Turkana Basin Institute

TBI fellow Ian Wallace with Turkana neighbor.

Postdoctoral Fellowships

The Turkana Basin Institute of Stony Brook University has begun filling a series of Postdoctoral Fellowships to support research on the paleontology, geology and archeology of Eastern Africa. Fellows are expected to develop a plan that involves several months each year of fieldwork in East Africa combined with a program of laboratory research and teaching at Stony Brook or another appropriate institution. Each application should include a detailed plan of activity together with letters of support from anticipated supervisors of both academic and fieldwork. Applicants must have Ph.D. in hand at the time the fellowship is awarded. Special consideration will be given to recent graduates who are residents of Kenya or other African countries.

Fellowships will be awarded for two years, renewable for a third year, pending suitable progress. Each fellowship carries a stipend of $35,000 per year plus a modest annual budget for research. Applications will be accepted and reviewed mid-spring semester. Postdoctoral fellows will be appointed the following fall.

For further details and to submit applications, contact:

Dr. Lawrence Martin
Director, Turkana Basin Institute
The Graduate School, 2401, Computer Science Building
Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-8081
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Graduate Fellowships

Stony Brook University, in conjunction with Richard, Meave, and Louise Leakey, has formed the Turkana Basin Institute with the goal of encouraging research in paleontology, archeology and geology in the greater Turkana Basin of northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia. As part of this initiative, we are offering graduate student fellowships with the aim of conducting their dissertation research in the Turkana Basin.

Each fellowship will be in the form of a supplement of up to $15,000 a year for five years added to whatever funding the student is scheduled to receive by the department that has accepted them or from any other sources. Student stipends can be augmented by a Turkana Basin Fellowship up to a maximum stipend of $30,000 per year. Applicants and awardees are encouraged to apply for other sources of funding, such as NSF fellowships. For students who obtain funding beyond that level, the Turkana Basin Fellowship may be modified to provide support for research activities.

A graduate program can nominate a maximum of three candidates. This fellowship is not designed to replace departmental contributions to graduate student stipends, or to enable departments to admit students that they would otherwise not consider. It is a supplement designed to make graduate school at Stony Brook more attractive and affordable for the best students in the world interested in this area of research.

The deadline for applications is March 1st. Each application should include a letter from the Program Director or the Director of Graduate Admissions stating that the student has been admitted to Stony Brook, a letter from a Stony Brook faculty member stating that they are willing and eager to advise the student on dissertation research involving the Turkana Basin, and a letter from the applicant (max 3 pages) stating their intention of pursuing research in the Turkana Basin during their graduate a career at Stony Brook.

We hope to make awards by March 15.

Applications and any questions should be addressed to:

Dr. Lawrence Martin
Director, Turkana Basin Institute
The Graduate School, 2401, Computer Science Building
Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-8081
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it