Information for Advisors – Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Fellowship Program
How can I learn about and share information on the fellowship?
The Pickering Foreign Affairs Program does not require an institutional recommendation for applicants. However, we depend on our university advisors, faculty, and staff, as well as individuals associated with different organizations throughout the country, to share information about the opportunities with students and alumni. To support these activities, we encourage you to do the following:
- Review our available resources, including a one-page flyer, an informational presentation, and our fellow directory.
- Follow us on social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram).
- Share information on the Pickering Fellowship with faculty, staff, affinity groups who work with under-represented groups, education abroad programs, student groups, participants in programs such as the Gilman Scholarship or the Critical Language Scholarship, and students considering applying for the Fulbright or other international programs.
- Check out our Frequently Asked Questions to learn more about the fellowship and the application process.
- Consider scheduling short, informational pitches to groups that support under-represented and/or first-generation students, returned study abroad students, or student honors programs; or classes in areas like international affairs, economics, or business. Templates information session flyers are available
- Request a virtual information session with a Pickering Program staff member, a current fellow or alumni. Please note that our staff is small and our alumni are often concentrated in certain areas. However, we are interested in direct conversations with interested groups.
- Watch our webinar for advisors discussing the program.
- Contact us if you have questions about the presentation or would like further guidance.
What is the application and program timeline?
- 2021 Application launch: July 2020
- Application deadline for 2021 Graduate Fellowship: October 21, 2020
- Notification to applicants of decisions on finalists: Late November 2020
- Interviews for 90 finalists: December 15-16, 2020
- Notification of fellowship award: December 18, 2020
- Orientation for 2021 Fellows: May 30 – June 5, 2021
- Domestic Internship: Summer 2022
- Graduate School: Fall 2021 to Spring 2022
- Overseas Internship: Summer 2023
- Entry into the Foreign Service: Fall 2023
Who Are We Looking For?
The Pickering Graduate Fellowship is a program that aims to attract and prepare outstanding young people for careers in the Foreign Service of the U.S. Department of State in which they can help formulate, represent and implement U.S. foreign policy. Eligibility criteria include
- U.S. citizenship
- A cumulative GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale and
- Plans to start graduate school for a two-year program of relevance to the Foreign Service in fall 2021 at a U.S. based institution.
The program is open to seniors who will graduate by spring 2021 and individuals with a college degree. It is open to students with any major or area of interest who want to promote positive change in the world. It encourages the application of members of minority groups historically underrepresented in the Foreign Service, women, and those with financial need. It also values
- Individuals with a commitment to public service
- Individuals from diverse areas within the United States
- Individuals interested in management, economics, and consular affairs
- Individuals who have demonstrated resourcefulness and resiliency
- Individuals interested in foreign languages and cultures
- Individuals with strong leadership skills
- First generation college students
- Individuals who want to represent the United States as diplomats
Below you will find two tables. The first a list of the institutions organized by the number of applicants from the 2020 application cycle. The second is a list of institutions organized by the number of fellows.
