The Archer Fellowship Program is a robust, holistic experience that combines coursework with a full-time internship and enriching cohort experience. It is more than just an internship program; it is an opportunity to develop civic leadership skills through policy analysis, direct professional experience, and meaningful, collaborative work with peers. Successful candidates to the Archer Fellowship Program demonstrate the ability to thrive in academic, professional, and cohort settings, and whose goals align well with the mission and opportunities of the Archer Center.
The application is designed to provide you with opportunities to demonstrate your academic and professional alignment and preparedness for the program, as well as your ability to navigate professional and social settings that require agility, emotional intelligence, humility, and integrity.
The Fall 2027 and Spring 2028 Archer Fellowship Program application will open in mid-November. The application deadline is February 15, at 11:59 p.m. CT.
Archer Fellowship Program Eligibility Requirements
Students must meet the following eligibility requirements in order to apply:
- Minimum GPA of 3.0 at a University of Texas System institution
- Previous work or internship experience
- Campus leadership and/or community involvement
- Applicant must be pursuing a bachelor’s degree at a University of Texas System institution
If selected for the Archer Fellowship Program, students must meet the following requirements by the beginning of their semester of participation:
- Junior or senior status by years and hours (students are not eligible to apply in their first year after high school graduation, regardless of their classification)
- Twenty-four hours of in-residence credit completed at their University of Texas Institution
- Completion of government/political science core-curriculum requirements
Archer Fellowship Program Application Components
Resume
Purpose: Your application resume reveals how you engage within and beyond your campus by highlighting your academic experience, extracurricular involvement, leadership roles, work experience, community service, skills, and awards. Together, these elements provide the selection committee with information regarding your interests, values, growth over time, and potential contributions to an Archer Fellowship community.
Instructions:
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You are encouraged to use one of the Archer Center resume templates.
- Please include all relevant academic, professional, extracurricular, service, and leadership experience that will provide the committee with an overview of your experiences.
- Your resume must be one page, single-sided, which reflects the professional norm in Washington, D.C.
- The Archer Center encourages you to have your resume reviewed by a campus career services office or writing center.
Resume submission task includes the following language:
Optional short-answer question: Do you have any gaps in your resume that you’d like to address?
Transcript
Purpose: Your transcript provides the selection committee with information about your intellectual interests, academic performance over time, and potential to succeed in coursework as an Archer Fellow.
Instructions:
- Attach an unofficial transcript (or academic summary for UT Austin students) from your UT System home institution.
- Attach an official transcript from all previous colleges and universities attended.
Please note:
- If your current university transcript contains all your course information from past institutions, you only need to submit your current university transcript.
- If your current transcript does not include all prior coursework, you must also submit official transcripts from each prior institution.
- Screenshots of course records or course summaries will not be accepted.
- Please submit all transcripts as a single PDF document.
The Archer Center is committed to an accessible application process. If you experience difficulty obtaining an official transcript or if obtaining a transcript places an undue financial burden on you, please contact the Archer Center at archeradmissions@utsystem.edu.
Optional short-answer question:To help selection committee members interpret your undergraduate transcript(s), you are invited to provide additional information regarding your past coursework and grades, including your personal circumstances at that time. Responses should not exceed 150 words.
Short-Answer Prompts
Purpose:These short-answer questions are designed to provide a holistic view of each candidate’s fit for a public service and public policy-oriented Fellowship. They assess alignment with the program’s values, including commitment to public service, intellectual curiosity, collaboration, interpersonal growth, and readiness to succeed in a rigorous academic and professional environment. Together, the responses help identify candidates who demonstrate not only strong qualifications but also authenticity, resilience, and the potential to contribute meaningfully to a collaborative cohort.
Please tell us about yourself:
- If you wrote a memoir about your life up to today, what would you title the memoir and why? (Responses should not exceed 150 words.)
- Identify a public servant whom you admire. What qualities do you admire about this person and why? (Responses should not exceed 150 words.)
For this question, a public servant is anyone who serves the public through a government-funded or public service role. Examples include elected officials, government employees at the city, county, state, or federal level, public school teachers, public university staff and faculty, firefighters, police officers, military personnel, librarians, and other public sector workers.
Please tell us about your interest in the Archer Fellowship Program:
- Describe your commitment to public service and/or federal policy, including experiences or skills that have prepared you to be an Archer Fellow. (Responses should not exceed 150 words.)
- Explain how the Archer Fellowship Program will advance your educational and professional goals. (Responses should not exceed 150 words.)
