Fellowships provide journalists the resources to focus on an in-depth story or do a kind of reporting they have not done before. Fellowships also provide journalism students and recent graduates a foot in the door in the media industry. This list includes a wide variety of short and long-term journalism fellowships in the U.S. and abroad for broadcast, print, radio, and digital media journalists. This list also includes journalism fellowships for recent graduates and journalism students. Sign up to bookmark these fellowships to your ProFellow account.
This list includes fellowship opportunities for newsrooms and print media, universities and academic institutions, and field reporting and remote journalism. There are opportunities for students, early-career journalists, mid-career reporters and editors, and freelancers. Programs are available in the US and abroad, as well as for citizens of various countries. Journalists working in tech reporting, environmental journalism, science journalism, public health, and other fields will find relevant opportunities listed below.
1. New York Times Fellowship
The New York Times Fellowship is a one-year work program aimed at cultivating the next generation of journalists. The program is targeted toward an undetermined number of recent college and graduate school graduates who have graduated no more than 18 months from the start of the fellowship in June. Fellows will work in New York or Washington DC full time and will be paid and receive benefits. They will be Guild-represented employees. Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States.
2. Local Investigations Fellowship
This Local Investigations Fellowship program is a one-year investigative reporting fellowship to develop the next generation of great reporters to do this essential type of accountability journalism at the local level. For local news outlets, this fellowship is a prestigious development opportunity for promising, early-career journalists to spend a year learning from veteran investigative editors, and then return to your newsroom with a new set of skills that will benefit your report. The applications are open on a rolling basis.
3. Higher Education Media Fellowship
The Higher Education Media Fellowship supports working U.S. journalists interested in learning more about and covering issues related to post-secondary career and technical education (CTE). Selected Fellows are awarded $10,000—$5,000 as a stipend and $5,000 towards a postsecondary CTE reporting project. The six-month, non-residential program begins with an expense-paid CTE symposium where Fellows are paired with a mentor. Following the symposium, Fellows must complete a reporting project, such as a special report or series. Additional professional development funding and opportunities are available to Fellows.
4. Nieman Visiting Fellowships
The Nieman Visiting Fellowships at Harvard offer short-term research opportunities to individuals interested in working on special projects designed to advance journalism. Candidates need not be practicing journalists but must demonstrate how their work at Harvard and the Nieman Foundation may improve the prospects for journalism’s future. There is no age limit or academic prerequisites, and a college degree is not required. Both U.S. and international applicants are invited to apply. Candidates must be available to be in residence in Cambridge, Mass., for the duration of the fellowship. Most fellowships are between four and eight weeks. A stipend of $1,325 per week will be provided. International Nieman Fellowship applicants apply by December 1.
5. Nieman-Berkman Fellowship in Journalism Innovation
The Nieman-Berkman Fellowship in Journalism Innovation brings individuals to Harvard University to work on a specific course of research or a specific project relating to journalism innovation. Proposals from Nieman-Berkman Fellowship candidates may deal with any issue relating to journalism’s digital transformation. The fellowship is open to both U.S. and international applicants. Candidates should either be working journalists or work for a news organization in a business, technology, or leadership capacity. Freelance journalists are welcome to apply. Most Nieman Fellows receive a stipend of $60,000 paid over 10 months. International journalists apply by December 1.
6. Hearst Journalism Fellowship
The Fellowship is a two-year program focusing on multimedia journalism. It consists of two 12-month rotations at Hearst’s top metro papers. Successful candidates will be those who show strong writing and technical digital skills. Anyone who has completed coursework and obtained a college degree by August 1 following the application deadline is eligible. Fellows receive a competitive salary and benefits, including vacation, health insurance, and moving expenses. Canadians and other foreign nationals are eligible to apply. However, the program does not sponsor visas or pay for travel to the final judging from outside the U.S.
7. Global Journalist Fellowship
The Global Journalist Fellowship provides international journalists with funding to study at one of the master’s programs at NYU’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute. The Fellowship covers tuition and fees for two of the three semesters of the journalism graduate program, as well as a stipend of $16,000 for each of the two semesters. The fellowship is open to international journalists with at least two years of experience at a journalism publication and fluency in English and at least one other language. Journalists interested in the Fellowship must initiate an application to the M.A. program at NYU’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute.
