📌 Fellowship Snapshot
| Application Opens | June 1, 2026 |
| Application Deadline | July 31, 2026 — 11:59 PM EST |
| Fellowship Period | Feb 1, 2027 – Dec 31, 2029 |
| Funding Available | USD $300,000 over three years |
| Number of Fellowships | Up to 10 |
| Results Announced | November 2026 |
| Contact | legofellowship@ssrc.org |
📋 In This Guide
About the Fellowship
The LEGO Foundation Fellowship is a global research initiative developed in partnership with the LEGO Foundation and administered by the Social Science Research Council (SSRC). It supports early- and mid-career researchers whose work has the potential to generate meaningful evidence for children’s lives.
Fellows receive three years of flexible support to pursue rigorous, practically relevant research and join a cohort of peers working across the fellowship’s core themes. The program fosters a scholarly community engaged in meaningful exchange with research, policy, and practice audiences.
This fellowship coincides with the LEGO Foundation’s 40th anniversary. Since 1986, the Foundation has invested in organizations and individuals helping children learn, grow, and develop through play. Today, with more children growing up in conflict and crisis, the demand for bold research has never been greater.
Relevant Disciplines Include:
Education, Psychology, Child Development, Public Health, Economics, Sociology, Neuroscience, Data Science, Humanitarian Studies, Disability Studies, Human-Computer Interaction, Implementation Science — and more.
Research Themes
The fellowship supports research under three core themes. Applicants may address one or more. The role of play may be explored where relevant, but is optional — not required.
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1The Youngest Children in Crisis and Conflict Settings Focuses on children from birth to age 8 and their caregivers in humanitarian emergencies, prolonged displacement, and recovery contexts — including refugee and internally displaced children. Sub-themes: → Mechanisms of resilience: How children can develop and learn despite adversity → Strengthening caregiving: How family environments can support children’s development in crisis → Scaling effective interventions: Evidence on scaling MHPSS in crisis-affected systems → Translating evidence into practice: What enables or constrains adoption of evidence-based MHPSS interventions |
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2Inclusion and Wellbeing of Neurodivergent Children With a particular focus on Autism and ADHD, this theme strengthens support for neurodivergent children up to age 18. Projects on broader neurodivergence must also incorporate Autism, ADHD, or both. Sub-themes: → Support before diagnosis: Recognizing needs before formal assessment → Strengthening family environments: How routines and caregiving shape everyday experiences → Inclusive learning environments: Designing education systems around neurodivergent learners → Transitions and continuity of support: Maintaining effective support through key transitions → Enabling tools: How digital technologies reduce barriers to learning and participation |
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3Children’s Learning and Development in an AI-Enabled World Explores how AI is reshaping children’s lives up to age 18 and how it can support thriving, learning, wellbeing, and inclusion. Sub-themes: → AI and adult-child connection: How AI shapes interactions between children and supporting adults → AI and social-emotional development: How AI use shapes emotional development and help-seeking → AI and productive struggle in learning: How AI affects motivation, engagement, and persistence → Differential effects of AI: When AI deepens or reduces existing differences in children’s learning Sponsored links
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Funding & Benefits
- 💰 USD $300,000 in flexible research funding over three years (inclusive of 15% indirect costs)
- 🏛️ Funding administered by the fellow’s host institution
- 👥 Access to a cohort of fellows working across disciplines and contexts
- 🌐 Participation in annual convenings and virtual cohort sessions with researchers, practitioners, and LEGO Foundation partners
- 📢 Media channels to disseminate research to policymakers, practitioners, and the public
- 🏅 Recognition as part of the LEGO Foundation’s global network
Eligible research costs include: research personnel, professional travel, equipment, dissemination activities, trainee support, and related project costs.
Who Can Apply
The fellowship is open to early- and mid-career researchers from around the world employed by a university or research institute. All applicants must meet the following:
Applicants Must:
- Hold a PhD or equivalent research doctorate (including MD/MBBS) by July 31, 2026
- Have received their PhD no earlier than January 1, 2016 (career-break exceptions apply)
- Be currently employed by a university or research institute at the start of the fellowship
- Have a host institution that can administer fellowship funds
- Submit an individual application — team applications are not accepted
- Propose work aligned with one or more fellowship themes
⏱ Career Break Policy
Applicants who took documented career breaks (parental leave, caregiving, illness, displacement, etc.) may extend the eligibility window. For each approved break, 6 months and one day may be added to the post-PhD timeline.
