Student Fellowships

Can I seek funding from other sources? Will it hurt my chances of getting the fellowship?

You may seek other funding. Other sources of funding will be one of many factors considered by the selection committee, and applicants should not feel discouraged to apply if they have other sources of funding. Berkeley Law students specifically are expected to apply for and receive and Edley grant, which HRC's stipend will supplement. Other applicants with existing funding may be offered modified stipend amounts to supplement their existing funding.

Who is on the Selection Committee?

The selection committee is made up of faculty members and, when available, a former fellow, representing different disciplines from UC Berkeley, plus one staff member from the Human Rights Center. The Fellowship Coordinator does not sit on the selection committee.

How do I choose a partner organization? Does the partner organization have to be selected from the list on the website?

You are free to choose any partner organization you wish. Applicants must have made contact with their proposed partner organization and secured an organizational letter of support from them to apply. For more ideas on partner organizations, see the list of organizations previous fellows have partnered with on the HRC website in the "current fellows" and "alumni" pages. Applicants have also researched potential partner organizations at PSLawNet.org, Idealist.org, and ReliefWeb.int.

When should I plan to carry out my fieldwork?

The fellowship is intended to support summer fieldwork conducted between May 15 and September 15. Fellows are expected to spend at least 8 weeks full-time or an equivalent amount of time (320 hours total) working on the project.

Do I need to seek approval from the Committee for the Protection of Human Subjects?

If you are conducting research, your project may require approval from CPHS. For more information, please speak to your faculty advisor and visit the CPHS website (http://cphs.berkeley.edu). Fellowship awards are not contingent upon CPHS approval, and not all research requires CPHS approval.

I am graduating; this is my last year as a UC student. Can I still apply?

If you are graduating in May of the year you apply for the fellowship, you can still apply. Unfortunately, we are not able to accept students graduating the December prior to applying for the fellowship. If you wish to apply as a graduating student, please confirm in your application that you will be able to complete all of the fellowship requirements, including in-person participation in the post-fieldwork gathering in September and presenting at the fellowship conference in October on the UC Berkeley campus.

How do I submit the recommendation and partner organization letters?

Confidential letters of recommendation should be submitted directly by the recommenders to hrcfellowships@berkeley.edu. You may want to check with your recommenders to make sure letters are sent by the deadline. Partner organization emails should be uploaded via the online application form.

For students at campuses other than UC Berkeley: Letters should be addressed to your campus fellowship coordinator, and they can tell you more about how to upload other materials.

May I submit a paper application?

No, all applications should be submitted via our online application form (except for the letters of recommendation to be submitted separately to hrcfellowships@berkeley.edu). If you require a paper application for any reason, please contact Alexey Berlind at hrcfellowships@berkeley.edu.

Student Fellowship Program

Student Fellowship Program Apply

I know that requests for campus-specific applications and questions should be directed to the fellowship coordinator on my campus. Who is my fellowship coordinator?

Please direct all inquiries to Alexey Berlind at hrcfellowships@berkeley.edu. He will let you know whom to contact at other UC campuses.