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ABOUT THE FELLOWSHIP

The Purpose
The Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship provides internships, mentoring, and enriched educational opportunities to promising New York City undergraduates with the goal of increasing their life choices and developing their capacity to make a difference in their own and others’ lives. The centerpiece of the Fellowship is on-the-job learning that will:
  • Provide opportunities for leadership and personal growth;
  • Help test in practice what you may be learning in the classroom;
  • Provide experience and insight on choices for a future vocation;
  • Assist you in thinking about graduate program opportunities;
  • Help you present a more compelling application for national fellowships, graduate admissions, and jobs.
The Thomas J. Watson Foundation was created in 1961 as a charitable trust by Mrs. Thomas J. Watson, Sr., in honor of her late husband, the founder of International Business Machines Corp., widely known as IBM. The Foundation initially used its resources in support of a variety of programs. In 1968 it created the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship Program, which makes travel and study awards to outstanding graduating seniors at a select group of small liberal arts colleges throughout the United States. In 1999 the Foundation created the Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship in honor of the wife of Thomas J. Watson, Sr.

Click here to download the 2012 Jeannette K. Watson Annual Report.

To view our Annual Report, you will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader 5.0 installed on your computer. If you do not have this software installed, download it first by clicking here.
ABOUT THE FELLOWSHIP

The Opportunity
The Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship offers fifteen students paid internships for three consecutive summers. The internships will be closely supervised and provide challenging work from which one can learn.

In the course of the program, interns (Fellows) are encouraged to sample work in at least two of three sectors: nonprofit organizations, government service, and private enterprise. Each internship lasts up to ten weeks. The stipend is $5,000 for the first summer and $6,000 for the second and third summers.

Fellows will meet regularly in seminars with their peers, the fourteen other Jeannette K. Watson Fellows who are selected from twelve New York City colleges, to discuss their internship experiences and talk about important issues with distinguished New Yorkers. Each year, 45 Fellows are at various stages in their three-year tenure.













ABOUT THE FELLOWSHIP

The Obligation
A Watson Fellow is expected to complete successfully three summers of paid internships of up to ten weeks that will enhance her/his vocational goals and personal development. During the summer, Fellows must also take part in a weekend orientation session, participate in a program of evening seminars designed to complement the internships, maintain a weekly professional journal, and attend cultural events scheduled both during evenings and on weekends. Attendance is also required at four term-time seminars held on Saturdays.

The Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship staff constructs internships in consultation with the Fellows. The Director must approve of all assignments.













ABOUT THE FELLOWSHIP

The Internship
Many of today's leaders first found purpose and meaning in their lives through internships they held during their college years. These experiences shaped their values, career directions, and further education plans. To have such an influence, an internship should be an experience from which one can learn, and an internship should have a strong mentoring supervisor.

Through the Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship, this type of meaningful internship will be developed in consultation with each Fellow in terms of that Fellow's growing interests and career directions. The first two summers will be spent in challenging internships in New York City. Fellows are encouraged to spend their third summer at an internship in another country or city.













ABOUT THE FELLOWSHIP

What Do Graduates of the Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship Do?

Enroll in Graduate Schools:
  • American University, Cairo, Middle East Studies
  • Brooklyn Law School
  • Cambridge University, Russian Studies
  • Cardozo Law School, Yeshiva University
  • Columbia University, Teacher's College (3)
  • Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health
  • Columbia University, School of Continuing Education
  • Columbia University, School of International and Public Affairs (2)
  • Cornell University, Political Science
  • CUNY, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn
  • CUNY, School of Law
  • Florida State University, Acting
  • Fordham University, Economics
  • Harvard University, Kennedy School of Public Affairs
  • Harvard University, School of Law
  • Hofstra University, School of Law
  • Hunter College, School of Health Sciences, Urban Public Health
  • Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago-Kent School of Law
  • INSEAD (Institut Europeen d'Administration des Affaires), Management
  • John Jay College of Criminal Justice
  • The Johns Hopkins University, Political Science
  • Long Island University, Social Work/Nonprofit Management
  • Loyola University, College of Law
  • Massachusettes Institute of Technology, City Planning
  • New School University, Media Studies (2)
  • New York University, Gallatin Division, Strategic Communications
  • New York University, Master of Public Administration
  • New York University, Near Eastern Studies
  • New York University, Visual Culture Theory
  • New York University, Public Health
  • New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, Film
  • New York University, School of Medicine
  • Oxford University, International Relations
  • Southern Methodist University, School of Law
  • SUNY, School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
  • Tufts University, Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy
  • University of California at Los Angeles, Political Science
  • University of Chicago, Political Science
  • University of Missouri at Columbia, Journalism
  • University of Tel Aviv
  • University of Washington Seattle, Creative Writing, Education
 Win National Fellowships:

