The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace is a global network of policy research centers in Russia, China, Europe, the Middle East, India, and the United States. We are more than 150 thinkers and doers from diverse disciplines and perspectives spread across more than twenty countries and six global centers working together as one network to advance international peace. In an increasingly crowded, chaotic, and contested world and marketplace of ideas, the Carnegie Endowment offers decisionmakers global, independent, and strategic insight and innovative ideas that advance international peace.

The James C. Gaither Junior Fellows Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace is designed to provide a substantive work experience for students who have a serious career interest in the area of international affairs. Approximately 15 students will be hired to work as employees at Carnegie in Washington, DC on a fulltime basis for a period of 10-12 months.

ASSIGNMENTS: Gaither Junior Fellows provide research assistance to scholars working within Carnegie’s programs, listed below. They have the opportunity to conduct research, contribute to op-eds, papers, reports, and books, edit documents, participate in meetings with high-level officials, contribute to congressional testimony and organize briefings attended by scholars, activists, journalists and government officials.

NOMINATION REQUIRED: Due to the limited number of positions, applicants must be nominated by their university to apply. Universities are limited to a maximum of 3 nominations.

Students who identify as members of historically underrepresented communities are strongly encouraged to apply.

2024-25 Program Areas:

1. Democracy, Conflict, and Governance
2. American Statecraft
3. Nuclear Policy
4. Technology and International Affairs – Strong writing skills and research skills are essential.
5. Middle East – Strong reading fluency and the ability to perform academic as well as on-line research in Arabic essential. Strong background in Middle East politics and/or history is a huge plus.
6. International Security and Political Economy [to work with the International Security and South Asia Programs] – Quantitative data analysis and GIS skills are required. A strong mathematical background is a plus. An academic background in international relations theory or international political economy along with an interest in military issues is essential.
7. Asia Program – Mandarin Chinese language skills are essential. Proficiency in another Asian language is a plus.
8. Russia and Eurasia – Excellent Russian and/or Ukranian reading skills required.
9. Africa Program
10. Global Order and Institutions
11. Sustainability, Climate and Geopolitics - Basic data skills (such as helping create graphs or tables for Carnegie publications) are a plus. Applicants should have completed coursework related to sustainability and climate issues.
12. Europe - Fluency and the ability to perform research in a European language other than English are a plus. Background knowledge on European politics is essential.

The Carnegie Endowment accepts applications only through participating universities via designated nominating officials. UW's nominating officials are listed below in the Contact section. Please reach out to us with questions!

• Applicants must be graduating seniors or students who have graduated during the last academic year. No one who has started graduate studies is eligible for consideration (except those who have recently completed a joint bachelor's/master's degree program).
• You need not be a U.S. citizen if you attend a university located in the United States. However, all applicants must be eligible to work in the United States for 10-12 months from Sept 1 through 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. If you attend a participating school outside of the United States, you must be a US citizen (due to work permit requirements).
• The selection process for the Junior Fellows Program is very competitive. Accordingly, applicants should be of high academic quality and should have completed a significant amount of course work related to their discipline of interest. Language and other skills may also be required for certain assignments.
• Applicants must pick one of the programs listed to apply to, and respond to the corresponding essay question within the application materials.

• senior

• US Citizen
• Permanent Resident
• International or Other Visa Status
• Undocumented

UW Application & Nomination Process:

The Gaither Junior Fellows program is highly competitive and as such, the Carnegie Endowment relies on participating universities to nominate uniquely qualified students. No applications are accepted directly from students. Students must consult with their campus contact about the nomination process. Students who identify as members of historically underrepresented communities are strongly encouraged to apply. 

UW has separate nomination processes for UW candidates at each of the three campuses. Please contact your campus adviser listed below. Each campus will select and nominate up to 3 candidates to compete in the national competition.

• UW Seattle students, please contact Robin Chang (robinc@uw.edu) for any questions about the campus application process.
• UW Bothell students, please contact Natalia Dyba (nataliak@uw.edu) for any questions about the Bothell campus application process.
• UW Tacoma students, please contact Robin Chang (robinc@uw.edu) for connection to Tacoma supports.

Application Materials

FOR UW SEATTLE students - The campus application will open in mid-October. The campus application is available here, and requires:

• UW online application form, through which you'll submit the materials below: 
  
  • Brief biographical information
  • One-page or less (double-spaced) essay on why the applicant would like to become a junior fellow
  • 1-2 page resume
  • Unofficial transcripts
  • Thought Piece Essay: An essay of no more than three (3) typewritten, double-spaced pages on one of the topics listed below. These topics are intended to test skills in analysis, logic, and written expression. The essay should be analytical thought pieces, NOT research papers. Students should submit an essay related to their primary research program interests, although the James C. Gaither Junior Fellows Program may ultimately select an applicant for a program outside of his/her designated primary interest or make an assignment to more than one program.
• Two letters of recommendation: Please instruct your recommenders to email recommendation letters to Robin Chang at robinc@uw.edu as pdf attachments, though letters should be addressed to the Gaither Junior Fellows Program.

Thought Piece Essay Details: Applicants must respond to the question pertaining to the program to which they are applying. 

1. Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program. Choose any two countries in the world, from two different regions, including at least one from the Global South. Explain how political developments in those countries in the past five to ten years embody what you believe are some of the most important elements of the global democratic recession. Be sure to give some indication why you have chosen the countries you focus on.
2. American Statecraft Program. America’s role in the world is changing, whether it likes it or not. What are the 3-5 most important factors that will shape the context in which America conducts its foreign policy in the next two decades?
3. Nuclear Policy Program. Which state without nuclear weapons do you believe is most likely to acquire them?
4. Technology and International Affairs Program (Please respond to just ONE of the two following questions). When you read or hear discussions about ‘risks of AI’ what questions do you have that you do not think are being answered well? OR What technology issue will have the greatest impact on international stability in the coming decade, and why?
5. Middle East Program. The Middle East region is going through a huge, agonizing and protracted transformation characterized by dwindling oil revenues, rising populations, failing governance structures and government services, rising extremism and sectarianism, and high youth unemployment. The current situation has enabled regional powers to intervene in each other’s affairs as well as non-state actors such as the self-proclaimed Islamic State to emerge and spread new toxic ideologies. What do you see as one of the most difficult threats facing the region today and the underlying drivers of turmoil? Discuss the impact this has had on two countries in the region and strategies that will help move these countries toward a better future.
6. International Security and Political Economy [to work with the International Security and South Asia Programs] (Please respond to just ONE of the two following questions). Many scholars argue that the world is experiencing a worrying period of democratic backsliding, while skeptical voices suggest that backsliding concerns are overblown. With reference to existing data sources and democracy ratings, which position do you find more compelling and why? OR Should the United States end its ambiguity over defending Taiwan?
7. Asia Program. To what extent are states in Asia "forced to choose" between the US and China? Consider political, economic, security, and other factors to substantiate your analysis.
8. Russia and Eurasia Program. The U.S.-Russia relationship has plummeted to unprecedented post-Cold War lows amid the war in Ukraine. Can this downward trajectory be arrested? What are the key dangers in the current situation and how might the White House seek to prevent things from getting out of hand?
9. Africa Program. Narratives about Africa’s future often oscillate between unrealistic optimism and blanket pessimism. Clearly the truth lies in a more nuanced middle. Compare and contrast the recent trajectories of two African countries—including both their economic and political dimensions—to help illuminate a nuanced picture of Africa’s current direction.
10. Global Order and Institutions Program. The UN Secretary-General has depicted the world as “gridlocked in colossal global dysfunction.” What accounts for the failures of many multilateral institutions, and what—if anything—can be done to improve international cooperation in addressing major global challenges?
11. Sustainability, Climate and Geopolitics Program. (Please respond to just ONE of the two following questions). After 30 years of UN climate conferences, the multilateral approach to climate mitigation has a poor record by the most important metric: global greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise each year, even as climate impacts become more noticeable and severe. This poor record raises doubts about the “bottom-up” logic of voluntary, national climate pledges as embodied in the 2015 Paris Agreement. Has this bottom-up logic failed, and if so, what should replace it? OR Imagine it is the year 2040 and you are working for a major international organization. Your teenaged niece, who is about to begin studying for a bachelor’s degree in Climate & Geopolitics, asks you to summarize how the climate crisis and the responses to it have transformed international affairs since you were a student. In the interest of time, she asks you to focus on 2-3 of the most important developments. What do you tell her?
12. Europe Program (Please respond to just ONE of the two following questions). The war in Ukraine has galvanized European defense efforts and revived a “braindead” NATO. Looking at the recent successes of transatlantic security cooperation, some have questioned the continued relevance of European “strategic autonomy”. At the same time, the war has revealed the gaps in European defense capacities and the degree to which Europe still depends on the US for its security. After decades of foot-dragging, European governments are now finally investing in their defense budgets. How should they spend the new money? And what else is needed to put the transatlantic defense relationship on a more sustainable footing? OR With the Trade and Technology Council (TTC), the US and Europe have established a new mechanism to coordinate policy on crucial questions related to democratic technology governance. How important is the TTC for the transatlantic partnership and its effectiveness in tackling both systemic and acute challenges? And what is one initiative or project you would recommend the two sides should launch at their next TTC meeting?

Additional Tips and Information:

National program information & FAQs for the current application cycle. View the slides from the UW information session.

Sample essays - Warning, these are examples only and are not necessarily the best examples. The Carnegie Endowment staff provide these examples as illustrations only of what past scholars have written. All application materials must be the original work of the applicant submitting them.

• Thought Piece sample 1
• Thought Piece sample 2
• Why I Want to be a Junior Fellow Sample

On his seventy-fifth birthday, November 25, 1910, Carnegie announced the establishment of the Endowment with a gift of $10 million. He selected 28 trustees who were leaders in American business and public life. In his deed of gift, presented in Washington on December 14, 1910, Carnegie charged trustees to use the fund to "hasten the abolition of international war, the foulest blot upon our civilization," and he gave his trustees "the widest discretion as to the measures and policy they shall from time to time adopt" in carrying out the purpose of the fund.

UW Seattle Campus Contact:

Robin Chang
Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships & Awards
171 Mary Gates Hall, Box 352803
Seattle, WA 98195-2803
Phone: 206-543-2603
Fax: 206-616-4389
E-mail: robinc@uw.edu

UW Bothell Campus Contact:

Natalia Dyba

Director of Global Initiatives

University of Washington Bothell

UW1-186 | Box 358555

18115 Campus Way NE | Bothell, WA 98011

Phone: 425.352.3261 | Skype: uwbglobal

Email: nataliak@uw.edu

UW Tacoma Campus Contact:

TBD. In the interim, please contact Robin Chang, robinc@uw.edu for connection to Tacoma supports.