The James C. Gaither Junior Fellows Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace offers a substantive work experience for students committed to a career in international affairs. Following applications and interviews, approximately 15 students are hired to work as research assistants at Carnegie in Washington, DC. Advanced proficiency in one or more foreign languages is essential; facility with research methodologies (including, for example, statistical inquiry) is important as well. Gaither Junior Fellows are hired for a period of 10–12 months, with fellowships beginning September 1.
Salary and Housing
Positions are paid, full-time for up to one year. The current monthly salary is $4,167. A full benefits package is provided. Gaither Junior Fellows will be provided up to $1,500 (grossed up for taxes) in relocation support. Fellows are responsible for their own housing arrangements.
Areas of Application
Applicants should consult the Carnegie website for current areas of focus. Recent research programs include Asia; Democracy, Conflict, and Governance; Europe; Middle East; Nuclear Policy; Russia and Eurasia; or Technology and International Affairs.
Eligibility
- US citizenship is NOT required for this program. However, all applicants must be eligible to work in the United States for 10-12 months from Sept. 1 through at least June 30 following graduation. Students on F-1 visas who are eligible to work in the United States for the full year may apply for the program.
- You are a graduating senior or recent alum within one year of graduation. (If you have already started a graduate program you are not eligible to apply.)
- You have foreign language competency or even fluency.
- If you applied in your senior year, you are allowed to apply again the following year provided you meet the other eligibility criteria.
Materials
An essay (personal statement) of up to two pages; double spaced. The personal statement should discuss why you are applying for this job, what you hope to learn from it, how you think your experience and working style would serve you well as a research assistant, and why you have chosen to apply for the program you are applying for. Please consult the description of Carnegie’s programs and address the specific program you seek to apply to.
A writing sample of three to five pages, double spaced. This sample may be either a full-length piece that falls within the size range or an excerpt from a longer work. The writing sample must be accompanied by a brief explanation of no more than half of one page explaining why the student chose that sample. The explanation is not included in the three to five page limitation noted above. The writing sample can be on any topic. However, we recommend that the student choose a writing sample that is relevant to the program they are applying for, either in subject matter or style of analysis. A works cited page is not required. However, in-text citations (either footnotes/endnotes or parenthetical) should be included with the writing sample.
Resume/CV (1-2 pages).
Unofficial transcript.
A video of no more than 60 seconds. First, introduce yourself, including name, major, and career plans (as best you know them); then, spend the remainder of your minute identifying what is, in your opinion, the most consequential development in the past month's news relating to the program you are applying to.
- Two letters of recommendation emailed to odps@austin.utexas.edu. These recommendations can come from anyone the student feels can best speak to their abilities as a potential Gaither Junior Fellow. Junior Fellows provide essential research assistance to our senior scholars. This often requires sophisticated judgment and independent work. Recommendations will therefore be especially useful if they speak to the student's analytical and writing skills, self-discipline and maturity, and, where relevant, subject matter expertise.
UT Austin may nominate up to two students for consideration. The internal UT selection due date is December 11, 2026. Application materials must be submitted through the ODPS Application for Endorsement form, to request access please email odps@austin.utexas.edu.