Call to Apply for the SIHI Fellowship For Early-Career Researchers In Social Innovation In Health 2026

Are you an early-career researcher passionate about social innovation in health and interested in contributing to open, practical learning resources for global audiences? Applications are now open for the SIHI Fellowship, a six-month volunteer programme designed to support young researchers while strengthening learning across the Social Innovation in Health Initiative network.

Why This Fellowship Matters

Social innovation in health plays a critical role in addressing persistent health challenges by centring community-driven solutions, equity, and systems thinking. However, access to practical learning resources and global knowledge exchange remains limited for many researchers and practitioners. The SIHI Fellowship responds to this gap by supporting early-career researchers to co-create open-access learning content while building strong research, communication, and collaboration skills within a global community of practice.

ABOUT THE SIHI FELLOWSHIP

SIHI Fellows will join a structured six-month programme focused on learning, collaboration, and knowledge sharing. Fellows will work closely with their local SIHI Hub and the SIHI-UNC team to co-develop short learning videos that contribute to global understanding of social innovation in health. The fellowship also emphasises mentorship, reflective learning, and collective knowledge production across the SIHI network.

WHAT FELLOWS WILL DO

Fellows will participate in a six-month fellowship experience, develop an Individual Development Plan, and be paired with a coach from a SIHI Hub. They will take part in a community of practice convened by SIHI-UNC, co-create one open-access SIHI learning video, and contribute to a collaborative manuscript documenting the fellowship network experience.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

• Applicants must be early-career researchers aged 15 to 35 years or within 10 years of completing a terminal degree.
• They should demonstrate an interest in social innovation in health and be willing to participate on a volunteer basis.
• Applicants should also be open to collaborative learning, content creation, and engagement across the SIHI network, and be able to commit time throughout the six-month fellowship period.

HOW TO APPLY

• Interested candidates should apply via the Qualtrics application form and upload a current CV and a one-page cover letter.
• The cover letter should outline your interest in social innovation in health, your motivation for applying, and any experience or interest in developing learning materials such as short videos.
• Applicants will also be asked to indicate their preferred SIHI Hub or Hubs.

Apply Here