The Higher Ed Faculty AI Fellowship is run by Google for Education for university faculty who already use AI in their teaching, research or institutional work. Fellows keep their own academic posts and join a global cohort. Each fellow brings one challenge from their own institution — assessment and evaluation, policy and ethics, curriculum design or student outcomes — and works on it during the fellowship. Fellows also take on an ambassador role, guiding colleagues on their campus and in the wider academic community through AI adoption. Entry comes either by personal nomination from a Google leader or by self-application through the Google for Education application portal. 2026 is the inaugural cohort; Google shows the year only as a Q1 to Q3 graphic and publishes no deadline, cohort size, programme length, convening location or payment figures.
Benefits & funding
- Membership of a global network of faculty working on AI in higher education.
- An ambassador platform for leading peers on responsible AI adoption, at your own institution and across higher education.
- Resources, advanced skills and tools for driving AI change on campus, including institution-level questions such as assessment models and governance frameworks.
- A place at an in-person convening. The fellowship covers part of the cost there; Google does not say which parts.
- No stipend, salary, grant or tuition support is published, and no participation fee is published either.
- Fellows pay their own travel, accommodation, parking and any meals the fellowship does not cover at the convening.
Eligibility
- Higher education faculty actively exploring or implementing AI in their teaching, research or institutional initiatives.
- Demonstrated experience of AI-driven innovation and a commitment to advancing responsible AI.
- Backing from a Dean or Program Chair, who writes the recommendation letter.
- Capacity to self-fund travel and accommodation for the in-person convening.
- Google publishes no nationality, residency, age or degree requirement, and describes the cohort as a global community.
Can you apply?
Open to all applicants
No nationality, residency, education, or experience limits are listed.
We only check the criteria we have data for. Always confirm full eligibility on the official page before applying.
Application process
- 1Enter one of two ways: a personal nomination from a Google leader, or a self-application through the Google for Education application portal.
- 2Submit a Portfolio of Innovation — four to five bullet points, 150 words at most, on your most innovative uses of AI such as Gemini or NotebookLM, and what they changed in teaching practice, research workflows or student outcomes. Full syllabi and proprietary course materials are not requested; descriptions must comply with institutional rules and carry no sensitive data.
- 3Record a 90-second video introducing yourself and your vision for AI in higher education, covering how you act as a strategic change agent, the challenge you intend to solve, and how you will advocate for responsible AI.
- 4Propose your impact challenge in one of four areas: assessment and evaluation, policy and ethics, curriculum design, student outcomes.
- 5List up to three professional contributions that show influence — academic publications or white papers, conference presentations, or service on institutional AI committees and policy task forces.
- 6Submit the letter of recommendation from your Dean or Program Chair, written on the template Google provides.
Program timeline
Inaugural cohort; the programme page lists applications as open
2026
Not published
application deadline — the page shows the year only as a Q1 to Q3 graphic with no dates
Not published
dates and location of the in-person convening
Not published
programme start and end