Acceptance to the Pool

Applications are reviewed twice a year by the Program's external Advisory Board, which is made up of leading academics and practitioners in the field of international population-environment. Board members select the best-qualified candidates based on applicants' academic excellence, technical skills, leadership potential, overall suitability for an overseas assignment, and commitment to a career in international population-environment. Applicants are notified of their acceptance status by mail following the Advisory Board review.

Successful applicants enter what is called "the pool." This is the group from which we select candidates for placements. The Program attempts to locate challenging positions for as many qualified candidates as possible, given available funding. However, it is important to realize that placement with a host organization is not guaranteed upon entering the pool. Should you be accepted into the pool, please remember that your chances of receiving a posting depend on the following:

From Pool to Placement

Placement opportunities are cultivated by Program staff, who regularly contact prospective host agencies to discuss the possibility of placing a fellow with their organization. Interested agencies submit, among other things, a scope of work identifying the tasks a fellow would perform, the position's level of responsibility, and the language and technical skills necessary.

The program regularly contacts prospective host agencies to discuss the likelihood of placing a fellow with their organization. Interested organizations are invited to submit a scope of work, identifying the tasks and level of responsibility of the position, as well as the language and technical skills necessary. If we approve the request and receive authorization for the placement from both USAID in Washington and the local USAID mission, we send a finalized scope of work to all pool candidates who are actively seeking a fellowship in the next four to six months. If there is a language requirement, we only send the scope of work to qualified candidates. If you are interested in the position, we request that you write a detailed cover letter explaining your interest in and qualifications for the Fellowship position. We review each letter and decide whether to forward each candidate’s letter and resume to the host agency. The host agency reviews the candidates and decides who to interview by phone. You have the right to refuse consideration for a particular placement for any reason without jeopardizing your chances of being contacted for another placement at a later date.

The nature of this process means that the time between being accepted into the pool and actually beginning a placement varies from fellow to fellow. Because of this variability, we encourage candidates in the pool to maintain an open dialogue with our Recruitment Coordinator about the upcoming range and pace of placements.