Undergraduate Fellowship
Call For Applications
The Moynihan Undergraduate Fellowship is a transformative program that prepares promising CCNY students for impactful careers in government, policy research, and civic leadership. Fellows join a dynamic intellectual community that spans several career stages, from peer undergraduates to distinguished practitioners, while engaging in a unique curriculum that combines rigorous academic study with practical professional development. This is a two year fellowship but Juniors may apply for a one-year program.
Fellows receive up to $20,000 in financial support over up to two years, including funding for summer internships. We invite applications from full-time City College students interested in careers in government or policy research.Â
Applications for the 2025-2026 cohort are now closed. Please stay in touch with the Moynihan Center to be notified of future opportunities.
Overview
The United States faces a crisis of civic leadership. Deepening political divisions, declining trust in democratic institutions, and a precipitous decline in the quality of public discourse have eroded our capacity for collective problem-solving. Meanwhile, our public institutions struggle to reflect the demographic and viewpoint diversity of the communities they serve.
These challenges demand a new generation of civic leaders—leaders who represent the full diversity of American society, who can think beyond established categories, and who are committed to meaningful dialogue across difference. In response, the Moynihan Undergraduate Fellowship advances a vision of public service leadership inspired by Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan's own career—one that united scholarly rigor, practical wisdom, and a commitment to communicating across ideological divides.
To cultivate such leaders, the Fellowship provides two essential foundations. First, at the heart of the fellowship is a curriculum that connects insight from foundational texts in the humanities and social sciences to contemporary policy and governance challenges. Through four interconnected courses, fellows develop both the intellectual foundations and practical capabilities needed for effective civic leadership.
Second, the Fellowship operates within the Moynihan Center's distinctive "society of fellows," an intellectual ecosystem that spans career stages and sectors. Undergraduate fellows engage regularly with Moynihan Public Scholars, Postdoctoral Fellows, and Distinguished Practitioners. This multilayered community ensures that Fellows benefit not only from financial resources and a distinctive curriculum, but also from access to networks with leading thinkers and practitioners who exemplify the variety of excellence in public service careers.
The fellowship includes four courses and internship opportunities:
Year One
Fall: Power, Politics, and Policy in New York City
Spring: Philosophy and the City
Summer: First Public Service Internship
Year Two
Fall: Truth and Politics
Spring: Civic Innovation Lab
Summer: Second Public Service Internship
Fellowship Tracks
The fellowship offers two tracks, identical in structure but differing in internship placements:
New York City Leaders:Â Fellows commit to internships within New York City government, including city agencies, elected officials' offices, and other municipal institutions.
Public Service Innovators:Â Fellows may pursue internships across a broader range of institutions, including policy research organizations, advocacy groups, and state or federal agencies.
Year 1
Fall:Â Power, Politics, and Policy in New York City
Learn the complex ecosystem of New York City governance through policy analysis, case studies, and engagement with practitioners. Features guest lectures from senior officials and policymakers who share firsthand accounts of policy development and implementation. More than 30 public sector leaders annually visit the class, helping fellows understand municipal governance and envision their own public service careers.
Spring:Â Philosophy and the City
Explore foundational texts from Plato and Aristotle to Whitman and Moses, examining enduring questions about civic life, justice, and governance. Through close readings and robust discussion, develop intellectual frameworks for understanding enduring political challenges while engaging with philosophical traditions that enrich public service practice and foster innovative thinking about urban life.
Year 2
Fall:Â Truth and Politics
Navigate today's polarized information landscape by examining how media, technology, and social forces shape political discourse. Building from classic texts by Arendt, Orwell, Dewey, and others, explore contemporary challenges of polarization and misinformation. Develop media literacy skills and strategies for promoting fact-based reasoning while fostering constructive dialogue across different perspectives and experiences.
Spring:Â Civic Innovation Lab
Translate theoretical insights into practical policy solutions in this hands-on workshop. Working with practitioners and policy experts, develop professional briefs addressing pressing urban challenges. This capstone experience demonstrates how rigorous analysis enriches policy development, preparing fellows to bring critical thinking and practical judgment to careers in public service.
To be eligible for the fellowship, applicants must be:
- Full-time CCNY undergraduate students
- Current freshmen, sophomores, or juniors at time of application
- Interested in careers in government or policy research
- All majors welcome
To apply, visit our application portal at moynihancenter.ccny.cuny.edu and submit:
- Resume
- Up-to-date transcript (unofficial version acceptable)
- Contact information for two (2) faculty references
- Three short responses (250 words each) to the following questions:
- What experiences, values, or ideas have shaped your interest in public service? We are particularly interested in learning about your career aspirations in government, policy research, or related fields.
- The Moynihan fellowship brings together students from diverse backgrounds and viewpoints who share a commitment to strengthening democratic institutions. Describe a time when you engaged meaningfully with perspectives different from your own. What did you learn from this experience? How do you think the ability to engage across difference relates to effective public service?
- The Moynihan fellowship operates as a "society of fellows," where undergraduate fellows regularly interact with and learn from scholars, practitioners, and peers at different career stages. How would you both contribute to and benefit from this kind of intellectual community?
Applications are due on Monday, February 17, 2025 by 11:59 pm ET.
For questions, please email moynihancenter@ccny.cuny.edu.