The Haas Center for Public Service and the Global Engineering Programs (GEP) have partnered to launch the Engineering in Service International Fellowship as part of the Cardinal Quarter initiative.
The Engineering in Service International Fellowship allows students to apply what they have learned through their academic studies during a summer practicum experience working with an international nonprofit organization or government agency. Fellows can expand on an engineering experience started through a course, internship, research or volunteer activity by continuing with an existing partner organization, or can identify another relevant organization. The focus of the fellow’s work must be technical/engineering-centered, but can involve any of the public service pathways: Activism, Community-Engaged Scholarship, Direct Service, Philanthropy, Policy/Politics, and Social Entrepreneurship.
Engineering in Service International Fellows have the opportunity to spend a summer working full time with a supervisor/mentor in an international organization of their choice. For opportunities during the fall, winter or spring quarters, please see the Jane Stanford Fellowship program.
Applicants propose their own placements in collaboration with their potential host organization. The application should effectively demonstrate that the intended partner organization has the need, interest and capacity to work with a fellow/intern and to support the proposed work plan.
Applicants will also propose a suitable academic mentor in order to help them highlight options that assist with preparation for and follow up on the summer learning experience.
Each Engineering in Service International Fellow receives a base stipend of $4,500 to support travel and living expenses during the summer. Financial aid and supplemental funding is available to students who qualify.
Funding for this new initiative has been generously provided by Haas Center donors as part of the Cardinal Quarter program.
Examples of past fellowship experiences that could qualify for this program:
Claudia Brunner, ’17 (Mechanical Engineering); Bottomup, Capetown, South Africa Claudia is working with Bottomup and assisting the Parkwood Primary School in determining the best way to utilize its existing computer room by integrating computers into the school’s curriculum and ensuring that the facilities meet the teacher's needs.
Charlie Jiang, ’16 (Engineering Physics); City Museum, Kathmandu, Nepal Working from Stanford, Charlie will help create an online “storymap” to help track cultural resources for tourism in an effort to contribute to the post-earthquake recovery efforts.
Evelyn Li, ’18 (Civil Engineering); IBEKA, Indonesia Evelyn is implementing a remote monitoring system to measure the power generated by micro-hydro plants that IBEKA has built in Indonesia.
Dafna Szafer, ’15 (Product Design Engineering); ReMaterials, Ahmedabad, India Dafna is working with ReMaterials, a social enterprise based in India whose mission is to supply affordable roofing solutions for urban villages and slums, and is helping to improve the engineering and design of the organization’s current roofing system, ModRoof, and is assisting with day-to-day activities like strength testing, waterproofing, and creation of marketing materials.
Requirements
Fellows are required to work at least 35 hours/week for nine consecutive weeks at their placements. Other commitments include the following:
Spring Quarter
- Attend program orientations with Haas and GEP staff in April.
- Meet with academic mentor at least once.
- Secure necessary travel visas
- Design a personal learning plan for the summer.
Summer
- Share learning plan with site supervisor and update accordingly.
- Submit a brief mid-summer report.
- Submit a final report, complete a program evaluation, and correspond with fellowship donor(s) as requested by fellowships program staff.
Autumn Quarter
- Meet with academic mentor at least once.
- Attend a de-briefing meeting for the purpose of reflecting upon and evaluating summer experiences.
- Participate in outreach activity to share your experiences and help publicize the program.
Eligibility and Selection Process
Eligibility
Fellowships will be awarded to currently enrolled undergraduate and graduate students who are declared within the School of Engineering. Proposed programs are expected to apply and extend students’ engineering education and to take place in a developing country, serving a population in need.
Selection Process
For those who seek assistance, advising is offered to help students develop their applications.
This fellowship is intended for individuals whose application, references, and interview demonstrate
- an integration of the fellowship experience with applicant’s academic, personal and/or career goals
- prior demonstrated interest or involvement in the subject area, including related coursework
- a compelling match between applicant’s skills and interests and an organization’s work and needs
- strong potential for the fellowship experience to enlarge a candidate’s understanding of an identified community issue or challenge
Complete applications are screened, finalists interviewed, and fellows selected by a committee with the intention to award fellowships prior to spring break.
Application
Submission priority deadline for application materials, including unofficial transcript and recommendation, is February 9, 2016, at 11:59 pm (PST), applications may be accepted on a rolling basis after this deadline if funding is available.
- Students: Application form
- Faculty/Staff: Recommendation form
A complete fellowship application includes the completed application, faculty/staff recommendation and unofficial transcript.
An unofficial transcript can be obtained via Stanford Axess.
- Go to the Student Center tab from the Axess home page.
- Click on "My Academics."
- Click on “View my unofficial transcripts.”
- In the drop down menu marked as “Career” select “undergraduate.”
- Click the green button “View Report.”
- Save pdf file with your name and upload to your application.
Contact Information
For more information, contact Jon McConnell at the Haas Center or Victoria W. Bianchi at Global Engineering Programs
