JSK Journalism Fellowships Class of 2021 in Stanford accepts applications through Dec. 4, 2019

International applicants for JSK Fellowships Class of 2021 may apply through Dec. 4, 2019, as The John S. Knight Journalism Fellowships program informed.

Next class will have up to 20 fellows. From September 2020 to June 2021,they will spend an academic year at Stanford University exploring individual and collaborative projects. Although we are not an academic program, the fellows will have the option to sit in on Stanford classes, while also participating in special workshops and events, and exploring the abundant resources at Stanford University and throughout Silicon Valley.

Your Project

As part of your application, you are required to propose an idea that you would work on during your time as a JSK Fellow. The project you propose should have the potential to create meaningful change and help address at least one of four themes that we consider the most urgent in journalism:

• Challenging Misinformation and Disinformation.
• Holding the Powerful Accountable.
• Eradicating News Deserts and Strengthening Local News.
• Fighting Bias, Intolerance and Injustice.

Your idea should fit within the broad parameters of at least one of these areas. You can read about some of the work from last year’s JSK class on Medium.

JSK-HAI Partnership

The organizers may designate two of our fellows as JSK-HAI Fellows, part of our new partnership with the Stanford Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence Institute. The partnership embeds two JSK Fellows within Stanford’s artificial intelligence community to help explore the effects of AI on journalism and humanity. Although the organizers may name two JSK-HAI Fellows, other fellows may work on AI projects and participate in work with Stanford’s larger AI community, which may include working groups, seminars and convenings, and contributing to AI research and outreach.

Benefits

The organizers provide JSK Fellows with several benefits, including base stipends of $85,000, health insurance and Stanford tuition. They provide additional support for fellows with children. Partners and spouses of fellows receive some of the same benefits, with some exceptions. For more details, read Benefits of a Fellowship page. 

Teams

The organizers plan to group our 2020-2021 fellows into teams. This framework will allow fellows to find ready partners  within their own class for exploring key questions and interests, while learning from each other, supporting each other’s work, and celebrating the diverse backgrounds of a global cohort representing different facets of media. Although some teams may choose to develop a joint project, that isn’t required. 

Other Important Things to Know

Check out the eligibility requirements here. 

Preview the application questions without opening an official submission here. That page also features tips for making your application as strong as possible.

In early 2020, we plan to extend fellowships to international finalists, and the organizers will invite U.S. finalists to Stanford for interviews. They will announce the next JSK Fellowships Class by early May 2020.

Follow @JSKstanford on Twitter for the latest and for details about virtual office hours during the open application period. Please email Mary Beth Boch, selection and resources administrator, with questions, [email protected].

And don’t forget to apply by 11:59 p.m. PT Dec. 4, 2019 if you are an international applicant and 11:59 p.m. PT Jan. 30, 2020 if you are a U.S. applicant.

The John S. Knight Journalism Fellowships program