Please tell us about how you handle disagreements and setbacks:
Authenticity is important to the Archer Fellowship Program. We expect excellence in academics, professionalism, and how students support and connect with their peers. The Archer Center values students who are empathic and genuine in their interactions with peers and supervisors. To that end, please answer the following two questions to help us better understand who you are as a person and as a potential cohort member.
- Tell us about a moment you could have handled better during an interaction with a peer. How would you handle it differently in the future? (Responses should not exceed 150 words.)
- Tell us about a time when you failed at something or your plans were derailed. How did you get back on track? (Responses should not exceed 150 words.)
Please tell us about your academic interest in the Archer Fellowship Program:
- Describe a specific federal public policy issue that is important to you and explain why. (Responses should not exceed 150 words.)
- Describe an area of growth for you as a student and explain how you would use the Archer Fellowship Program to improve in this area. (Responses should not exceed 150 words.)
Recommendations
Purpose:Recommendations help Archer Fellowship Program selection committees validate your academic and personal qualities while providing meaningful context about skills, achievements, challenges, effort, and growth that may not be evident in the application itself. They also help assess your fit for the program and distinguish applicants by highlighting your unique strengths, behaviors, and real‑world impact.
You must provide two recommendations: one academic and one professional.
- Academic Recommendation: Your academic recommendation must be from a UT System professor, lecturer, or adjunct instructor serving as instructor of record. Your recommendation should not be from an assistant instructor, teaching assistant, or graduate student. You must have completed the instructor's course before the Archer Fellowship Program application due date. Academic recommendations from a faculty member who supervised you in a lab but who did not teach you in a course are not accepted.
- Professional Recommendation: The professional recommendation must be from a current or previous non-academic supervisor. Eligible professional recommenders include supervisors for on- or off-campus positions, in paid, leadership, or volunteer roles, and in any industry. Professional recommendations should not be from a fellow student or peer.
Recommendation letters from family members or personal friends are not suitable.
Together, your two recommenders should address your academic skills as well as qualities such as responsibility, maturity, work ethic, critical thinking, leadership, commitment to public service, and your ability to work well with others.
You are encouraged to create your application account well before the application deadline so that recommenders have ample time to complete the Archer Fellowship Program candidate evaluation survey. Once you submit your recommender information through the online application, we encourage you to confirm with your recommender that they received an email with instructions for completing the recommendation. If your recommender does not receive a confirmation email, please verify that you submitted the correct email address on the application portal. If problems persist, contact the Archer Center at archeradmissions@utsystem.edu.
Disclosure Statement
Candidates for the Archer Fellowship Program are asked to disclose the information bulleted below. Disclosure of this information does not automatically disqualify you from the Archer Fellowship Program; however, nondisclosure of this information is considered falsification of your application.
- Criminal convictions and/or deferred adjudications, as well as any pending criminal charges against you. A conviction includes the initial plea, verdict, or finding of guilt, plea of no contest, or pronouncement of sentence by a trial court, even if that conviction may not be final or sentence actually imposed, until appeals are exhausted. Only minor traffic infractions may be excluded.
- Student disciplinary actions which have been imposed against you in the past, and any current or pending student disciplinary actions at a UT System institution or any other institution of higher education that you have attended.
Please upload a signed statement including the following information for any past, current, or pending student disciplinary actions, criminal convictions or charges, and/or deferred adjudications. All forms must be submitted in PDF format.
- Date, city, and state of arrest or student disciplinary action
- Name and location of the court where the case was/will be heard
- Details of the violation for which you were charged and/or convicted
- Dates of student disciplinary action, probation, or suspension
- Dates of imprisonment
- Dates of period of probation
- Amount of fine
Archer Center Generative AI Usage Statement and Guidance
Application guidance on the use of generative AI
When reviewing applications, selection committee members value your authentic voice, self-reflection, and ability to think critically about your experiences and growth. The application short answer questions and research prospectus are designed to prompt meaningful reflection on your goals, values, and commitment to public service, something AI cannot replicate. We’ve seen that AI-generated materials often read as generic or “flat,” lacking the individuality and depth we seek. For this reason, the Archer Center cautions against the use of generative AI in preparing your application.
Privacy guidance
Using AI tools can introduce cybersecurity and privacy risks, such as exposing sensitive data and creating inaccurate or manipulated outputs that could mislead decisions. Exercise caution and ensure your use complies with institution policies and applicable laws.