Applicants by Institution During the 2020 Pickering Application Cycle
| Institution Name | #Applicants |
| Florida International University | 9 |
| George Washington University | 9 |
| Georgetown University | 8 |
| University of Florida | 8 |
| American University | 7 |
| New York University | 6 |
| Ohio State University-Main Campus | 6 |
| University of South Florida-Main Campus | 6 |
| Brigham Young University-Provo | 5 |
| Florida State University | 5 |
| George Mason University | 5 |
| The University of Texas at Austin | 5 |
| University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | 5 |
| Arizona State University-Tempe | 4 |
| Colgate University | 4 |
| Dartmouth College | 4 |
| Emory University | 4 |
| Indiana University-Bloomington | 4 |
| Stanford University | 4 |
| Tufts University | 4 |
| University of Arizona | 4 |
| University of Colorado Boulder | 4 |
| University of Louisville | 4 |
| University of Maryland-College Park | 4 |
| University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus | 4 |
| University of Pennsylvania | 4 |
| Wellesley College | 4 |
| Brown University | 3 |
| Elon University | 3 |
| Howard University | 3 |
| Mercer University | 3 |
| Old Dominion University | 3 |
| Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 3 |
| Texas A & M University-College Station | 3 |
| Texas State University | 3 |
| University of California-Los Angeles | 3 |
| University of California-San Diego | 3 |
| University of Chicago | 3 |
| University of Delaware | 3 |
| University of Denver | 3 |
| University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | 3 |
| University of Kansas | 3 |
| University of Missouri-Columbia | 3 |
| University of Nevada-Las Vegas | 3 |
| University of New Mexico-Main Campus | 3 |
| University of Notre Dame | 3 |
| University of Richmond | 3 |
| University of Southern California | 3 |
| University of St Thomas-Houston | 3 |
| Agnes Scott College | 2 |
| Boston College | 2 |
| Bowdoin College | 2 |
| Clemson University | 2 |
| Colorado State University-Fort Collins | 2 |
| CUNY City College | 2 |
| DePaul University | 2 |
| Duke University | 2 |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach | 2 |
| Hollins University | 2 |
| James Madison University | 2 |
| Loyola Marymount University | 2 |
| Macalester College | 2 |
| Middlebury College | 2 |
| Morgan State University | 2 |
| Northwestern University | 2 |
| Princeton University | 2 |
| San Francisco State University | 2 |
| Seton Hall University | 2 |
| Spelman College | 2 |
| St Mary’s University | 2 |
| St Olaf College | 2 |
| Stony Brook University | 2 |
| SUNY at Binghamton | 2 |
| SUNY College at Geneseo | 2 |
| The University of Alabama | 2 |
| The University of Texas at Arlington | 2 |
| University at Buffalo | 2 |
| University of California-Berkeley | 2 |
| University of California-Irvine | 2 |
| University of California-Riverside | 2 |
| University of California-Santa Barbara | 2 |
| University of Central Florida | 2 |
| University of Edinburgh | 2 |
| University of Georgia | 2 |
| University of Houston | 2 |
| University of Kentucky | 2 |
| University of Minnesota-Twin Cities | 2 |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 2 |
| University of North Carolina at Charlotte | 2 |
| University of South Carolina-Columbia | 2 |
| University of Utah | 2 |
| University of Virginia-Main Campus | 2 |
| Washington University in St Louis | 2 |
| Western Kentucky University | 2 |
| Willamette University | 2 |
| Williams College | 2 |
| Wright State University-Main Campus | 2 |
| Alabama State University | 1 |
| Albany State University | 1 |
| Alma College | 1 |
| American Public University System | 1 |
| Appalachian State University | 1 |
| Assumption College | 1 |
| Augustana University | 1 |
| Austin College | 1 |
| Barnard College | 1 |
| Barry University | 1 |
| Baylor University | 1 |
| Belmont University | 1 |
| Berea College | 1 |
| Bethune-Cookman University | 1 |
| BMS College of Engineering | 1 |
| Bob Jones University | 1 |
| Boston University | 1 |
| Bowling Green State University-Main Campus | 1 |
| Bryant University | 1 |
| Bucknell University | 1 |
| California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 1 |
| California State University-Bakersfield | 1 |
| Canisius College | 1 |
| Carleton College | 1 |
| Case Western Reserve University | 1 |
