Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship
Multi-Country
Multi-country
Botswana
Cambodia
Colombia
Fiji
Peru
Rwanda
Thailand
Timor Leste
Vietnam
Mongolia
Number of recipients
In addition to being a prestigious academic exchange program, the Fulbright Program is designed to expand and strengthen relationships between the people of the United States and citizens of other nations and to promote international understanding and cooperation. To support this mission, Fulbright Scholars may be asked to give public talks, mentor students, and otherwise engage with the host community, in addition to their primary activities.
The Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship provides opportunities for U.S. early and mid-career professionals and practitioners to serve in placements in a foreign government ministry or institution in participating countries around the world. Fulbright Public Policy Fellows contribute to strengthening the public sector in their host country while gaining practical experience as well as a unique vantage point into how the public policy apparatus works within a foreign government. . The Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship also includes an independent professional component that provides fellows with the opportunity to interact with the local community and further their career goals.
The Fellows will have an opportunity to further their knowledge and skills, positively impact partner-country institutions and communities and develop long-term collaborative networks within their sector between the U.S. and the host country. Fellows will work with ministry officials as “technical specialists”, immersing themselves in ongoing assignments and new initiatives, at the direction and under the supervision of host government officials. They will have the opportunity to work on issues related to their sector and contribute to public policy-related projects that benefit the host country. In addition, Fellows will undertake an independent professional project related to their area of expertise.
Fellows will be hosted by a ministry or institution and spend approximately 80% of their time carrying out ministry-directed projects. Approximately 20% of their time will be dedicated to their independent professional project. Fellows must work with their ministry supervisors to agree upon a schedule, which will be determined on an individualized basis and will take different forms depending on the country and the placement.
Applicants should create projects that may include studies, practical experience in actual operations, visits to organizations in their professional field, workshops, public lectures or other appropriate professional experiences. Their project plans should include a concrete description of the planned activities during the grant period as well as the expected benefits for completing the project for their professional field.
Fulbright Public Policy Fellowships are available in three world regions: Africa (Botswana and Rwanda); Western Hemisphere (Peru and Colombia); and East Asia and the Pacific (Cambodia, Mongolia, Thailand, Vietnam, Timor-Leste, and Fiji).
US Embassies, Fulbright Commissions (where applicable), and host country governments will coordinate placements in a host country ministry or institution in a variety of public policy areas. Applicants should apply for their country of choice but should be aware that in some cases their applications will be considered for other countries in the same region.
All qualified applicants with skills relevant to public policy in any field are eligible and encouraged to apply. Preferred fields of interest and/or potential ministry hosts, along with language requirements, for each country are:
Western Hemisphere
PERU:
Fields: Combatting Gender-Based Violence, Social Inclusion, Anti-Corruption, Equality, Integration, Sustainability, Dialogue and Reconciliation, Identity and Diversity
Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Agriculture; Ministry of Tourism; Ministry of Education; Ministry of Energy and Mines; Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations; Ministry of Development and Social Inclusion; Ministry of Production; Ministry of Justice and Human Rights; Ministry of Health; Ministry of Transportation and Communications; Ministry of the Environment; Ministry of Culture; Ministry of Housing and Construction; Ministry of Labor; Ministry of Economy and Finance; the Mesa de Concertación de Lucha contra la Pobreza (a multiparty group that works on policies to fight poverty); and the National Council for Science, Technology, and Technical Innovation (CONCYTEC), among others
Language: Advanced (superior) Spanish is required.
COLOMBIA:
Fields: Public/Global Health, Information Sciences, Energy, and Agriculture
Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Foreign Relations, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Culture, National Planning Department, National Apprenticeship Service (SENA), National Health Institute, National Institute of Metrology, Alexander von Humboldt Institute, SINCHI Institute and Agrosavia
Language: Advanced (superior) Spanish is required.
