Station and the Visiting Scholar Fellowship in resulting publications, theses, and/or presentations.

Evaluation criteria Applications will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Intellectual merit and novelty of the project, commensurate with the applicant’s career stage
• Broader impacts, including local impacts for conservation and/or contributions to guiding land management or Archbold’s education program
• Contribution to Archbold’s mission
• Use of Archbold’s distinctive places, long-term data, collections, expertise, or long-term perspective
• Feasibility of the proposed work, including fit with Archbold’s facilities, field sites, staff expertise, and applicant’s proposed timeline
• Potential to strengthen Archbold’s research community and support the development of early-career scientists and conservation professionals

How to apply:
Detailed application instructions are provided below. Application materials should be submitted through this portal. Applicants must also request a letter of reference from their major professor or a faculty member familiar with their research to be emailed to eboughton@archbold-station.org with the subject line “Visiting Scholar Reference for APPLICANT NAME”.

Before applying, applicants should reach out to the appropriate Archbold Program Director (see link for a list of Archbold programs), as each awardee will need a sponsor from the scientific staff. These contacts should occur well in advance of the application deadline so that potential sponsors can advise on project feasibility. General inquiries can be emailed to Dr. Betsey Boughton (eboughton@archbold-station.org)

Awardees will be chosen by Archbold’s senior scientific staff based on alignment with Archbold’s mission and strategic priorities, scientific merit, broader impacts, feasibility, and whether Archbold is particularly well positioned to support the proposed work. Proposals should show that the work is a strong use of Archbold’s places, expertise, resources, and scientific community.

Applications are due by Friday, November 20, 2026 at 5 p.m ET.

Visiting Scholar at Archbold
Fellowship Application Guidelines and Format

Instructions:

• Applications must be received by 5 pm on November 20, 2026. Fellowship recipients will be notified by December 2026.
• Application should include all 4 sections described below.
• Save as a single file in PDF format and upload it to the online portal.

I. Applicant / Project Information (1 page)

• Applicant’s name, affiliation, and contact info, including email address
• Current position (Master’s student, Ph.D. student, or Postdoc)
• Name and contact information of academic advisor
• Project title
• Proposed time at Archbold – number of weeks and time of year. Must be resident at the Station or Ranch for 4 weeks minimum.
• Sponsoring science program at Archbold (see linkhttps://www.archbold-station.org/programs/)

II. Project Description (3 pages maximum; can be single-spaced; use minimum 11-pt font size and 1” margins) containing the following information:

• Background or introduction
• Study objectives
• Methods
• Expected results & significance
• Broader impacts for education and/or conservation
• Alignment with Archbold’s mission and strategic priorities, including which priority or priorities the project advances and why Archbold’s places, data, collections, expertise, long-term perspective, or partnerships make the work especially well suited to Archbold

III. Supporting Information (1 page)

• Literature cited – list of key citations; These should be referenced in appropriate places in the text using numbered superscripts or a standard citation format, e.g., Smith (2013) or Smith et al. (2013)
• Budget – list items the grant would be used for and their estimated cost, keeping in mind the max allowable request of $3,000.
• List any Archbold facilities, equipment and field sites that are essential for completing the research

IV. Curriculum Vitae (no page limit)