| Catholic University of America | 1 |
| Centre College | 1 |
| Chapman University | 1 |
| Chicago State University | 1 |
| Christopher Newport University | 1 |
| Citadel Military College of South Carolina | 1 |
| Claremont McKenna College | 1 |
| Clark Atlanta University | 1 |
| Clark University | 1 |
| Coastal Carolina University | 1 |
| College of Central Florida | 1 |
| College of Charleston | 1 |
| College of Saint Benedict | 1 |
| College of the Holy Cross | 1 |
| College of William and Mary | 1 |
| Colorado State University-Pueblo | 1 |
| Community College of Rhode Island | 1 |
| Concordia College at Moorhead | 1 |
| Cornell University | 1 |
| Cuesta College | 1 |
| CUNY Hunter College | 1 |
| CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice | 1 |
| Daemen College | 1 |
| Davidson College | 1 |
| Denison University | 1 |
| East Tennessee State University | 1 |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Prescott | 1 |
| Florida Southern College | 1 |
| Fordham University | 1 |
| Franklin and Marshall College | 1 |
| Fresno Pacific University | 1 |
| Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | 1 |
| Georgia State University | 1 |
| Grand Canyon University | 1 |
| Grand Valley State University | 1 |
| Gustavus Adolphus College | 1 |
| Hamilton College | 1 |
| Illinois College | 1 |
| Johns Hopkins University | 1 |
| Kennesaw State University | 1 |
| King’s College London | 1 |
| Knox College | 1 |
| Lafayette College | 1 |
| Lake Forest College | 1 |
| Lewis University | 1 |
| Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | 1 |
| Loyola University Chicago | 1 |
| Loyola University Maryland | 1 |
| Loyola University New Orleans | 1 |
| Manhattan College | 1 |
| Marist College | 1 |
| Marquette University | 1 |
| Marshall University | 1 |
| McKendree University | 1 |
| Michigan State University | 1 |
| Millersville University of Pennsylvania | 1 |
| Misericordia University | 1 |
| Morehouse College | 1 |
| Mount Saint Mary College | 1 |
| Mount St Mary’s University | 1 |
| New College of Florida | 1 |
| Niagara University | 1 |
| North American University | 1 |
| Northeastern University | 1 |
| Northern Illinois University | 1 |
| Oklahoma State University-Main Campus | 1 |
| Pacific Lutheran University | 1 |
| Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | 1 |
| Pepperdine University | 1 |
| Pomona College | 1 |
| Portland State University | 1 |
| Prairie View A & M University | 1 |
| Providence College | 1 |
| Purdue University-Main Campus | 1 |
| Randolph-Macon College | 1 |
| Robert Morris University | 1 |
| Roger Williams University | 1 |
| Rollins College | 1 |
| Salisbury University | 1 |
| Samford University | 1 |
| Sarah Lawrence College | 1 |
| Savannah State University | 1 |
| Seattle Pacific University | 1 |
| Sewanee-The University of the South | 1 |
| Smith College | 1 |
| Southern Connecticut State University | 1 |
| Southern Oregon University | 1 |
| Southern University and A & M College | 1 |
| Southwestern University | 1 |
| St Catherine University | 1 |
| St. John’s College | 1 |
| State University of New York at New Paltz | 1 |
| Suffolk University | 1 |
| Texas Tech University | 1 |
| Thammasat University | 1 |
| The University of Texas – Rio Grande Valley | 1 |
| The University of Texas at San Antonio | 1 |
| Transylvania University | 1 |
| Trinity University | 1 |
| Tulane University of Louisiana | 1 |
| United States Military Academy | 1 |
| University of Arkansas | 1 |
| University of British Columbia | 1 |
| University of California-Santa Cruz | 1 |
| University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | 1 |
| University of Connecticut | 1 |
| University of Indianapolis | 1 |
| University of Louisiana at Lafayette | 1 |
| University of Maryland-Baltimore County | 1 |
| University of Massachusetts-Amherst | 1 |
| University of Massachusetts-Boston | 1 |
| University of Miami | 1 |
| University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | 1 |
| University of North Carolina at Greensboro | 1 |
| University of North Carolina Wilmington | 1 |
| University of North Florida | 1 |
| University of North Georgia | 1 |
| University of North Texas | 1 |
| University of Oregon | 1 |
| University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras | 1 |
| University of Rochester | 1 |
| University of Saint Andrews | 1 |
| University of San Diego | 1 |
