Applications for ’24-’25 Roosevelt Network Fellowships are now CLOSED!

If you applied in Wave 2, or were deferred from Wave 1, you will be notified of a final admissions decision no later than the first week of March.

 

The Roosevelt Institute envisions a future where our economy and democracy work for the many, where politics and power are multiracial, and where, as FDR once said, “government is ourselves and not an alien power over us.” We invest in people—from undergraduate college students to experts qualified for federal appointments—and deploy them to shift paradigms and build toward this future. 

In service of that vision, the Roosevelt Network develops and supports undergraduate college students and early career professionals—in particular, those who hold identities that have historically been denied political power—to be the next generation of leaders in the progressive policy ecosystem. Our three Fellowship programs offer a streamlined ladder of engagement, with opportunities spanning introductions to progressive policy all the way to the publication of intensive policy research. The thread that cuts across every program is simple: equipping students with the tools to explore policy issues they care about – and supporting this experience with deep, intergenerational, support from multiple stakeholders invested in their growth.

Through strategic skills building, community support, and access to premier leaders and thinkers on the Left, the Roosevelt Network works to ensure that undergraduate students can land in a career that builds the progressive movement over the long term. Network Fellowship programs include:

The Forge Fellowship

Forge Fellowship honors the legacy of Reese Needer, a beloved Roosevelter who believed in the ideas and power of young people. Forge is our introductory program for freshman and sophomore students who are just starting out in their understanding of what policy is. Supported by Network staff and multiple mentors, Forge Fellows engage in foundational policy skills training and leadership development programming. By the end of this program, Forge graduates will grow in their leadership skills, be better prepared to navigate progressive movement career exploration, and feel deeply empowered with the skills to research policy and identify neoliberal frameworks that should be challenged at every level of policy-making. 

The Roosevelt in Washington (RIW) Fellowship

The RIW fellowship offers each student guided mentorship, career exploration events, and the application of skills, like networking, professional writing, and effective communication, in the workplace. Grounded in experiential learning, rising juniors or seniors are placed in a summer internship within a progressive movement organization while also working in teams on a policy proposal. This program serves as a transformational experience for students to witness how policy is researched, debated, designed, and advocated for in the real world – all while being supported by Network staff, a mentor, and their internship supervisor.

Emerging Fellowship

The Emerging Fellowship is an academic-year-long opportunity in which undergraduate students engage in deep research and writing skills training—concluding with the publication of a policy brief. This remote, part-time, fellowship is Roosevelt Network’s most advanced policy and research opportunity. Fellows engage deeply with the failures of neoliberal thought in their policy topic of choice, and learn how Roosevelt works to shift paradigms in service of our worldview. All Emerging Fellows receive formal mentorship from policy experts in their topic area, and have opportunities to explore pathways to graduate school.

 

If you are an undergraduate student or a university faculty/staff member who would like to receive updates on upcoming application cycles for these programs, we invite you to become a member of our digital community