Innovation Fellowship

The Innovation Fellowship provides a pathway for students from a STEM background to join the Presidential Fellows program and gain exposure to the federal policy-making process. With the increased role of advanced technologies in our society, the political system will require more technical expertise from policy practitioners. CSPC aims to provide the stepping stones for STEM students to engage in the policy sphere. Please read more about the history of the Fellows program here.

Selected applicants will participate in once-monthly webinars from September 2024 to May 2025, attend an all-expenses-paid conference in Washington, D.C. (March 22-26, 2025), and produce a 10-15 page original research paper centered on science and technology related topics through the lens of the Presidency and/or Congress. The paper can focus on contemporary or historical issues.

Students who are not from a STEM background and do not attend one of our partner institutions (listed here) are welcome to apply to the At-Large program which offers a similar opportunity to participate in the Presidential Fellows program, without the science and technology focus. You can find the application here.

The application for the 2024-2025 cohort will close August 2, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. EST.

The application contains several long form answers and requires submission of:

  • Resume

  • Unofficial transcript

  • One letter of recommendation

  • Short writing sample

If the author of your recommendation letter prefers to submit it directly to CSPC, please instruct them to send the letter to Sydney Johnson at sydney.johnson@thepresidency.org

Eligibility Requirements:

1. Be an enrolled sophomore, junior, senior, or advanced degree student majoring in any field of study for the entirety of the 2024-2025 academic year at an accredited U.S. college or university. Students graduating in December 2024 are not eligible for participation in the Innovation Fellowship program.

2. Must have a major or minor in a STEM field.

3. Open to U.S. or non-U.S. citizens studying in the United States.

4. GPA of 3.0 or above.

 Selection Criteria:

Although we do not have specific criteria for the selection of At-Large Fellows beyond the stated eligibility requirements, the Advisory Board evaluates each application with the following weights: 50% on the long-form answers, 25% on the letter of recommendation, and 25% on the resume. We would also like to emphasize that when reviewing the resume, we look for a range of diverse academic and extra-curricular experiences while also considering the applicant’s workload and how successful they might be in the Fellowship program.

Funding:

Funding for the Innovation Fellowship is provided through a generous grant from the Richard Lounsbery Foundation. The foundation was founded in 1959, with a goal to enhance national strengths in science and technology and foster strong French-American cooperation. To this day, the Foundation has stayed true to its roots while expanding to promote science among youth and to support components of US policy issues pertaining to science.