Jefferson Science Fellowship Program
The Jefferson Science Fellowship (JSF) program, managed by the Office of the Science and Technology Adviser to the Secretary (STAS), brings tenured science, medical and engineering professors to work at the U.S. Department of State for one year. The fellows may remain available as consultants to their host offices or bureaus after returning to their academic institutions. The JSF program is a mutually beneficial, public-private partnership between the U.S. government and academic institutions. Memoranda of Understanding between universities and the Department stipulate that participating universities continue paying fellows’ salaries and benefits during the fellowship year, while the State Department pays a stipend for costs incurred while living in Washington D.C. The JSF program provides the U.S. Government and the Department with access to scientific and technical expertise and allows the Department to leverage these senior leaders’ broad scientific and professional networks. Universities across the United States in turn benefit from the insights in foreign policy and diplomacy gained by their senior faculty and from new international linkages vital for success in a rapidly globalizing education and research enterprise.
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science & Technology Policy Fellowships Program
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science & Technology Policy Fellowship provides opportunities for scientists and engineers to learn first-hand about policymaking while contributing their knowledge and analytical skills in the federal policy realm. The aim is to foster scientifically informed, evidence-based policy and practice by engaging scientists and engineers from a broad range of disciplines, backgrounds, and career stages to directly contribute their knowledge and analytical skills to the federal government.
The inaugural 1973 class included just seven fellows serving in congressional offices. The program has grown to over 280 fellows this year and over 2,500 alumni who have worked at over 20 executive branch agencies and departments and many congressional offices and committees.
Professional Science & Engineering Society Fellowship Program
The Professional Science & Engineering (S&E) Society Fellows Program enlists professional scientists and engineers with an interest in policy and international affairs to advance the diplomacy and development policies of the United States. Established in 2001 by STAS to support the goal of strengthening S&T expertise in the U.S. Department of state, fellows contribute their respective subject matter expertise to the policymaking process by working directly in an office at the Department.
Fellows are members of the sponsoring societies, which currently include the American Institute of Physics (AIP) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) . Salaries and benefits are paid by the societies for the year that fellows serve at the Department.