Selecting each new cohort of Schmidt Science Fellows is a community endeavor. Every year, our global network of scientific experts and experienced leaders comes together to help us identify the next generation of early-career researchers with the curiosity, ambition, and potential to thrive across disciplines.
Ahead of the 2027 selection process, experienced reviewers, selectors, Senior Fellows, and members of the Schmidt Science Fellows program team gathered at the 2026 Interdisciplinary Science Summit, in association with Duke University, for a dedicated workshop focused on strengthening the Fellowship’s selection process.
More than 120 reviewers and selectors from a broad range of scientific disciplines contribute to our selection process each year, bringing invaluable expertise and insight to the identification of future Fellows.
The Selector Workshop provided an opportunity to bring together diverse perspectives and experiences, helping us review and refine our selection process and ensuring it continues to evolve alongside an increasingly interdisciplinary scientific landscape.
Julián Rimoli, Professor and Chair of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the Samueli School of Engineering, University of California, Irvine, said: “It was really valuable to have selectors from a range of scientific backgrounds in the room, sharing their perspectives and experiences of the selection process.
“Bringing those different viewpoints together helps us challenge our assumptions, develop a shared understanding of what we are looking for, and continue to strengthen how we identify outstanding interdisciplinary scientists.”
Building on feedback from previous selection cycles, discussions at the 2026 workshop focused on the Fellowship’s refreshed selection criteria, strengthening consistency throughout the review process, and harnessing the benefits of AI while safeguarding the integrity, fairness, and human judgment at the heart of selection.
Selectors considered how best to assess qualities such as curiosity, collaboration, leadership potential, and scientific and societal impact, and reviewed how scoring guidance can better reflect both scientific ambition and the feasibility of proposed research.
Discussions also explored how the selection criteria work together, helping to ensure applicants are evaluated consistently while recognizing the many ways exceptional scientists demonstrate their potential.
A major focus of the workshop was how to assess the interdisciplinary pivot, a defining feature of the Schmidt Science Fellows program.
Together, selectors explored what makes a compelling pivot, how to recognize candidates who are ready to move confidently beyond their PhD discipline, and how to balance bold scientific ambition with thoughtful planning.
By developing a shared understanding of what makes an outstanding interdisciplinary pivot, the workshop helps to strengthen how selectors assess candidates’ potential to advance science by connecting knowledge across disciplines.
AI was also a major theme of the workshop, reflecting its rapidly evolving role both in science and in how scientific potential may be assessed.
Participants considered how AI could support and potentially strengthen the selection process while preserving expert human judgment at its core.
Discussions explored the potential for secure AI tools to help reviewers navigate complex applications, surface relevant information, and better understand the nature and extent of a candidate’s proposed interdisciplinary pivot.
Participants also considered the growing use of AI by applicants themselves.
As these tools become more embedded in scientific research and communication, it will become increasingly important to look beyond the polish of an application to understand a candidate’s own intellectual contribution, depth of scientific understanding, and ability to articulate and defend the ideas they present.
More broadly, the discussion raised an important question for the Fellowship: what qualities will distinguish exceptional scientists in a world where AI is increasingly capable of supporting scientific reasoning, analysis, experimentation, and communication?
As the nature of scientific work evolves, qualities such as curiosity, judgment, creativity, intellectual courage, collaboration, and the ability to identify important questions and connect ideas across disciplines may become more important, not less.
Schmidt Science Fellows will continue working with our community to understand these changes and ensure that the Fellowship continues to identify scientists with the potential to lead and accelerate discovery in an AI-enabled scientific landscape.
“Through a shared commitment to continuous improvement, the workshop helps ensure the Fellowship continues to identify exceptional early-career scientists who will advance interdisciplinary science and accelerate discovery.” – Dr. David McAllister
Alongside these forward-looking discussions, the workshop also demonstrated how the experience of the growing Schmidt Science Fellows community continues to feed back into the selection of future cohorts.
Today, the Fellowship includes 240 Fellows across nine cohorts, representing 40 nationalities and nominated by 74 institutions across 18 countries.
This global community was represented throughout the discussions, with two Senior Fellows, who have also participated as selectors, sharing insights from their own interdisciplinary journeys and helping shape conversations that will influence future cohorts.
Dr. David McAllister, Director of Selection and Outreach at Schmidt Science Fellows, said: “By bringing together selectors, Senior Fellows, and program staff, the annual Selector Workshop exemplifies the collaborative values at the heart of Schmidt Science Fellows.
“Through a shared commitment to continuous improvement, the workshop helps ensure the Fellowship continues to identify exceptional early-career scientists who will advance interdisciplinary science and accelerate discovery. The insights and perspectives shared during these discussions will inform how we continue to strengthen and refine our approach to selection for future cohorts.”