8. Reham Al-Farra Memorial Journalism (RAF) Fellowship
The Reham al-Farra Memorial Journalism (RAF) Fellowship is a unique opportunity for young journalists from developing countries and countries with economies in transition to cover the United Nations. Hosted every fall at UN Headquarters, the program brings a select group of journalists to New York for the opening of the General Assembly. During the 3-week program, fellows have an opportunity to observe the UN in action, interview senior officials, and exchange ideas with colleagues from around the world. The Fellowship covers travel to New York and provides a daily subsistence allowance to cover accommodation and related expenses.
9. Knight-Bagehot Fellowship in Economics and Business Journalism
The Knight-Bagehot Fellowship in Economics and Business Journalism offers mid-career journalists the opportunity to study business, economics, and finance, as well as gain a strong understanding of the business of journalism itself. In this yearlong, full-time program, fellows choose from one of three academic tracks. Two lead to a Certificate in Economics and Business Journalism and one leads to a Master of Arts degree in journalism. The program accepts up to 10 Fellows each year who receive free tuition plus a stipend to offset living expenses. Applicants should have at least four years of experience covering business and must have received a bachelor’s degree or equivalent from an accredited university. International applicants are welcome.
10. International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) Knight Fellowships
The ICFJ Knight Fellowships are designed to instill a culture of news innovation and experimentation worldwide. Fellows help journalists and news organizations adopt new technologies to enhance their news gathering, storytelling, editorial workflows, audience engagement, and business models, among others. They work in countries where there is a good opportunity to create the news media of the future. The fellows comprise a global network of digital entrepreneurs and visionaries who are transforming journalism and producing lasting, tangible change. Fellowships are typically a minimum of one year and may be extended by ICFJ depending on funding and the opportunity for greater impact.
11. Arthur F. Burns Fellowship
The Arthur F. Burns Fellowship provides talented young journalists the opportunity to live and work in each other’s country. This highly personalized and practical program improves the quality of news coverage in each country and strengthens the transatlantic relationship. The fellowship is open to U.S., Canadian, and German journalists between the age of 21-40 who have two years of professional journalism experience and have a strong interest in North American-European affairs. Fellows receive a $4,000 stipend and $1,200 for travel expenses.
12. McGraw Fellowship for Business Journalism
The McGraw Fellowship provides editorial and financial support to journalists who need the time and resources to produce a significant story or series that provides fresh insight into an important business or economic topic. Awards are $5,000 a month for 1-3 months; in exceptional cases, longer grants are provided based on specific proposals. Applicants have a proven ability to report and execute a complex project in their proposed medium and a strong background or reporting expertise on the subject of their piece. Applications are accepted twice a year.
13. O’Brien Fellowship in Public Service Journalism
The O’Brien Fellowship in Public Service Journalism offers a 9-month fellowship (academic year plus summer internship) for journalists with at least 5 years of professional experience to work on a project at Marquette University*. Fellows produce a rigorous, multimedia public service journalism project with the potential to have a major impact, lead to significant reform, and investigate and explain how individuals and groups can identify creative solutions to social problems. Fellows are free to utilize resources at Marquette and a stipend of $75,000 is provided for the fellow as well as living, travel, and relocation allowances.
14. Sir Harry Evans Global Fellowship
The Sir Harry Evans Global Fellowship provides an unrivaled opportunity for an exceptional early career journalist: a nine-month fellowship with Durham University including undertaking an investigative project from inside a newsroom which could be in London, New York, or Toronto. This Fellowship is designed to give the Fellow the chance to develop rigorous, fact-based research and reporting skills. The successful applicant will be employed by Durham University as a Fellow in the Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS). The Fellowship has a monthly salary of c.£4,444 per month, a living stipend, travel, and related expenses. The Sir Harry Evans Fellowship is a global opportunity.
15. Center for Health Journalism National Fellowship
The annual National Fellowship is open to professional journalists who work for or contribute to print, broadcast, and online media outlets throughout the United States, including freelancers. Applicants should have a demonstrated interest in health, social welfare, or child and family issues, broadly defined to include the health of communities. The National Fellowship annually offers five days of informative and stimulating discussions, plus reporting grants of $2,000-$10,000, engagement grants of up to $2,000, and six months of expert mentoring as Fellows work on ambitious explanatory or investigative projects.
