Aryeh Neier Fellowship — Fellowship

The Aryeh Neier Fellowship is run jointly by Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation. The fellow spends one year at each organization, usually in their New York City offices, working on shared projects to strengthen human rights protection inside the United States. The published call has also asked candidates to be open to placement in the two organizations’ offices elsewhere in the US.

Both organizations created the fellowship in 2002, with funding from the Open Society Foundations, to honor Aryeh Neier, who led the ACLU and then Human Rights Watch. In the first year the fellow carries out field research in the United States and writes reports with legal and policy recommendations. In the second year that research turns into advocacy and impact litigation.

A committee drawn from both organizations picks one fellow per cycle. The fellowship starts in September and has run on a two-year rhythm; the current fellow holds the 2025–2027 place.

Benefits & funding

Paid, full-time position for two years, with a salary increase in the second year.
Human Rights Watch published a first-year salary of US$55,000 for the 2015–2017 cycle; each cycle sets its own figure, which appears in that cycle’s job posting.
One year based at Human Rights Watch and one at the ACLU, usually in their New York City offices.
Staff benefits of the host organization; Human Rights Watch lists health insurance, paid time off, retirement contributions and wellness support.

Eligibility

Open to recent law school graduates, and to students who will graduate by June of the year the fellowship starts.
Candidates must sit the bar examination before the September start and be eligible to practice law in the United States during the second year.
Academic or work experience related to protecting human rights and civil liberties in the United States is required.
Exceptional analytical skills and the ability to write and speak clearly and forcefully are required.
A language in addition to English is recommended, not required.
No nationality restriction is published. The work is US-based, and the second year requires eligibility to practice law in the United States.

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Application process

1
Watch the Human Rights Watch careers board and the ACLU careers page; the call is posted there, normally in the autumn before a September start.
2
Write a cover letter and prepare a resume.
3
Arrange two letters of recommendation.
4
Choose at least one unedited, unpublished writing sample; the 2015–2017 call excluded legal briefs.
5
Request an official transcript from your law or graduate school.
6
Submit the complete application by the deadline; past cycles asked for everything in one email to fellowship@hrw.org, preferably as a single PDF.
7
Keep early November to mid-December free for interviews in New York.

Program timeline

Early to mid October
applications close (the last published cycle closed on 14 October 2024)
interviews in New York
Early November to mid-December
the two-year fellowship begins
September of the following year
After twelve months
the fellow moves to the second organization