Graduate Archer Fellowship Program
Application Guidelines
The Graduate Archer Fellowship Program offers an unparalleled academic and professional experience to University of Texas System graduate and medical students. To ensure you have a strong application, please read and follow the application guidelines below. The application deadline for the Summer 2024 Graduate Archer Fellowship Program is November 3, 2023.
The online application will open Tuesday, September 5. Once the application opens, candidates will be able to access and edit their application as often as they wish before the deadline or until the application is submitted—whichever comes first.
The online application will open Tuesday, September 5. Once the application opens, candidates will be able to access and edit their application as often as they wish before the deadline or until the application is submitted—whichever comes first.
Applicants are required to submit the following application materials:
Recommendation Letters
Provide two letters of recommendation, at least one of which must be an academic recommendation. The academic recommendation must be from a UT System professor or lecturer in whose course you have been enrolled (letters from teaching assistants, graduate students, or anyone without a faculty appointment will not be accepted). The second letter may also be from a UT System professor (following the same criteria as above) or it may be a professional recommendation from a supervisor (on or off campus) who can speak to your professional qualifications. We discourage recommendation letters from family members or personal friends. Together, your two recommendation letters should address your academic skills as well as qualities such as responsibility, analytic ability, leadership, maturity, work ethic, commitment to public service, and your ability to work well with others. Letters should be addressed to the Archer Fellowship Program Selection Committee.
We recommend that you create your application account and enter your recommender information long before the deadline so that your recommenders have ample time to complete the Graduate Archer Fellowship Program student evaluation survey and upload a letter on your behalf. Once you submit your recommender information through the online application, we encourage you to confirm with your recommender that they received an email with instructions for completing the recommendation. If your recommender does not receive a confirmation email, please verify that you submitted the correct email address on the application portal. If problems persist, contact the Archer Center.
Resume
Please submit a resume in PDF format that describes your education, employment history, leadership experiences, publications, and volunteer activities. The resume must NOT be more than two pages, front only, and should be reviewed by the Career Services office on your campus. We encourage you to use one of the following resume templates for your application:
Provide two letters of recommendation, at least one of which must be an academic recommendation. The academic recommendation must be from a UT System professor or lecturer in whose course you have been enrolled (letters from teaching assistants, graduate students, or anyone without a faculty appointment will not be accepted). The second letter may also be from a UT System professor (following the same criteria as above) or it may be a professional recommendation from a supervisor (on or off campus) who can speak to your professional qualifications. We discourage recommendation letters from family members or personal friends. Together, your two recommendation letters should address your academic skills as well as qualities such as responsibility, analytic ability, leadership, maturity, work ethic, commitment to public service, and your ability to work well with others. Letters should be addressed to the Archer Fellowship Program Selection Committee.
We recommend that you create your application account and enter your recommender information long before the deadline so that your recommenders have ample time to complete the Graduate Archer Fellowship Program student evaluation survey and upload a letter on your behalf. Once you submit your recommender information through the online application, we encourage you to confirm with your recommender that they received an email with instructions for completing the recommendation. If your recommender does not receive a confirmation email, please verify that you submitted the correct email address on the application portal. If problems persist, contact the Archer Center.
Resume
Please submit a resume in PDF format that describes your education, employment history, leadership experiences, publications, and volunteer activities. The resume must NOT be more than two pages, front only, and should be reviewed by the Career Services office on your campus. We encourage you to use one of the following resume templates for your application:
Transcript
Instructions:
Please note:
If you have difficulty obtaining an official transcript, please contact the Archer Center at archeradmissions@utsystem.edu. If obtaining an official transcript places an undue financial burden on you, please email the Archer Center at archeradmissions@utsystem.edu.
Personal Statement
Write an original personal statement (maximum of 500 words) that explains why you seek to be an Archer Fellow by addressing the following questions:
Policy Research Prospectus
If you are accepted to the Graduate Archer Fellowship Program, you will be required to write a policy research paper that provides: (1) background information about a federal policy problem that is important to you (or about which you have some expert knowledge), and (2) a specific recommendation for solving the problem. This paper should be relevant to your current degree plan/area of study.
For this application, please write a short prospectus (maximum of 500 words) that includes the following information:
The prospectus must include supporting evidence using MLA or APA formatted citations. Citations are not included in the 500-word limit for the policy paper. You may submit extra pages to accommodate your citations.
