Policy Leader Fellowship

The general profile of the candidates:

• Mid-career professionals able to demonstrate solid professional experience (minimum 10 years) and potential for future excellence in a given policy area; candidates with strictly academic profile typically will not be considered.
• Self-motivated and driven, able to autonomously accomplish the activities presented under the fellowship work plan.
• Open-minded and curious individuals willing to engage in peer discussions on topics which may go beyond their area of expertise.

Evaluation criteria:

• Accomplishments and potential: Professional excellence is assessed on the basis of the candidate’s contributions to a given policy field based on the CV and any other supporting evidence of the application. Minimum Bachelor’s degree (at the time of the application) or equivalent is required.
• Focus area: The candidate’s field of work should be broadly aligned with the STG programmes and faculty research areas. Other themes can be also considered but preference will be given to applicants that cover policy areas of the STG faculty and programmes.
• Fellowship work plan: Applicants are assessed on the professional substance of their work plan as well as its feasibility, applicability in a transnational policy context and potential impact.
• Motivation: Applicants should be able to articulate what difference the fellowship experience will make to their professional journey as well as what they can offer to the STG. Preference is given to applicants who can both contribute to the STG programmes and activities as well as benefit from their stay at the STG and the EUI.
• Diversity: The programme strives for thematic and geographic diversity as well as gender balance among the fellows.

The School of Transnational Governance can allocate approximately twenty to twenty-five fellowships per academic year. The programme can usually select around four to five percent of those who apply.

During the first step of the selection procedure, all complete applications are reviewed to perform basic eligibility check and, if eligible, are forwarded for review of the Selection Committee. Incomplete or late applications are discarded at this stage.

In the second step of the selection procedure, the Selection Committee members review the applications in light of each applicant’s professional profile, their proposed work plan and the match between the perceived needs of the candidate and the opportunities the programme offers. The Committee also considers the reciprocal contribution the applicant can make to the STG as a fellow as well as the synergies and diversity among the future cohort.

A short list and a reserve list are presented to the EUI Executive Committee for its consideration. Their decision is final and no appeal is possible. The STG is not in the position to give advice on individual applications or to give feedback about the applications. Applicants cannot contact the decision makers in this process.

The final decision is communicated to the applicants within four months of the application deadline by the Academic Service of the EUI.