| University of South Alabama | 1 |
| University of South Dakota | 1 |
| University of Southern Indiana | 1 |
| University of the District of Columbia | 1 |
| University of Vermont | 1 |
| University of Washington-Bothell Campus | 1 |
| University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 1 |
| University of Wisconsin-Madison | 1 |
| University of Wisconsin-Stout | 1 |
| University of Wyoming | 1 |
| Utah Valley University | 1 |
| Valdosta State University | 1 |
| Vanderbilt University | 1 |
| Virginia Commonwealth University | 1 |
| Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | 1 |
| Wake Forest University | 1 |
| Washington College | 1 |
| West Virginia University | 1 |
| Wheaton College-Norton | 1 |
| Whittier College | 1 |
| Wichita State University | 1 |
| William Jewell College | 1 |
| William Peace University | 1 |
| Winston-Salem State University | 1 |
| Yale University | 1 |
Pickering Fellows by Institution (1992-2020)*
| Institution Name | #Fellows |
| Georgetown University | 39 |
| George Washington University | 21 |
| Morehouse College | 18 |
| American University | 17 |
| University of California | 15 |
| Howard University | 11 |
| Spelman College | 8 |
| Stanford University | 8 |
| University of Chicago | 8 |
| Princeton University | 7 |
| Tufts University | 7 |
| Dartmouth College | 6 |
| Florida International University | 6 |
| Syracuse University | 6 |
| University of Missouri | 6 |
| Vanderbilt University | 6 |
| Harvard University | 5 |
| Seton Hall University | 5 |
| University of Maryland | 5 |
| University of Miami | 5 |
| University of Michigan -Ann Arbor | 5 |
| University of Notre Dame | 5 |
| University of Pennsylvania | 5 |
| University of Southern California | 5 |
| Yale University | 5 |
| Baylor University | 4 |
| Boston College | 4 |
| Boston University | 4 |
| Bowdoin College | 4 |
| Brown University | 4 |
| California State University | 4 |
| Florida State University | 4 |
| George Mason University | 4 |
| New York University | 4 |
| Northwestern University | 4 |
| Ohio State University | 4 |
| University of Central Florida | 4 |
| University of Florida | 4 |
| University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill | 4 |
| University of Oklahoma | 4 |
| Wellesley College | 4 |
| William & Mary College | 4 |
| Arizona State University | 3 |
| Barnard College | 3 |
| Brigham Young University | 3 |
| College of New Jersey (formerly Trenton State) | 3 |
| Columbia University | 3 |
| Dillard University | 3 |
| Emory University | 3 |
| Kansas State University | 3 |
| Macalester College | 3 |
| Occidental College | 3 |
| Oral Roberts University | 3 |
| Saint Mary’s College | 3 |
| University of Arizona | 3 |
| University of California, Berkeley | 3 |
| University of Massachusetts | 3 |
| University of Pittsburgh | 3 |
| University of Richmond | 3 |
| University of San Diego | 3 |
| University of South Carolina | 3 |
| University of Washington-Seattle Campus | 3 |
| University of Wisconsin | 3 |
| Washington University | 3 |
| Wheaton College | 3 |
| Bryn Mawr College | 2 |
| Carleton College | 2 |
| City University of New York | 2 |
| Claflin University | 2 |
| Claremont McKenna College | 2 |
| Clark Atlanta University | 2 |
| College of Saint Benedict | 2 |
| Cornell University | 2 |
| DePaul University | 2 |
| Duke University | 2 |
| Eastern Michigan University | 2 |
| Elon University | 2 |
| Fordham University | 2 |
| Franklin & Marshall College | 2 |
| Georgia Institute of Technology | 2 |
| Gettysburg College | 2 |
| Gonzaga University | 2 |
| Hampton University | 2 |
| Hobart and William Smith Colleges | 2 |
| Juniata College | 2 |
| Lewis & Clark College | 2 |
| Middlebury College | 2 |
| Nazareth College | 2 |
| Northeastern University | 2 |
| Northern Arizona University | 2 |
| Rice University | 2 |
| Rutgers University | 2 |
| Smith College | 2 |
| St. Edward’s University | 2 |
| State University of New York at Binghamton | 2 |
| Swarthmore College | 2 |
| Towson University | 2 |
| Tulane University | 2 |
| University of Alabama | 2 |
| University of Arkansas | 2 |
| University of Colorado -Boulder | 2 |
| University of Delaware | 2 |
| University of Illinois | 2 |
| University of Kansas | 2 |
| University of Kentucky | 2 |
| University of Minnesota-Twin Cities | 2 |
| University of New Mexico | 2 |
| University of South Florida | 2 |