16. California Local News Fellowship
The California Local News Fellowship program is a multi-year, state-funded initiative to support and strengthen local news reporting in California, with a focus on underserved communities. Each year, the program places up to 40 early-career journalism fellows in newsrooms throughout the state for two-year, full-time reporting positions. This program directly addresses the crisis in local news across the nation. The California Local News Fellowship program stands as an ambitious initiative, delivering direct reporting resources to local news outlets in communities throughout the state. Participating newsrooms are representative of the state’s diverse journalism ecosystem and include mainstream newspapers and digital sites, ethnic media, non-profits, youth media, and public media outlets, among others.
17. William Southam Journalism Fellowship
William Southam Journalism Fellows are outstanding Canadian journalists in mid-career who are invited to spend a year at Massey College, a graduate college within the University of Toronto. Three or more fellowships for Canadian journalists are awarded annually, tenable for one academic year, from September to May. Applicants must be full-time news or editorial employees with Canadian newspapers, news services, radio, television, or magazines, with at least five years’ experience. Freelance journalists working consistently in the media over five years are also eligible. There are no educational prerequisites for a Fellowship. The Fellowships provide a stipend of $4,900 per month, All university fees, and Travel expenses.
18. Open Society Foundations Soros Justice Fellowships
The Soros Justice Fellowships support outstanding individuals—including lawyers, advocates, grassroots organizers, writers, print and broadcast journalists, artists, filmmakers, and other individuals with distinctive voices—to undertake full-time projects that engage and inform, spur debate and conversation, change policy or practice, and catalyze change around the U.S. criminal legal system at the local, state, and national levels. Fellowships can be either 12 or 18 months in duration and may be undertaken with the support of a host organization. Track I comes with a grant of $100,000 over 18 months and Track II comes with a grant of $140,000 over 18 months.
19. JournalismAI Fellowship Programme
The JournalismAI Fellowship Programme is a free online initiative that brings together journalists and technologists from media organizations worldwide to explore innovative solutions to improve journalism via the use of AI technologies. Up to 30 journalists and technologists will be selected to join the Fellowship cohort and work together over six months (June to December) towards building AI-powered solutions that enhance reporting. Applications are invited from candidates working in news organizations anywhere in the world. Teams will be given financial support for project expenses, as well as mentorship and coaching from experts in the JournalismAI community.
20. Chevening South Asia Journalism Fellowship (SAJP)
The Chevening South Asia Journalism Fellowship (SAJP) is aimed at mid-career journalists from South Asian countries including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. The 8-week fellowship program explores the different ways in which the media play a part in holding democratic processes to account, including government, the civil service, and security, as well as the broader political system in both the So fellows will participate in lectures, visits, and discussions that introduce them to key UK academics, media, and political figures in the field. Each fellowship includes full program fees, living expenses, and return economy airfare.
21. Spencer Fellowship for Education Reporting
The Spencer Fellowship for Education Reporting is open to journalists, educators, and education policy researchers who want to develop an ambitious, long-form journalism project to advance the understanding of education. Each fellow will receive a $85,000 stipend plus research expenses to support their academic year studying with professors throughout the Columbia campuses and working on projects under the guidance of mentors at Columbia Journalism School. Applications are open to U.S. and international journalists but projects must be done in English.
22. Al Jazeera Media Institute (AJMI) Fellowships
The Fellowship programs offered by the Al Jazeera Media Institute (AJMI) seek to encourage research in media and other fields of journalism, as well as to provide fellows with the opportunity to learn through practical experience within the Al Jazeera Media Network (AJMN). AJMI Fellowships Contribute to the development of high-quality journalism in the Global South and help journalists to adapt to modern technologies. As part of the Al Jazeera Fellowship, journalists and scholars will have the opportunity to write a 7,000-word research paper on selected fields of journalism. Program suitable for Full-time journalists and researchers with a background in media or social sciences. The program will take two months to complete divided into two main phases.
23. VII Academy Courses and Fellowship
The VII Academy, an initiative of the VII Foundation, is a photojournalism and documentary filmmaking organization that sponsors several 12-week, tuition-free courses that together form the Program for Narrative and Documentary Practice. According to the website, these “seminars are taught in multiple languages, including English, French, Spanish, Arabic, and Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian. Most students, chosen from emerging visual practitioners, first undertake the Level 1 course. After completing Level 1 with an A or B grade, students can apply to Level 2 and then Level 3. VII Academy also offers advanced visual education for more established photographers, including the VII Mentor Program.”
