Apply for The Dart Center Ochberg Fellowship 2023
Outstanding journalists from any country who have at least five years of professional journalism experience and work in all media are eligible for the Ochberg Fellowships. Former Fellows include included war photographers and overseas correspondents for global news organizations, as well as small-town and regional general-assignment and crime reporters. Freelancers and staff journalists are both welcome to apply. The work of applicants must show excellence in journalism and a proven history of covering trauma and its effects on people, families, or communities.
Reporters, photographers, editors, and producers with at least five years of experience in the field of professional journalism from the print, broadcast, and internet media are eligible for the fellowship. The remaining Fellows will come from Latin America, Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, Africa, and the Middle East, with around half of them located in North America.
The language used for all fellowship seminars is English. To take part in the program, fellows must speak English well.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
You must register for a free Submittable account in order to submit an application for the Ochberg Fellowship. Apply here using Submittable, please.
You will need the following to submit a finished application:
Resume/CV
interest letter (In your letter, you should talk about your work as a journalist, your experiences reporting on violence and trauma, any difficulties you’ve faced or specific instances or experiences that have shaped your perspective or professional trajectory, and what you intend to gain from the fellowship.) [maximum of 2 pages]
Two examples of pertinent work (Work samples must have appeared in a professional news outlet’s publication or broadcast within the previous 24 months; personal websites are not acceptable. Please send two sets of your work samples, one in the original language and the other in translation into English, if they are in a language other than English. You can provide a translated transcript for any audio, video, or other multimedia that isn’t in English.)
two recommendation letters (You will be asked for each recommender’s email address, and Submittable will get in touch with them to ask them to submit a recommendation for your application. Letters of recommendation may be submitted up until March 8 at the latest.)
APPLICATION PERIOD AND INFORMATION
March 1, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. EST is the application deadline.
The Fellowship program will take place at Columbia University in New York City from July 21–27, 2023. Any fellows chosen for 2023 will be postponed to 2024 if the program must be canceled due to public health concerns.
All candidates chosen for the 2023 Ochberg Fellowship will need to be immunized and given a booster. If chosen, kindly vouch that you meet this condition.
CRITERIA FOR SELECTION
A judging panel made up of Dart Center staff, Fellowship faculty, and former Fellows reviews the applications. No single variable governs selection. Judges take into account a number of things, with a focus on whether applicants:
Have shown journalistic leadership and excellence in their careers; are consistently and thoughtfully engaged in reporting on issues of violence, conflict, tragedy, and their aftermath; are likely to gain professionally and personally from the Fellowship experience; and are likely to make a significant contribution to the program and fellows cohort.
Additional factors could be diversity in terms of geography and other factors, as well as general group makeup.
12–14 fellows will be chosen for 2023 by a judging panel made up of journalists, trauma physicians, and subject matter experts. Submittable will notify the chosen fellows. Applications are now open on Submittable through March 1, 2023 @ 11:59p ET
