AfOx Visiting Fellowship Programme

This AfOx Mathematics fellowship aims to connect a research-active mathematician based at an African institution to faculty based at the Mathematical Institute at the University of Oxford.

The Mathematical Institute is one of the leading mathematics departments in the world, with strengths in research across the spectrum of fundamental and applied mathematics. It holds a silver Athena Swan award to recognise advancement of gender equality, and aims to provide an inclusive environment in which all can thrive and achieve their full potential.

Applications are open to researchers with existing research interests compatible with those of the Mathematical Institute current faculty. Applicants must clearly state which one of the Mathematical Institute research groups you feel is closest to your work. While in Oxford the AfOx Mathematics Fellow will work with faculty within the Institute and across other disciplines where appropriate, to develop research ideas, projects and events. This can include research papers, ideas for co-led projects, future joint research developments.

The AfOx Mathematics Fellow will be welcomed into the research community at the Institute and supported to develop longer-term research connections.

ODID is the focus at Oxford for research on developing countries and emerging economies, and on their relationship with the rest of the world. The department’s four key research groups – the Refugee Studies Centre, Young Lives, the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative and the Technology and Management Centre for Development – are at the forefront of their fields.

ODID draws on its unique strengths – the exceptional range and depth of disciplinary and regional expertise and extensive connections to networks across the Global South – to generate academically rigorous research into the underlying structures and overarching processes of development. Drawing on this deep scholarship, ODID researchers seek to forge new ways of thinking about development that can help improve the lives of ordinary people, whether by informing policy at the highest level or by changing practice on the ground.

The AfOx-Law fellowships target academics holding a full-time position at an African academic institution. The fellowships are aimed at academics with a clearly defined research agenda, the pursuit of which would be enhanced by spending time visiting Oxford as an AfOx fellow. In line with the ordinary requirements for AfOx visiting fellowships, applicants will have to identify an Oxford-based researcher as a collaborator. 

Oxford University’s African Studies Centre is one of the world’s leading centres of African Studies. With particular strengths in the Social Sciences and the Humanities, the Centre enjoys a reputation for high quality, relevant research that plays a leading role in academic debates as well as public policy. Read more about the African Studies Centre here.

 The AfOx-ASC fellowship provides opportunities for Africa-based scholars to spend time away from teaching and other obligations with the benefit of using the vast resources available in Oxford University for research, writing, mentoring in collaboration with an Oxford-based scholar.

The fellows are expected to make a presentation of the draft work during or at the end of the fellowship at a ‘writing workshop’ where Oxford-based scholars will provide critical feedback for publication. Applications are encouraged from candidates in every region of Africa.

Launched in May 2013, The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities (TORCH) provides an important opportunity for Oxford’s humanities scholars to collaborate with researchers across other disciplines and institutions and develop partnerships with public and private institutions. In seeking to connect Oxford researchers with other organisations globally, TORCH supports Fellowships that brings researchers from abroad to Oxford. Read more about TORCH here.

Applications are open to researchers with interdisciplinary projects from a broad range of research areas in the Humanities. The Fellow will be based in Oxford during Trinity term and work with Oxford researchers in the Humanities, and across other disciplines where appropriate, to develop research ideas, projects and events. This can include research papers, ideas for co-led projects, and future joint research developments in the area of humanities. Examples of areas of priority are research related to environmental humanities, medical humanities, intersectional humanities, race and resistance, digital humanities, performance, cultural heritage, history, languages, religion.

The Fellow will be welcomed into the Oxford community at TORCH and supported as part of the research community during their fellowship, with a view to develop a longer-term research connection.

The Refugee Studies Centre  (RSC) undertakes research, teaching, and outreach relating to Refugee and Forced Migration Studies. It supports multidisciplinary, independent and critical scholarship on the causes, consequences, and responses to, forced displacement. It has a particular focus on Africa, the Middle East, and Europe, supports students and scholars with lived experience of displacement. The Centre seeks to engage with policy and practice, locally, nationally, and globally.