24. The Y. Eva Tan Conservation Reporting Fellowship
The Y. Eva Tan Conservation Reporting Fellowship Program will provide opportunities for early-career environmental journalists from biodiversity hotspots in tropical countries to report on critical environmental issues, gaining valuable training, experience, and credibility that will help them advance their careers in journalism and communications. The Program will support up to 12 fellows per year. Applicants must be from a low- to upper-middle-income tropical country and must be able to work remotely and commit to 10 hours per week. Each fellow will receive $500 a month for the duration of the six-month fellowship, or $3,000 in total.
25. Higher Education Media Fellowship
The Higher Education Media Fellowship supports working U.S. journalists interested in learning more about and covering issues related to post-secondary career and technical education (CTE). Selected Fellows are awarded $10,000 —$5,000 as a stipend and $5,000 towards a postsecondary CTE reporting project. The six-month, non-residential program begins with an expense-paid CTE symposium where Fellows are paired with a mentor. Following the symposium, Fellows must complete a reporting project, such as a special report or series. Additional professional development funding and opportunities are available to Fellows.
26. Reuters Institute Journalist Fellowships
As a Reuters Institute Journalist Fellow, you’ll spend one, two, or three terms at the University of Oxford. The Institute offers fully funded Fellowships to established mid-career journalists from throughout the world. Applicants must have a minimum of 5 years experience in any branch of journalism and demonstrate sufficient proficiency in English to be able to participate fully in the life of the Programme and write a research paper in English of publishable quality. Fellowships may be for 3, 6, or 9 months covering one or two terms or a full academic year (October – June) respectively. Awards may include travel expenses (including air travel economy class) and a modest living allowance.
27. Knight-Wallace Fellowship
The Knight-Wallace Fellowships offer accomplished journalists from all facets of the profession an academic year of study and collaborative learning at the University of Michigan. Reporters, editors, data experts, designers, visual and audio journalists, and entrepreneurs from the U.S. and abroad expand their knowledge, develop new ideas, pilot special programs, and address challenges facing the journalism industry. All fellows pursue an in-depth project or research plan. International travel is typically a component of the Knight-Wallace experience. All fellows receive a $85,000 living stipend plus $5,000 for relocation expenses, and health insurance. The international application deadline is Dec. 1. Application deadline for U.S. citizens is Feb. 1. The academic year runs from late August–April.
28. Reynolds Journalism Institute (RJI) Fellowships
The Reynolds Journalism Institute at the University of Missouri invites proposals from people and institutions to collaborate on innovative ideas and projects that strengthen democracy through better journalism. Residential fellows spend 8 months on campus taking advantage of the intellectual and technological resources of RJI and receive up to $100,000 for their stipend and research funding. Nonresidential fellowships ($25,000 total for 8 months) are designed for individuals interested in journalism and issues related to digital communications. Institutional fellowships help managers/teams develop ideas.
29. Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship
The Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship Program supports a rising generation of serious and enterprising journalists. This prestigious, year-long program allows writers early in their careers to pursue projects they otherwise would be unable to research and report. Each Novak Fellowship provides $35,000 in grant money and expense assistance. Working print and online journalists with fewer than 10 years of professional experience are eligible to apply. This includes freelance and part-time journalists. Applicants must be citizens of the United States.
30. The Reporting Award
The Reporting Award supports a work of journalism in any medium on significant underreported subjects in the public interest. The Institute will select up to two winners of the Reporting Award. Each winner may receive a different amount of money, at the discretion of the Committee. The maximum award is $12,500. Winners will have access to New York University’s libraries and the Institute’s facilities, including workspace (as available). The Institute expects that the completed work will be published in a reputable media outlet of wide circulation.
31. Matthew Power Literary Reporting Award
A grant of $12,500 will be awarded to support the work of a promising early-career nonfiction writer on a story that uncovers truths about the human condition. Offered for the first time in 2015, the Award has been endowed by individuals and organizations touched by the life and work of Matthew Power, a wide-roving and award-winning journalist who sought to live and share the experience of the individuals and places on which he was reporting. Winners will have access to New York University’s libraries and the Institute’s facilities, including workspace (as available).
32. Knight Science Journalism Fellowship at MIT
The Knight Science Journalism program at MIT offers academic-year fellowships to 10 science journalists to increase their understanding of science, technology, engineering, medicine, and the environment. Mid-career, full-time journalists from all countries are welcome to apply. Applicants must have at least three full years of experience covering science, technology, the environment, or medicine; or at least five years of other journalism experience and a desire to protect those areas in the future. Fellows receive an $85,000 stipend paid out in installments over 9.5 months. The 9-month fellowship requires Fellows to reside full-time in the Boston/Cambridge area for the academic year: August 15 through May 15.
