Call for Applications
The John Quincy Adams Society invites mid-career foreign policy practitioners to apply for its fourth annual Strategic Leaders Fellowship.
This professional development program provides participants with opportunities to deepen their expertise in grand strategy and history while connecting with professional peers. Fellows will dive deeply into prudent approaches to U.S. defense and foreign policy by hearing from experts drawn from around the U.S. foreign policy space.
Strategic Leaders Fellows take part in private salon dinners with experts discussing topics like grand strategy, nuclear weapons, power projection, and European security, and participate in a day-long crisis simulation. The fellowship’s culmination is a trip to France and Belgium for an in-depth study of the First World War – its origins, conduct, and termination, and a closer look at the United States in the war.
The program lasts the 2025 calendar year and requires only a part-time commitment. Fellows can expect to join their cohort at exclusive roundtable dinners in the DC area, a crisis simulation, and an international study trip. Program events will usually be on the third Monday of the month. Participants are expected to attend each session and to complete assigned readings. Programming will take place between March and December 2025. We will release a full program schedule to fellows.
The Strategic Leaders Fellowship intends to reach current and future stars in the U.S. national security space. Accordingly, SLF is open only to United States citizens. Applicants should generally have no less than 5 and no more than about 20 years of foreign or defense policy experience or be transitioning out of a military career. Relevant experience may include but is not limited to service in the armed forces, private sector, federal or state government, international work, and internships.
We strive to interpret experience in a way that is favorable to the applicant’s eligibility. Therefore, internships and fellowships can be counted towards achieving the five-year minimum. Likewise, for roles that only partially deal with foreign policy, only the portion of time spent on foreign policy counts against the limit. Military service counts against the limit only in roles in which the servicemember’s daily duties required using extensive knowledge of foreign policy [such as FAOs or some intelligence roles]. We are happy to discuss whether you’re eligible for this program.
There is no cost to program participants other than the costs of travel to the DC area if necessary. Fellows do not need to be based in the DC area but are expected to join the cohort for any in-person sessions.
Please fill out the application below to apply for the 2025 Strategic Leaders Fellowship. Application materials must not include any classified information. Letters of recommendation will not be accepted with applications at this time.
Applications close at the end of the day on Sunday, January 26. We expect to announce the cohort of fellows in March 2025. Please direct any questions to Scott McCann at Scott.McCann@JQAS.org. If the application form below does not load, you may access it directly here.
The Strategic Leaders Fellowship is made possible by a generous donation from Stand Together Trust and other U.S. donors.
The John Quincy Adams Society welcomes all qualified applicants regardless of color, race, religion, religious creed, sex, gender or gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, national origin, ethnicity, ancestry, age, physical ability, mental ability, medical condition, pregnancy (including medical needs which may arise from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), military and veteran status, genetic information, marital or familial status, political affiliation, or any other legally recognized protected basis under federal, state or local laws, regulations or ordinances.