  • Beinecke Scholarship (graduate study)
  • Coro Fellows Program (2) - St. Louis; Pittsburgh
  • Critical Languages Scholarship, Arabic, Bangla
  • Fulbright (9), Albania, Bangladesh, Malawi, South Africa, Spain, South Korea, Turkey (2), United Kingdom
  • Gates Millennieum Scholarship
  • Harry S. Truman Scholarship (2)
  • Humanity in Action Fellowship
  • IREX/Dept. of State Young Leadership Fellowship, Russia
  • Mt. Sinai School of Medicine Humanities & Medicine Program
  • National Security Education Fellowship, Haiti
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse, Post-baccalaureate IRTA Fellow
  • New York City Civic Corps (2)
  • Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans
  • PPIA, Public Policy and International Fellowship Program
Volunteer for Service Opportunities:
  • New York City Teaching Fellowship
  • New York City Urban Fellowship (4)
  • Peace Corps (2), Costa Rica
  • Steppingstone Foundation, Boston
  • Teach for America (4), Chicago, Houston, New York City, Mississippi Delta
  • World Teach, Guyana
Find Jobs in Their Chosen Field:
  • Bushwick Housing and Legal Assistance, Housing Attorney
  • Coler-Goldwater Specialty Hospital and Nursing Facility, Assistant Director, Administration
  • Columbia University, Assistant Director, Columbia College Alumni Affairs & Development
  • Columbia University, International Programs for AIDS Care and Treatment
  • City University of New York, International Admissions Evaluator
  • Dynamic Resources, Project Manager
  • Fenton Communications, Vice President
  • Fox News Latino, Reporter/Writer and Web Producer
  • Ground Floor Development, Founder/Principal
  • Hagerty Consulting, Associate
  • Herricks Middle School, Mathematics Teacher
  • Hunter College, Counselor, Office of Student Services
  • Idealist.org, Program Coordinator
  • Institute of International Education (3), Senior Program Administrator, Program Administrator, Program Officer
  • Intermediate School 125, New York City Board of Education, Teacher of English
  • International Center for Transitional Justice, Communications Assistant
  • J.P. Morgan Chase, Analyst
  • Legal Aid Society, Development Coordinator
  • Marie Belle Chocolates, Manager
  • Medical Diagnostics Laboratory
  • Medical Health and Research Association, Manager of Information Systems and Technology
  • Metropolitan Museum of Art, Assistant to the Controller
  • McGraw-Hill Connect, Strategic Marketing Specialist
  • Mizuho Corporate Bank, Middle Office Business Administrator
  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Research Studies Assistant for Bone Marrow Transplant Service
  • National Institutes of Health, Clinical Research Associate
  • New York Botanical Garden, Development Associate
  • New York City Board of Education, Fifth Grade Teacher, PS 1, Brooklyn
  • New York City Office of Emergency, CERT Consultant
  • Office of City Council Member Brad Lander, District Manager
  • Office of the Mayor of the City of New York, Legistlative Representative
  • PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Associate
  • Resnikow Schroeder Associates, Assistant Account Executive
  • Rubin Museum of Art, Publications Associate
  • Safe Homes Project, Social Worker
  • Simon Haysom LLC, Attorney
  • Sotheby's International Real Estate, Sales Associate
  • UNICEF, Officer, Volunteer and Community Partnerships
  • Vision Group Property Management, Portfolio Manager
  • World Bank, Junior Professional Associate
  • World Bank, South Asia Rural Development Unit
  • Year Up Chicago, Site Operations Manager

    • Partial list of current employers and titles

 
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