33. CFR Edward R. Murrow Press Fellowship
Launched in 1949 with support from the Carnegie Corporation, the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) Edward R. Murrow Press Fellowship seeks to promote the quality of responsible and discerning journalism that exemplified the work of Edward R. Murrow. One CFR resident fellowship is awarded each year to a distinguished foreign correspondent or editor. The fellow spends 10 months full-time in residence at CFR’s headquarters in New York. The program enables the fellow to engage in sustained analysis and writing, expand his or her intellectual and professional horizons, and extensively participate in CFR’s active program of meetings and events.
34. Ted Scripps Fellows in Environmental Journalism
This flexible, non-degree program allows fellows to tailor these resources to meet their needs and interests. Fellows deepen their knowledge of the environment through courses, weekly seminars, and field trips. Fellows will receive a total of $80,000 for the 9-month academic year, covering tuition, recreation, and computer fees. The program is open to all full-time U.S. print or broadcast journalists interested in deepening and broadening their knowledge of environmental issues. Applicants must be U.S. citizens, have a minimum of 5 years of full-time professional journalism experience, and have completed an undergraduate degree.
35. Food and Farming Journalism Fellowships
Aimed at early and mid-career journalists, the Fellowship presents an opportunity to report ambitious long-form stories on the full range of subjects under the rubric of food systems: agricultural and nutritional policy, the food industry, food science, technology and culture, farming, agriculture and the environment (including climate change), global trade and supply chains, food system security and public health. We will award 10 early and mid-career journalists $10,000 to travel and report these stories. The fellowship is open to both print and audio journalists. They are not currently offering any fellowships to journalists outside of the Graduate School of Journalism at UC Berkeley.
36. Mother Jones Ben Bagdikian Fellowship Program
The Ben Bagdikian Fellowship Program offers a crash course in investigative journalism. It also supports emerging journalists and media professionals, allowing them to make invaluable contributions to a high-flying news organization. Based in San Francisco or Washington, DC, Mother Jones fellows dive deep into every aspect of a national multimedia outfit—from the making of news to making it pretty, ensuring its impact, and mastering the inner workings of nonprofit publishing. Fellows receive $22.68/hour, plus benefits including health, dental, and vision, as well as 15 vacation days and 12 sick days.
37. Eugene C. Pulliam Fellowship for Editorial Writing
The Pulliam Fellowship awards $75,000 to an outstanding editorial writer or columnist to expand their journalistic horizons and knowledge of the world. The annual award can be used to cover the cost of study, research, and/or travel in any field. Candidates must hold a part-time or full-time editorial writing or columnist position at a news publication in the United States and have at least 3 years of relevant work experience. Fellows must publish their work in the form of editorials and other writings, including books, within 18 months of receiving the fellowship.
38. Alicia Patterson Fellowships
Alicia Patterson Fellowships are one-year and six-month grants awarded to working journalists to pursue independent projects of significant interest and to write articles based on their investigations for The APF Reporter, a web-published magazine by the Foundation. The fellowships are open only to U.S. citizens who are full-time print journalists, or to non-U.S. citizens who work full-time for U.S. print publications, either in America or abroad. Reporters, writers, photographers, and editors are all eligible to apply. The fellowship stipend is $40,000 for twelve months and $20,000 for six months and must cover your travel and research costs.
39. Bellingcat Technical Writing Fellowship
The Bellingcat Technical Writing Fellowship program is looking for fellows who have an idea for improving the usability of open-source methods and tools through documentation or writing. This opportunity is not just targeted at technical writers, but writers of all stripes, illustrators, user researchers, videographers, or anyone who has an idea for making open-source tools easier to learn and more accessible. Send a proposal for a project you are enthusiastic about working on. Each project should last two-to-six months, and you can work on it however it suits you. You can work remotely.
40. Bellingcat Tech Fellowship
The Bellingcat Tech Fellowship Program is looking for motivated, independent technologists with the skills to develop a tool of their interest for the open-source investigator community. You will apply with a tool development pitch and a description of how you plan to implement your idea within two to six months. If you are selected, you will then define and agree on specific milestones together with Bellingcat’s Investigative Tech Team. Bellingcat’s Tech Fellowship is designed with a degree of flexibility, taking into account the complexities of developing such tools. You can work remotely and at your own pace. Fellows will receive a stipend of 1,000 Euros per month during their fellowship.
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