| University of Texas | 2 |
| University of the Pacific | 2 |
| Utah State University | 2 |
| Wake Forest University | 2 |
| West Virginia University | 2 |
| Williams College | 2 |
| Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University | 1 |
| American International University | 1 |
| American University in Cairo | 1 |
| Arizona State University-Tempe | 1 |
| Bard College | 1 |
| Bates College | 1 |
| Beloit College | 1 |
| Bennett College | 1 |
| Berry College | 1 |
| Brooklyn College | 1 |
| Bucknell University | 1 |
| Calvin College | 1 |
| Carnegie Mellon University | 1 |
| Case Western Reserve University | 1 |
| Cedarville University | 1 |
| City College of New York | 1 |
| College of the Holy Cross-MA | 1 |
| College of William & Mary | 1 |
| Colorado State University | 1 |
| Connecticut College | 1 |
| DePauw University | 1 |
| Dickinson College | 1 |
| Diplomatic Academy of Vienna | 1 |
| Drew University | 1 |
| Drexel University | 1 |
| Eastern Illinois University | 1 |
| Elmhurst College | 1 |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University | 1 |
| Fisk University | 1 |
| Florida A&M University | 1 |
| Fort Lewis College | 1 |
| Furman University | 1 |
| George Mason University | 1 |
| Georgia State University | 1 |
| Hampshire College | 1 |
| Hawaii Pacific University | 1 |
| Hendrix College | 1 |
| Hollins College | 1 |
| Indiana University | 1 |
| Indiana University of Pennsylvania | 1 |
| Iowa State University | 1 |
| Ithaca College | 1 |
| Johns Hopkins University | 1 |
| Johnson C. Smith University | 1 |
| Keene State College | 1 |
| Kenyon College | 1 |
| Knox College | 1 |
| La Sierra University | 1 |
| Lafayette College | 1 |
| Lake Forest College | 1 |
| Lebanon Valley College | 1 |
| Lehigh University | 1 |
| Lincoln University | 1 |
| Loyola University | 1 |
| Loyola University Chicago | 1 |
| Manhattan College | 1 |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 1 |
| McKendree University | 1 |
| Mercer University | 1 |
| Mills College | 1 |
| Morgan State University | 1 |
| Mount Holyoke College | 1 |
| Mount St. Mary’s College | 1 |
| New Mexico State University | 1 |
| North Carolina State University | 1 |
| North Georgia College | 1 |
| Old Dominion University | 1 |
| Oregon State University | 1 |
| Otterbein University | 1 |
| Pacific Lutheran University | 1 |
| Pepperdine University | 1 |
| Pomona College | 1 |
| Randolph College | 1 |
| Rochester Institute of Technology | 1 |
| Rollins College | 1 |
| Rutgers University-New Brunswick | 1 |
| Saint John’s University | 1 |
| Saint Louis University | 1 |
| Saint Michael’s College | 1 |
| Saint Olaf College | 1 |
| Saint Peter’s College | 1 |
| Saint Thomas University | 1 |
| Skidmore College | 1 |
| Southern Connecticut State University | 1 |
| Southwestern University | 1 |
| SUNY at Binghamton | 1 |
| Sweet Briar College | 1 |
| Tennessee State University | 1 |
| The California Maritime Academy | 1 |
| The George Washington University | 1 |
| The New School | 1 |
| The University of Texas at Austin | 1 |
| Trinity College | 1 |
| Trinity University | 1 |
| University North Florida | 1 |
| University of Alaska | 1 |
| University of California-Irvine | 1 |
| University of Connecticut | 1 |
| University of Dayton | 1 |
| University of Denver | 1 |
| University of Georgia | 1 |
| University of Hawaii | 1 |
| University of Houston | 1 |
| University of Iowa | 1 |
| University of Louisiana | 1 |
| University of Memphis | 1 |
| University of Nevada | 1 |
| University of Nevada -Las Vegas | 1 |
| University of North Carolina -Wilmington | 1 |
| University of Oregon | 1 |
| University of Puerto Rico | 1 |
| University of Rochester | 1 |
| University of San Francisco | 1 |
| University of South Carolina-Columbia | 1 |
| University of Tennessee | 1 |
| University of Utah | 1 |
| University of Vermont | 1 |
| University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh | 1 |
| Valdosta State University | 1 |
| Vassar College | 1 |
| Villanova University | 1 |
| Virginia Commonwealth University | 1 |
| Wabash College | 1 |
| Western Kentucky University | 1 |
| Western Michigan University | 1 |
| Westminster College-New Wilmington | 1 |
| Westmont College | 1 |
| Whitman College | 1 |
| Whittier College | 1 |
| Winston-Salem State University | 1 |
| Wittenberg University | 1 |
| Xavier University of Louisiana | 1 |