2008-2009 Fellowships in International Human Rights

Application Deadline: October 5, 2007

This year Human Rights Watch will award three fellowships to recent graduates of law schools or graduate programs (master’s degree and above) in journalism, international relations, area studies, or other relevant disciplines. The Alan R. and Barbara D. Finberg Fellowship is open to any candidate who meets these criteria. The Leonard H. Sandler Fellowship is restricted to graduates of Columbia Law School. The NYU School of Law Fellowship at HRW (previously Arthur Helton Fellowship) is restricted to graduates of New York University School of Law.

In addition to the fellowships offered by Human Rights Watch, graduates of the Yale University School of Law may apply directly to the law school for the Bernstein Fellowship. Human Rights Watch encourages prospective Bernstein fellows to make arrangements to work with Human Rights Watch and to include those arrangements in their applications to Yale for the fellowship. For information on applying for this fellowship, CLICK HERE.

Fellows work full time for one year at Human Rights Watch, based in New York City, Washington, D.C., or London. Fellows monitor human rights developments in various countries, conduct on-site investigations, draft reports on human rights conditions, and engage in advocacy aimed at publicizing and curtailing human rights violations. Past fellows have conducted fact-finding missions to, among other places, Albania, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Colombia, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, India (including Kashmir and Punjab), Iran, Israel, Kenya, Malaysia, Moldova, Namibia, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia, Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Uganda, the U.S.-Mexican border, and Venezuela.

Qualifications
Applicants must have exceptional analytic skills, an ability to write and speak clearly, and a commitment to work in the human rights field in the future on a paid or volunteer basis. Proficiency in one language in addition to English is strongly recommended. Familiarity with countries or regions where serious human rights violations occur is also valued. Fellows must be law, journalism, international relations, or area studies graduates with degrees received after January 2005 and before August 2008, or must provide evidence of significant, comparable, relevant work experience. Fellowships begin in September 2008.

Salary and Benefits
The salary for the 2007-2008 fellows is US$47,000, plus excellent employer-paid benefits. The salary for 2008-2009 fellows is currently under review.

How to Apply
Please send a complete application packet that includes the following:

• cover letter
• résumé (curriculum vitae)
• two letters of recommendation
• unedited, unpublished writing sample
• official law or graduate school transcript (applicants in one-year graduate programs should supply an undergraduate transcript with a list of their graduate school courses)Click here for the “Fellowship Application Checklist.”

Click here for the “Fellowship Application Checklist.”

Complete applications (including transcripts and recommendations) for 2008-2009 fellowships must be received by October 5, 2007, so applicants should allow sufficient time to collect the required materials in advance of the deadline. Complete applications should be sent to Human Rights Watch, Attn: Fellowship Committee, 350 Fifth Avenue, 34th Floor, New York, NY 10118-3299.

Applicants must be available for interviews in New York from early November to mid-December 2007.

Click here for the “Fellowship Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).” Other inquiries may be directed to the Fellowships hotline at (212) 290-4700 x312, or to fellowship@hrw.org.

Emailing/Faxing Parts of Your Application
Applications must be submitted by mail, under a single cover. However, under truly extenuating circumstances and only with prior written approval from us, you may send in an application or part of an application by email or fax, by the deadline of October 5, 2007. Lateness of an application does not constitute extenuating circumstances. Emailed or faxed applications will not be accepted without prior written approval from Human Rights Watch.

The Bernstein Fellowships
The Bernstein Fellowships established in honor of Robert S. Bernstein, founding chair of Human Rights Watch, provide financial support to allow two Yale Law School graduates to pursue full-time international human rights work for one year. (Please note that the Bernstein Fellowships are administered through Yale Law School. Applications for the Bernstein Fellowships should not be sent to Human Rights Watch.)

Sponsors