Instructions:
- Attach an unofficial transcript (or academic summary for UT Austin students) from your UT System home institution.
- Attach an official transcript from all previous colleges and universities attended.
Please note:
- If your current university transcript contains all course information from past institutions, you only need to submit your current transcript.
- If any graduate academic work is not included on your current transcript, you must submit an additional transcript that reflects this coursework.
- Students in the first semester of their graduate program must submit an undergraduate transcript.
- Screenshots of course records or course summaries will not be accepted.
- Please submit all transcript(s) as a single PDF document.
If you have difficulty obtaining an official transcript, please contact the Archer Center at archeradmissions@utsystem.edu. If obtaining an official transcript places an undue financial burden on you, please email the Archer Center at archeradmissions@utsystem.edu.
Personal Statement
Write an original personal statement (maximum of 500 words) that explains why you seek to be an Archer Fellow by addressing the following questions:
- Elaborate on your commitment to public service, policy and/or politics, including any background or training, and/or skills that have prepared you to be a Graduate Archer Fellow.
- Elaborate on how this program will advance your educational and professional goals. Why do you want to live, learn and intern in Washington, D.C.?
- The Graduate Archer Fellowship Program is a cohort experience where students learn from each other in addition to their coursework and internships. What qualities, experiences, and perspectives would you bring to the cohort learning environment? How does this align with the Archer Center’s mission?
Policy Research Prospectus
If you are accepted to the Graduate Archer Fellowship Program, you will be required to write a policy research paper that provides: (1) background information about a federal policy problem that is important to you (or about which you have some expert knowledge), and (2) a specific recommendation for solving the problem. This paper should be relevant to your current degree plan/area of study.
For this application, please write a short prospectus (maximum of 500 words) that includes the following information:
- Identify the problem you wish to solve and the stakeholders it impacts.
- Explain why the problem is important.
- Articulate a policy recommendation that would solve the problem.
The prospectus must include supporting evidence using MLA or APA formatted citations. Citations are not included in the 500-word limit for the policy paper. You may submit extra pages to accommodate your citations.
List of Potential Internship Sites
Research and compile a list of three potential internship sites in Washington, D.C., that align with your personal and professional goals (maximum of 250 words). Include a paragraph for each internship opportunity explaining why you have chosen it and how you would benefit from interning there as a Graduate Archer Fellow. Please note that if you are selected as an Archer Fellow, you are not required to intern at one of these three sites. The selection committee seeks to understand what types of internships interest you.
Please submit in PDF format.
To explore potential internship sites, visit our internship webpage.
Disclosure Statement
Please disclose the following:
NOTE: Disclosure of this information does not automatically disqualify you from the Archer Fellowship Program; however, nondisclosure of this information is considered falsification of your application.
If you have nothing to disclose, you must indicate this on the online application. More information regarding the disclosure statement can be found on the online application.
All application materials must be submitted in PDF format.
Research and compile a list of three potential internship sites in Washington, D.C., that align with your personal and professional goals (maximum of 250 words). Include a paragraph for each internship opportunity explaining why you have chosen it and how you would benefit from interning there as a Graduate Archer Fellow. Please note that if you are selected as an Archer Fellow, you are not required to intern at one of these three sites. The selection committee seeks to understand what types of internships interest you.
Please submit in PDF format.
To explore potential internship sites, visit our internship webpage.
Disclosure Statement
Please disclose the following:
- Criminal convictions and/or deferred adjudications, as well as any pending criminal charges against you. A conviction includes the initial plea, verdict, or finding of guilt, plea of no contest, or pronouncement of sentence by a trial court, even if that conviction may not be final or sentence actually imposed, until appeals are exhausted. Only minor traffic infractions may be excluded.
- Student disciplinary actions which have been imposed against you in the past, and any current or pending student disciplinary actions at a UT System institution or any other institution of higher education that you have attended.
NOTE: Disclosure of this information does not automatically disqualify you from the Archer Fellowship Program; however, nondisclosure of this information is considered falsification of your application.
If you have nothing to disclose, you must indicate this on the online application. More information regarding the disclosure statement can be found on the online application.
All application materials must be submitted in PDF format.
