Welcome to the Aspire Fellowship.
Congratulations!
The Aspire team is excited to have you as part of our Spring 2026 Cohort.
You’re joining a selective group chosen from over 300+ applicants.
Admission into the Aspire Fellowship is intentionally selective. Each student is chosen not just for technical ability, but for intellectual curiosity, independence, and the capacity to pursue original research at a high level. It doesn’t matter where you are in your research journey; we saw something promising in your application, and that’s why you’re here.
Over the next 12 weeks, you’ll work 1-on-1 with your PhD mentor to design, execute, and present a competition- or publication-ready research project in a domain you’ve expressed interest in. The Fellowship is structured to mirror the way real research is done, from problem formulation and literature review to methodology, iteration, and final presentation.
This is not a course, and it is not a camp. The Aspire Fellowship is designed for students who want to treat research as a serious intellectual pursuit.
By accepting your spot, you’re joining a small cohort of students who will be held to high standards, and given the mentorship and structure to meet them.
Welcome to Aspire.
-Suraj & Nathan, Program Founders
Next Steps
1. Confirm Your Seat.
To secure your place in the cohort, complete your enrollment by following the steps in the enrollment portal. Mentor seats are limited, and early enrollees are given priority. If you enroll too late, you may not be able to work with your assigned mentor, or a mentor at all.
2. Program Kickoff.
After confirming your seat, we’ll begin our Kickoff phase. You’ll be informed about the nitty-gritty details of the program, decide on the type of deliverables you want to create, meet with your PhD mentor, schedule recurring meeting times, and review student expectations before starting research.
3. Begin Research.
Once you’re fully onboarded, the fun begins! You’ll start working directly with your mentor on refining your research question and conducting literature review. From there, you’ll move through structured milestones toward producing a concrete outcome.
If you have any questions about this process, please reach out to team@aspireresearch.net.