STEM PhD AI Fellowship (Remote, Europe, UK)
Listing checked September 18, 2026 · pay as published by Handshake AI
Overview
Handshake AI runs a year-round fellowship that pulls STEM doctoral researchers into its AI research community, where experts shape how large language models handle scientific subjects. Fellows work remotely and set their own schedule, logging roughly 10 to 20 hours each week on project work. Typical tasks center on building domain-specific prompts and judging model responses for accuracy in mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology, and engineering. Project slots open and close with demand in each discipline, so placement depends on what is available when you apply.
What You'll Do7
- 1Draft prompts that test how well an LLM reasons through problems in your scientific field.
- 2Review model answers and score them against the standards of your discipline.
- 3Write evaluation criteria that other reviewers can follow when judging output.
- 4Spend part of your hours researching topics tied to your own interests, supported by AI tools.
- 5Flag errors, gaps, and weak reasoning that a model produces on technical questions.
- 6Turn dense research knowledge into clear task instructions that non-specialists can apply.
- 7Track your hours and complete project milestones while working on your own schedule.
Requirements6
- 1Enrolled doctoral student, recent PhD graduate, or postdoctoral researcher in Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, or Engineering.
- 2Resident in Europe or the United Kingdom.
- 3Strong written English, with a record of explaining complex research in plain, structured form.
- 4Confidence that your subject knowledge outmatches what current AI systems can do in your field.
- 5Ability to commit around 10 to 20 hours per week to project work.
- 6Comfort working on your own without fixed hours or direct supervision.
Who Should Apply
Researchers in the middle of a PhD, recent graduates, and postdocs in math, chemistry, biology, physics, or engineering fit this work well, because the tasks demand real depth in a scientific field. You should also write well enough to break a research concept into steps another person can follow. Candidates based outside Europe and the UK cannot take part, so confirm your location before applying. Applications also lose ground when the field of study sits outside the five listed disciplines, or when a writing sample stays vague instead of showing how you would explain a technical idea. Hesitating about your own expertise hurts too, since the work asks you to judge whether a model's answer holds up in your field.
Salary Insight
Pay reaches up to $75.00 per hour, a rate that reflects specialist scientific knowledge rather than entry-level AI annotation work. Your actual earnings depend on which projects you pick up and how many hours you log each week, since the schedule is yours to set. The figure sits near the top of the range for PhD-level AI training work, and placement in a project comes first, before any hours are assigned.
Pay and demand for Machine Learning & AI roles
AggregatedTypical pay
$75/hour
This role
up to $75/hr
Most Machine Learning & AI roles pay $55–$100 per hour. This role's pay falls inside that range.
Based on 513 similar roles that publish pay · 90 publish only a top rate; those count at the rate they gave
Rates shown per hour. Yearly and monthly pay converted; one-time fees and non-USD pay are not included.
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Most requested skills · share of roles
- python17%
- technical writing9%
- llm evaluation8%
- data annotation7%
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Compensation
Up to $75/hr
Required Skills
Application Tip
Lead with one concrete example of translating your research into a structured task, such as a prompt you wrote plus the rubric you used to grade a model's answer. Name your exact subfield, for instance organic chemistry or condensed matter physics, instead of writing 'STEM' broadly, because reviewers match fellows to projects by discipline.
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