🌍 Geographic Eligibility
Applicants from any country are welcome — except those subject to EU or US sanctions. If your country is not on either sanctions list, you are eligible regardless of location.
Selection Criteria
Applications are reviewed by an international, multidisciplinary committee against the following:
| Criterion | What Reviewers Look For |
|---|---|
| Alignment with themes | Proposed work clearly advances the understanding of children’s thriving within one of the three themes |
| Clarity of proposed work | Clear research question, gap addressed, and meaningful scope for the fellowship period |
| Applicant readiness | Demonstrated experience and capacity relative to career stage, context, and opportunity |
| Approach & feasibility | Appropriate methodology with a realistic understanding of challenges and how to address them |
| Research quality | Rigorous, methodologically sound work with a realistic plan covering methods, timeline, ethics, and risks |
| Field context & contribution | Situates work within relevant research debates and explains its contribution to others on related questions |
| Fellowship fit | Explains why this fellowship is timely and how the applicant would contribute to peer exchange |
Required Documents
All materials must be submitted through the online application portal. The complete application includes:
1
Online Application Form
Standard form through the SSRC application portal.
2
CV / Résumé
2-page limit
3
Research Abstract
250-word limit
4
Personal Statement
500-word limit — Must address: (a) your inspiration for researching childhood development; (b) scholarly contribution; (c) leadership in moving discovery into practice.
5
Research Proposal
5-page limit — Must include:
- Relevance — your research question
- Original contribution — practical implications for scholars, practitioners, and policymakers
- Methods — data collection, analysis, reliability, and IRB plans
- Feasibility — anticipated challenges and how you plan to address them
- Work to date — related research and preliminary analysis
6
Budget & Budget Justification
Complete both templates provided in the portal. A budget is required — applications without it will not be considered.
7
Selected Bibliography
2-page limit — References relevant to the proposed research.
Application & Selection Process
The selection process includes two evaluation stages:
Applications Open — June 1, 2026
Portal opens for submissions at ssrc.secure-platform.com.
Deadline — July 31, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST
All materials must be submitted. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.
Round 1 — International Committee Review
A multidisciplinary committee reviews all applications and nominates a panel of finalists.
Round 2 — LEGO Foundation Final Selection
The LEGO Foundation’s review committee selects grantees from the finalist pool.
Results Announced — November 2026
All applicants will be informed of their status. Individual feedback is generally only available to finalists.
Fellow Expectations
- Dedicate sustained time to the research agenda proposed in the application
- Participate in fellowship convenings, including annual meetings and virtual cohort sessions
- Share work in progress and contribute constructively to peer exchange
- Submit annual progress updates and a final report
- Acknowledge fellowship support in all publications, presentations, and outputs
- Participate in LEGO Foundation coverage and dissemination of their research
- Follow relevant ethical, safeguarding, data protection, and institutional requirements
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I apply if my research addresses more than one theme?
Yes. Your application should identify the primary theme and any secondary themes. You do not need to address all three.
Is play required in the research proposal?
No. Play may be explored where relevant, but it is optional and not a condition of eligibility.
Can research teams apply?
No. The fellowship is awarded to individual researchers only. Each applicant must submit their own individual application.
Can I use the fellowship to extend an existing project?
Yes. You may also accept funding from other sources for the same project.
Can I change institutions during the fellowship?
Yes, subject to approval and confirmation that the new institution can administer the award.
Does an MD or MBBS degree qualify?
Yes. A Doctor of Medicine (MD) or equivalent such as MBBS is considered an equivalent research doctorate.
Are visa or IRB costs covered?
These costs may be included in the proposed budget. However, the LEGO Foundation cannot provide logistical support for obtaining travel visas or IRB clearances.
Will I receive feedback if not selected?
Due to the expected volume of applications, individual feedback is generally only available to applicants who reach the final stage.
How to Apply
Submit your complete application through the official SSRC portal before the deadline. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.
Application Deadline
July 31, 2026 — 11:59 PM EST
Questions? Contact legofellowship@ssrc.org
Official page: ssrc.org/programs/the-lego-foundation-fellowship
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