Applications are open to researchers who undertake independent, multidisciplinary, academic research on the causes, consequences, and responses to forced migration. We particularly welcome applications which challenge common assumptions and understandings related to forced migration, with important implications for public debate, policy, and practice. Scholars at the Refugee Studies Centre work cross a range of disciplines, including anthropology, economics, geography, history, law, politics, and international relations.

These fellowships aim to connect researchers based at an African institution to any department of the University of Oxford so that they may collaborate on a project in the area of improving equitable access to healthcare in low- and middle-income countries.  

As described by Wellcome (which provides the funding for this strand of fellowships), the barriers to equitable access include inadequate healthcare systems, lack of infrastructure, pricing practices, and sub-optimal regulatory and procurement processes. Any application for a project that aims to address one or more of these barriers, or other causes of inequality in global access to healthcare, will be in scope for these fellowships. 

While in Oxford the visiting Fellow will work with their collaborating department and across other disciplines where appropriate, to develop research ideas, projects and events. This can include research papers, ideas for co-led projects and future joint research developments. 

The AfOx GCHU Visiting Fellowship targets scholars whose research explores how urban centres can be environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable and sustain health and wellbeing. We particularly welcome applications that take an interdisciplinary approach which combines a focus on sustainable urban development and evidence-based healthcare.

The Visiting Fellowship opportunity

This fellowship seeks to connect a research-active academic based at an African institution with faculty based at PSI. We warmly welcome applications from individuals with existing research interests that are compatible with the development of the Collaborative, including pandemic sciences policy research, capacity-strengthening, and research management. Pandemic Science Institute (PSI) AfOx Fellows will be hosted by colleagues at PSI.  

The Pandemic Sciences Institute

The Pandemic Sciences Institute (PSI) was established in 2021 as a multidisciplinary, University-wide initiative to build upon the model of innovation, collaboration and agility that yielded critical breakthroughs for COVID-19. Through academic excellence and equitable global partnerships PSI aims to safeguard health and economic stability for future generations. PSI enjoys productive partnerships with academia, industry and public health organisations and hosts researchers with diverse expertise including vaccinology, genomic surveillance, infectious disease epidemiology, clinical trials, public policy, and ethics. Its research portfolio is supported by a wide range of funders. 

The Africa Pandemic Sciences Collaborative

PSI collaborates extensively with institutions and networks across Africa. One of the largest and most high-profile programmes is the Africa Pandemic Sciences Collaborative, a multi-year partnership between the Science for Africa Foundation (SFA Foundation), PSI, and the Mastercard Foundation. The Collaborative seeks to strengthen African research and higher education institutions to enable them to conduct world-class, innovative research, and translate findings into impactful, locally relevant solutions that contribute to shaping and strengthening pandemic resilience and, ultimately, the health ecosystem on the continent for the benefit of future generations. 

The Collaborative is supporting seven Epidemic and Pandemic Sciences Innovation and Leadership Networks (EPSILONs) across Africa, encompassing up to 40 institutions across the continent. These will undertake high-impact, locally-led research that shapes public policy and practice, fosters scientific excellence, and strengthens leadership in pandemic sciences. A critical element of the programme is the development of the emerging generation of African scientists and professionals through training and capacity-strengthening initiatives, under the mentorship of senior African scientists, to expand and retain the research workforce to improve public health in Africa and nurture dignified and fulfilling careers in life sciences. Within the Collaborative, PSI works closely with the AfOx team.

Applications will be reviewed primarily on the quality and value added of the proposed research agenda, the fit between the applicant and the Oxford host, and the feasibility of the proposed activities in the timescale of the fellowship.

Visiting Fellows must be of postdoctoral or equivalent status at the time of application. Applicants must be holding an appointment in an African academic or research institution at the time of application.

Yes. You are required to enter the details of the proposed Oxford host academic and the department at which you intend to undertake your fellowship in the application.

Please note: applicants must find a collaborator who is already attached to the research institute to which they are applying. The two exceptions to this are the TORCH Fellowship (which accepts a collaborator based in any of the humanities departments at Oxford) and the Improving Equitable Access to Healthcare Fellowship (any Oxford collaborator working in a relevant area). 

Please engage with and agree on the proposed project and timelines with your Oxford host before making the application. Applications sent without the consent and support letter from the proposed Oxford host will be immediately disqualified.

