About the Fellows Program:
The Documentary Film in the Public Interest Fellows Program is designed to support new research, analysis, innovation and provocation around core issues facing the documentary field. Through the fellows’ projects, the Shorenstein Center will engage in examinations of best practice, industry ecosystems, public impact, technology and media policy.
Who should apply?
Career professionals in the documentary film field, scholars of public interest media forms, infrastructure, and audience, and experts in media policy. Filmmakers, executives, industry leaders, policymakers, and scholars are encouraged to apply.
The Shorenstein Center is committed to diversity, and actively encourages applications from all demographic backgrounds, and across the political spectrum. International applicants are welcome to apply.
Am I eligible?
The fellowship is open to individuals with unique expertise in the documentary field. Minimum of 10-years experience. Fellowships cannot be used for the development of a new film project.
- Documentary Filmmakers: Documentary filmmakers and/or academics and practitioners with expertise in documentary filmmaking as it relates to public interest media, and/or its intersections with journalism.
- Documentary Industry Leaders and Executives: Industry professionals working at production or distribution companies, artist support organizations, foundations or grant-making organizations.
- Journalists: Journalists with a history of writing about documentary film media or who are involved in the creation and distribution of documentary film.
- Scholars: Scholars and Academics, including tenured and tenure-track faculty, university lecturers and adjuncts, and research scholars at think tanks and other institutions.
- Policymaker: Members of a government department, legislature, or other organizations dedicated to advancing policy.
Applicants should not have participated in another fellowship within the two years before their preferred semester.
Applicants must be fluent in English – listening, reading, writing and speaking. Non-native English speakers must provide TOEFL or IELTS score or demonstrate fluency by having significant educational or professional experience working in English.
If you are unsure if you are eligible, we encourage you to contact our staff to discuss it further.
What is expected of a fellow?
Fellows are encouraged to spend the semester at Harvard, but being in Cambridge is not a fellowship requirement. Fellows are, however, expected to be on campus for at least three weeks during the fellowship.
- Fall Semester: August through December
- Spring Semester: January through June
- Full Year: August through June
The Fellowship is a full-time appointment, and applicants are expected to commit to the work of completing their primary research project and engaging in the life of the Center, its activities and events. It is understood that busy modern professionals will have occasional essential obligations, and the Center aims to be considerate and flexible in such circumstances. However, any applicant with professional, personal or travel commitments that would require significant time away should consider applying when their schedule allows for the full commitment of a fellowship.
What will I be working on?
The quality and originality of an applicant’s project proposal is a key deciding factor in the selection process. The primary deliverable for a fellow is a research-based project that contributes to broad understanding of an issue within the information ecosystem, or addresses a problem related to documentary film, journalism, technology, public policy or public interest media (with ideal candidates focusing on the intersection of at least two of these areas and with an eye towards politics and/or public policy solutions). Project topics should fit into the existing work of the Center but provide a new angle or area of focus that is not covered specifically by one of the Center’s existing programs
Fellows often work independently, with the assistance of a faculty mentor and research assistant. Projects can take many forms, including white paper, policy paper, annotated bibliography, podcast, video, or interactive. Projects should have an anticipated impact in society, and applicants should be able to clearly articulate their project’s desired impact. The intended output for each project is determined by the Fellows and their research. Some of the research can be published on the Shorenstein Center website, and many projects have been cross published or excerpted in a variety of high-profile media outlets and academic journals or have become the basis for a longer book.
Life as a Shorenstein Center fellow
In addition to their primary research project, fellows are expected to participate in a range of activities throughout the semester, including:
- Minimum of one public speaking event and/or one student-facing event (workshop, roundtable discussion, masterclass, etc.)
- Student office hours (1-2 hours per fellowship period; in-person or virtual)
- Regular meetings with fellowship cohort and faculty mentors
- Final internal report of activities and output (in-person) at the end of the fellowship.
The Center hosts several high-profile evening events each semester, including its long-running Theodore H. White Lecture on Press and Politics, Richard S. Salant Lecture on Freedom of the Press, and its flagship Goldsmith Awards featuring the presentation of a prize for the best investigative reporting of the year, and a career award for excellence in journalism. Fellows are encouraged to attend.
Elsewhere on campus, the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum frequently feature speakers from the highest levels of government for lively discussion and debate. The Kennedy School’s other Centers and initiatives regularly host experts in a wide variety of topics, and Shorenstein Center fellows are often asked to speak. And the wider Harvard University calendar features hundreds of activities and events each week, including lectures, panels, exhibitions, music, theater, film, sports and much more.
Fellows receive a Harvard ID, which allows for discounted membership to Harvard’s athletic facilities and tickets to museums, exhibitions, movies, sports and the performing arts. Previous fellows have used their free time to explore the rich cultural and historical offerings of the Boston and New England area. Several fellows have brought their partners, spouses or families with them for the semester, many of whom get involved in a variety of Harvard activities open to the public. We are not able to provide spouses or family members with Harvard IDs.
Financial assistance and other resources
Fellows receive a stipend, paid in monthly installments at the end of each month of their term. Travel, housing, and living expenses are not covered by the Shorenstein Center.
Fellows are provided with a Harvard email address and a Harvard ID allowing access to libraries and other resources. Both of these expire at the end of the fellowship term. Fellows who are full-time in-person in Cambridge are provided with a desk in the Shorenstein Center’s office suite. Hybrid fellows may schedule ahead to use a desk during their visits to campus.
Fellows are also able to select a paid Harvard Kennedy School student research assistant (eligible to work up to 10 hours per week) to help with their projects during their fellowship term.
Important Note for Spring 2026:
For those who have completed or are in the process of finalizing an application for the Spring 2026 Documentary Film Initiative Fellowship at the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy – please read below. The Spring 2026 application deadline is: 11:59pm ET, May 1, 2025.
It is stipulated in our application materials that all accepted Fellows receive a stipend, paid in monthly installments at the end of each month of their term. We wanted to let you know that, although we are hoping to continue to provide Fellowship stipends, we cannot guarantee that we will have the funding in place for paid Fellowships in the future. We are aware of how valuable this is, and how rare it is in our field to have financial support to conduct this work.
In the event that funding for stipends is not secured, our plan is to continue the Fellowship program and offer access to libraries, mentorship, networking and other resources available through the Shorenstein Center. We will make sure to keep all applicants updated as soon as we have more information.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any immediate questions.
How to Apply
At this time, we are accepting applications for Spring (January-May) 2026. If interested, please apply by May 1st, 2025, 11:59pm ET. To apply:
- Visit the Shorenstein Center Fellowship Application portal
- Create an account if you have never logged in before
- Start a new application and select “Documentary Film Fellowship” and then the term you want to apply for
- If you pause in completing the application before submitting it, your application-in-process will be saved and accessible under the “My Applications” tab.
- Submit your application by the deadline listed.
- Spring 2026 application deadline: 11:59pm ET, May 1, 2025