Africa
BOTSWANA:
Fields: Youth Employability, Energy, Renewable Energy, Infrastructure Development, Labor Relations, Grassroots Development, Civil Society Governance, and Advocacy to Strengthen Democracy and Government Accountability
Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Employment, Labour Productivity and Skills Development; Ministry of Home Affairs; Ministries of Basic and Tertiary Education; Ministry of Youth, Sport, and Culture
Language: English is an official language.
RWANDA:
Fields: Public health, Infrastructure, Governance
Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Health; Ministry of Infrastructure; Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion; Ministry of Local Government; Rwanda Social Security Board
Language: English is an official language. Fluency in French or Kinyarwanda is helpful, but not required.
East Asia and the Pacific:
CAMBODIA:
Fields: Tourism and the Arts
Potential Host Ministry: Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts
FIJI:
Fields: Energy, Environmental Sciences, Agricultural Sciences, Economics, Public Health
Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Environment and Climate Change; Ministry of Health and Medical Services; Ministry of Land and Mineral Resources; Ministry of Fisheries and Forestry; Ministry of Finance, Strategic Planning, National Planning & Development; Ministry of Agriculture and Waterways; National Disaster Management Office; Ministry of Infrastructure and Meteorological Services (MIMS); Department of Energy (part of MIMS)
Language: English is an official language.
MONGOLIA:
Fields: Economic Development; Finance & Banking; Public Policy and Public Administration; Technology Policy and Management; Law and Human Rights; Educational Administration, Planning, and Policy; Mining Technology and Policy; Environmental Protection; International Relations
Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ministry of Education and Science; Ministry of Finance; Ministry of Justice; Ministry of Mining and Heavy Industry
Language: Mongolian useful but not required.
THAILAND:
Fields: Environmental and/or Energy Policy (including Water Management); Education; Emerging Technologies; Cultural Heritage Preservation; Economics; Public Health and Infectious Diseases; Food Security
Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Public Health; Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research, and Innovation (MHESI); National Innovation Agency; National Vaccine Institute; Food and Drug Administration; Ministry of Culture; Ministry of Energy; Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Thailand International Cooperation Agency
Language: English is sufficient; Thai language proficiency is note required but some knowledge of Thai is useful.
TIMOR-LESTE
Fields: Education, Entrepreneurship, Environment (focus on climate change), Food Security, Human Rights, Public Administration, Public Health, Small and Mid-Sized Enterprise (SMEs), Tourism Development
Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Forestry; Ministry of Education; Ministry of Health; Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Culture; Ministry of Justice; Ministry of Planning and Strategic Investment; Ministry of Social Solidarity and Inclusion; Ministry of Tourism and Environment; Ministry of Trade and Industry; Secretary of State for Secondary Education and Technical Schools; Secretary of State for Vocational Training and Employment
Language: English is sufficient. Portuguese is encouraged and may be useful, but it is not required.
VIETNAM:
Fields: Education, Infrastructure, Energy, Environment, Economic Development, Engineering, Computer Science, Social Work, Information Technology, Social Policy, Public Policy, Agriculture, Rural Development
Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Education and Training (The Vietnam National Institute of Educational Sciences); Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Ministry of Planning and Investment; Ministry of Industry and Trade (Institute of Energy); Ministry of Science and Technology; Women's Union; Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources under the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
Language: English is sufficient. Vietnamese language proficiency is not required.
Minimum length of the total grant is four months and the maximum is nine months.
Earliest start is July 2025; latest start is March 2026. Grants for the Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship have a flexible start date and also flexible timeframe of a semester or academic year (4-9 months), with sufficient time to carry out the goals of the project.
Child Labor and Protection
Economic Development
Education and STEM
Energy
Environmental Policy
Infrastructure
Justice
Public Finance
Transparency and Good Governance
Women’s Issues
All applicants must meet the Program eligibility requirements (click to review the requirements).
Applicants should not contact potential host ministries to organize or advocate for a placement. Placements are negotiated directly between the U.S. Embassy and the Host Ministry.
