The Eben Tisdale Fellowship

The Eben Tisdale Fellowship, which includes a $5,000 grant, is a summer internship available to undergraduate and graduate students where the high-tech sector meets the government.  The program offers outstanding opportunities for students to learn about high tech public policy issues with hands-on experience in Washington, D.C.  Tisdale Fellowships are open to students from colleges and universities all over the country.

The Dell Thurmond Woodard Fellowship, which includes one $5,000 grant for one student each year, is part of the Tisdale Fellowship program.  Any student, undergraduate or graduate, who is interested in diversity and ethics issues, and in learning about high-tech public policy issues, can apply for this Fellowship.

The application for both of these Fellowships is the same, except that those applying for the Dell Thurmond Woodard Fellowship should include an additional essay on diversity and ethics.

The Fellowship has two main elements:

(1) Internship:  Fellows participate an eight-week internship in the government relations office of a leading high technology company or association.  In the recent past, fellows have interned at such companies as Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Philips Electronics and Monster Worldwide, as well as associations such as the Business Software Alliance or TechAmerica.

2)  Issues Seminar:  The issues seminar is a weekly lunch hosted by the different sponsoring companies and associations.  Expert speakers lead discussions of current public policy issues in Washington, and the methods the high technology industry uses for effective advocacy.

The Summer 2011 Fellowship runs from June 13th – August 5th, 2011. The goal of the Fellowship is to create a supportive and collegial environment in which a new class of public policy professionals will be mentored to help ensure that the high-tech industry continues to have highly capable and well-trained individuals in both policy advocacy and senior management positions. The Final deadline for all applications is February 15, 2011.

Students may find more information and apply at www.tisdalefellowship.org. Questions? Contact Jonathan Tilley at info@tisdalefellowship.org or 202/986-0384.

“I had a blast this summer. I loved the nature of my job, I loved the place where I worked and the people with whom I worked, and I love DC. I cannot think of a better way to spend the summer learning about the private-industry sector in Washington DC than to be a Tisdale Fellow. You will be matched with high-quality tech organizations that take seriously the mission of the Fellowship. I highly recommend this program.”

Joel Mehler ’08, Stanford University

Intern, Business Software Alliance