2023 Mandela Washington Fellowship Requirements, Qualifications Application Form Portal

Open call for applications – 2023 Mandela Washington Fellowship. The scholarship aim to bring up to 700 young leaders to the United States in the summer of 2023 for a comprehensive executive-style program that is designed to build skills and empower Fellows to lead in their respective sectors and communities.

 

Qualifications Criteria

• Participate in a six-week Leadership Institute at a U.S. college or university to share your experiences with and learn from U.S. citizens and other Fellows.
• Explore industries beyond your daily work and expand your expertise.
• Participate in a Summit with young African leaders.
• Meet with U.S. Government, civic, and business leaders.
• Strengthen your work through new connections, skills, and ideas.
• Join a continental and global Alumni Network to help you seek innovative solutions to common challenges.

The Mandela Washington Fellowship Selection Process and Criteria

The Mandela Washington Fellowship selection process is a merit-based open competition.  After the deadline, all eligible applications will be reviewed by independent readers.

Following this review, chosen semi-finalists will be interviewed by the U.S. embassies or consulates in their home countries.  Selected semi-finalists will be required to participate in these in-person interviews in their home country within Africa.

If advanced to the semi-finalist round, applicants must provide a copy of their international passport (if available) or other government-issued photo identification at the time of the interview.  Selected Finalists are required to attend the mandatory Pre-Departure Orientation in their home country within Africa.

Eligibility

Applicants will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, gender, religion, socioeconomic status, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity.  The Mandela Washington Fellowship is open to young African leaders who meet the following criteria:

• Are between the ages of 25 and 35 on or before the application deadline, although exceptional applicants ages 21-24 will be considered;
• Are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents of the United States;
• Are eligible to receive a United States J-1 visa;
• Are not employees or immediate family members of employees of the U.S. Government (including a U.S. embassy or consulate, USAID, or other U.S. Government entity);
• Are proficient in reading, writing, and speaking English (additional guidance coming for applicants who are deaf);
• Are citizens of one of the following countries: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Cote d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, or Zimbabwe;
• Are residents of one of the above countries; and
• Are not Alumni of the Mandela Washington Fellowship.

Application Timeline:

• August 16, 2022 | Application opens
• September 13, 2022 | Application deadline
• November 2022 – January 2023 | Semi-finalists interviewed by local U.S. embassies and consulates
• March 2023 | Applicants are notified of their status
• May 2023 | Visa processing and Pre-Departure Orientations for Finalists
• June 2023 | Fellowship begins in the United States

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Application Process:

Interested applicants should visit the 2023 Mandela Washington online Fellowship Application Portal to apply.

Note: Fellows are not allowed to have dependents, including spouses and children, accompany them during the Fellowship.