When developing new relationships with colleagues in Oxford we suggest a good way of making contact is to;

• Introducing yourself and the AfOx fellowship you are applying for.

• Include a paragraph outlining your proposed project

• Explain how this intersects with your proposed collaborators research interests.

We have created a webinar on how to approach a potential collaborator. 

The Oxford collaborators will host the fellows in their respective departments and provide academic support during the fellowship. AfOx will provide the funding, logistics and social support before and during the fellowship The Oxford host will be required to send a statement of support indicating their willingness to be the academic contact during the fellowship. It should be in PDF format, on headed paper, and signed. Any applications received whose statements do not match these criteria will be considered ineligible.

Please note prospective fellows must engage with and agree on the proposed project with Oxford collaborators before making the application. Applications sent without the consent and support letter from the proposed Oxford host will be immediately disqualified.

No, there is no limit on the number of applications Oxford collaborator can support.

No, you cannot apply for a Fellowship if you have an existing affiliation at the University of Oxford. Submission of an application by a candidate currently affiliated with the University of Oxford will automatically disqualify the applicant.

The application should be completed by the prospective visiting fellow. Applications will not be considered until a statement from the Oxford academic host/collaborator has been received.

Fellows will be affiliated with the University of Oxford for 12 months starting in October 2025 and running until September 2026. This includes 10 months of virtual engagement during which fellows will have remote access to resources available at Oxford University for research, writing, and strengthening research leadership skills. A 2 month in-person visit to Oxford will be held during Trinity term (May-June 2026). 

During the 10 months of virtual engagement fellows will have remote access to resources available at Oxford University including library access and support to strengthening research leadership skills.

During the in-person fellowship selected Fellows will be provided with accommodation. A temporary University card for access to the University and college buildings and temporary membership to the host college’s Senior Common Room will be granted for the period of residency. The fellowship will also include return economy flight ticket, airport transfer, visa fee and a maintenance allowance for incidental expenses during the residence (up to £250 per week according to University guidelines).

Fellows will be affiliated with the University of Oxford for 12 months,  including 10 months of virtual engagement and a 2 month in-person visit to Oxford during Trinity term.

AfOx will send supporting documents for visa application to successful applications, but it is the responsibility of the applicant to make a timely visa application and ensure that they meet all other requirements.

We will not support express visa applications.

The visa fee and related expenses will be reimbursed upon arrival in Oxford.

You can only apply via the link of the Fellowship page. Email applications will not be considered. 

Successful applicants will be contacted no later than two months from the application closing date. If you have not heard back from us within two months please assume your application was unsucccesful. We will not be able to provide individual feedback to unsuccessful applicants.

Yes, it is not necessary for your collaborator to be part of the host colleges, but they must be affiliated to the University of Oxford.

You are eligible to apply if you are a national of any African country or have indefinite leave to remain in any African country. You must also have a position in an African university/research institution domiciled in an African country and are a legal resident in the host country of your institution.

Our database only includes Oxford collaborators who have already signed onto it. You are welcome to identify a suitable collaborator from their University of Oxford webpage and contact them directly.

No, you can only apply for one fellowship. Submission of multiple applications will automatically disqualify the applicant.

The application process allows one to make changes to the application while it is still in draft form and to save it on the platform until a later time or date when one is ready to submit. An application can no longer be edited once it has been submitted.

No, the AfOx fellowship includes both the virtual and in-person elements and the selected fellows will be required to participate in both.

No. The main aim of the visiting fellowships is to foster the development of new collaborations and while it may support existing research links, it is not intended to be used as alternative additional support for already established collaborations or ongoing projects.

The department will be required to provide work space, building access and library services for the fellow. AfOx will take charge of all the logistics for the fellows including travel, accommodation and stipend.

No. AfOx fellows are drawn from a range of disciplines, and are selected on the basis of their subject expertise. For research projects where Africa is the specific region interest, then this might be necessary. Otherwise, we welcome and strongly encourage Oxford colleagues who have never worked in Africa to consider this as an opportunity to work with global partners with similar research interests. 

If you have any questions please email us at afox@ndm.ox.ac.uk