The Moral Ambition University Fellowship is run by The School for Moral Ambition, a nonprofit that pushes talented students toward large, solvable and neglected problems. It recruits campus by campus in the United States, and this cycle is open to Princeton juniors.
Students apply in the fall of their junior year and are matched to a host nonprofit over the winter. They train through the spring, then spend ten weeks of the following summer working full time at that organization in New York City or Washington, DC.
The program was built to compete with the consulting and banking recruiting that dominates junior year. Past fellows worked on global health, legal aid, education technology and reducing recidivism.
Benefits & funding
- USD 15,000 stipend for the summer.
- Ten-week full-time placement at a mission-driven nonprofit, chosen one to one with the University Fellowship Director.
- Bi-weekly speaker sessions, upskilling workshops and cohort activities through the spring.
- Lifelong access to the School for Moral Ambition network, career guidance after graduation, and a role in recruiting the next cohort.
Eligibility
- Princeton juniors only; the expression-of-interest form states the program is for rising Princeton juniors.
- Twelve places in the Princeton cohort.
- Open to any field of study. The host looks for students who are curious about neglected problems and ready to spend the summer on urgent work.
- No nationality, residency or age requirement is published.
- The same fellowship recruits separately at Harvard, Stanford, Vanderbilt and Brown, each campus with its own page and twelve places.
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.
Education required
Bachelor Enrolled
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Application process
- 1Fill in the expression-of-interest form to be notified when applications open on 8 September 2026.
- 2Optionally attend the campus info session on 8 September 2026, 6:00–7:30pm, or meet the recruiter at the Hire Tigers career fair on 11 September 2026, 11:00am–2:30pm.
- 3Submit a resume and answers to two short essay questions.
- 4Attend an on-campus interview with the recruiter if invited.
- 5Accepted fellows work with the University Fellowship Director over the winter to choose their summer placement.
Program timeline
Applications open; campus info session, 6:00–7:30pm
Sep 8, 2026
Hire Tigers career fair, 11:00am–2:30pm
Sep 11, 2026
Placement matching with the University Fellowship Director
Winter 2026–27
Speaker sessions, workshops and cohort preparation
Spring 2027
Ten-week full-time placement in New York City or Washington, DC
Summer 2027