Applicants are encouraged to register qualified language evaluator, such as a language instructor or a translator, to conduct the external assessment in the application. Being a native speaker alone does not qualify an individual to conduct the assessment.
Applicants who are native speakers do not need to complete an external evaluation.
U.S. Embassies have consulted with host government representatives to determine the language requirements for Fellows.
Western Hemisphere (Peru and Colombia): Advanced (superior) Spanish is required. Applicants must complete the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation and submit the Language Proficiency Report: External Evaluation. Native speakers need only to complete the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation.
Africa (Botswana and Rwanda): English is an official language of all three countries. For Rwanda, additional fluency in French or Kinyarwanda is not required but helpful.
Note: While the application requires the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation to be completed, proficiency is not required (you can enter "no ability" or other appropriate level). The Language Proficiency Report: External Evaluation is optional. Native speakers need only to complete the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation.
East Asia and the Pacific (Cambodia, Fiji, Mongolia, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Vietnam): For Timor-Leste, government business is conducted in Portuguese and Tetum and, although not required, fluency in either language would be helpful. For Fiji, English is an official language. For Cambodia, Mongolia, Thailand and Vietnam, local language proficiency is not required.
Note: While the application requires the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation to be completed, proficiency is not required (you can enter “no ability” or other appropriate level). The Language Proficiency Report: External Evaluation is optional. Native speakers need only to complete the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation.
Fulbright Public Policy Fellows will be required to carry out a position in a foreign government ministry effectively and seamlessly. Meeting the language requirements is critical for completing the daily requirements of the professional placement and professional project. Non-native speakers who have local language abilities will be asked to also register an external evaluator within the application.
All candidates must be early to mid-career entrepreneurial and self-starter professionals with a graduate degree in a public-policy related field (e.g., JD, MPA, MPH) and have a minimum of three years of full-time work experience. Postdoctoral candidates and practitioners active in the academic, public, or private sectors with a record of experience and accomplishment in a public policy related area are encouraged to apply. Candidates with field-specific background applicable to public policy (e.g.., Energy, Agriculture, Engineering) are preferred.
PhD is not required. Doctoral degree holders are eligible as long as they have three years of public policy relevant experience – as a professional/practitioner outside of the classroom. Candidates enrolled in a PhD are eligible as long as they have a MA degree AND three years of experience. Candidates who have gone directly from undergraduate to PhD and have completed the PhD, but do not have any work experience are not eligible.
Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship - Program details and application guidelines
Register for the Webinar - Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship Info Session
Monthly benefits will follow the rates for Fulbright U.S. Scholar research grants in each proposed country. Dependent benefits are not available under the Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship.
Round-trip, economy-class, international travel for the grantee provided. Relocation Allowance of $750 provided.
A $750 book/research allowance is provided to assist with the costs of research materials. Books purchased should be donated to the host institution upon completion.
Fellows will participate in a virtual pre-departure orientation in July 2025. Fellows to Botswana, Rwanda, Cambodia, Fiji, Timor-Leste and Vietnam will also participate in Fulbright regional PDOs in June/July 2025.
Please refer to the figures above for an estimate of total monthly Fulbright award benefits. Benefits may include a monthly base stipend, living and housing allowances, and additional one-time allowances. Benefits may vary based on a scholar's current academic rank (or professional equivalent), the city of placement, the type of award (teaching, teaching/research, or research), and the number of and duration of stay of accompanying dependents. Research-only or Professional Project grantees receive a standard stipend that is not adjusted for academic rank. In most cases, dependent benefits will not be provided to Flex grantees, or to grantees pursuing grants less than four months (or a semester) in length.
Final grant amounts will be determined prior to the start of the academic year and are subject to the availability of funds. The United States Department of State reserves the right to alter, without notice, participating countries, number of awards and allowances.
Visit our Scholar Directory to view and search all Fulbright alumni. You can also learn more about Fulbright Alumni Ambassadors.
US Embassies/Fulbright Commissions will work toward placement in a host country Ministry.