New York State Senate Graduate Fellowships
The Graduate Fellowships offered by the Senate include the following opportunities.
Legislative Fellowships: Each Legislative Fellow is assigned to a specific Senator’s office, where they will function largely as if they were regular staff. While duties vary depending on the needs of the member, Legislative Fellows generally perform in-depth policy research, take part in meetings with various interest groups and constituents, and attend legislative sessions.
Memorial Fellowships are awarded to applicants who demonstrate the unique qualifications and abilities required of each position. There are three such placements, each awarded to a single individual for the Fellowship class.
Roth Fellowship - The recipient of the Roth Fellowship will be placed in the Senate Majority Press Office. The Roth Fellowship requires extraordinary communications skills and an ability to explain policy positions quickly and concisely to the media and to the broader public.
Wiebe Fellowship - The recipient of the Wiebe Fellowship is placed in the Majority Counsel/Program Services Office, and works on a variety of policy areas of interest to the Senate Majority Conference. Wiebe Fellows demonstrate broad interests in all areas of public policy in New York State.
Biggane Fellowship - The recipient of the Biggane Fellowship will be placed with the Senate Finance Committee. The Biggane Fellow focuses on budget and/or fiscal matters, and will be involved in the budgetary process – one of the Senate’s primary responsibilities to the people of New York.
Award / Eligibility Details:
In most cases, Fellows must be full-time matriculated graduate students in an accredited university during the immediate previous spring and fall semesters. Fellowships are open to all academic majors. The Biggane Fellow may be a person in midcareer, at the time of application. Biggane applicants need not be currently enrolled in graduate-level study, but must have previous graduate-level experience.
All Senate fellowships are on-site in Albany, New York. Fellowships are not financial aid for academic work, on-campus or classroom study. Housing in Albany is the responsibility of the Fellow. A Grant-in-Study Stipend is awarded — $33,000 — distributed in biweekly installments prorated from the first day to the last day of enrollment. Some benefit options are available (health, dental, vision, life insurance, and the New York State retirement program). Applications from a wide range of interests and disciplines are welcome and encouraged. Training in the history/politics/government of New York State is not required. Placements are usually to the office of an elected member of the Senate or to a central staff office.
Deadline: Late April each year
Academic Level: Graduate, Post-Graduate
Type/Purpose: Internship / Professional Development, Public Service Program, Research
Field of Study: All, Arts & Humanities, Business, Education / Teaching, Public Affairs / Policy, Social Sciences, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)
Location: United States
Citizenship eligibility: All, Foreign Citizen / International Student, Permanent Resident, US Citizen, US National
Special Circumstances:
For more information: https://www.nysenate.gov/newsroom/articles/new-york-senate-graduate-fellowships
