Superbloom

Announcing a new program for usable-security researchers

We are pleased to announce one of our first initiatives – the Secure Usability Fellowship Program (SUFP) – in partnership with the Open Technology Fund. This new program aims to cultivate applied research and creative collaboration at different levels and across institutions on the topic of usable security, especially the usability of open-source secure-communication tools to promote human rights and open societies.

SUFP’s approach to this work is straightforward; the program supports qualified individuals to work within accomplished host organizations on clearly-defined and high-impact usable-security projects. Simply Secure will offer mentorship and community to the fellows, act as a host organization for some of them, and help OTF guide and administer the program overall.

Two tiers of competitively-paid fellowships are available:

  • Senior Fellows - Offered as a one year term and typically taken up by postdoctoral or doctoral students, and/or researchers/practitioners with demonstrated expertise and experience.
  • Seasonal Fellows - Offered as a three- or six-month term and typically taken up by students and/or less-experienced practitioners.

We encourage people from a varied and unlikely backgrounds – from students to established practitioners – to apply. We welcome applications from people in a diversity of disciplines; likely candidates have experience as usability researchers, interaction or visual designers, computer scientists, user-facing software developers, data visualization designers, or other types of social scientists.

To apply to be a fellow, please complete this online form. The deadline for applications to the inaugural group of fellows is January 2nd, 2015. If you’re interested in hosting a fellow, please contact [email protected].