Jewish Organizing Fellowship Application

Fellowship Candidates

Our year-long paid community organizing fellowship in Boston is a year of field experience and professional development for young Jewish adults (21-30) looking for the opportunity to turn good intention and raw talent into concrete skills and action.

The Jewish Organizing Fellowship is extremely competitive. This year’s class of Fellows was selected from nearly 100 applicants. What we’re looking for in fellowship candidates:

  • A track record of leadership and/or work experience addressing social problems.
  • The ability to connect with people easily. Sense of humor is key.
  • A sense of outrage in response to injustice and a deep hope for the future.
  • Self-knowledge about why making the world a better place matters.
  • Someone who self-identifies as Jewish and has an interest in exploring the connections between Judaism and social justice work.

There are two paths into the Fellowship program:

  • People who are looking to find an organizing job can apply to the Fellowship and go through our matching process to find a Placement. (Note: Acceptance into the Fellowship does not guarantee a placement; however, it ensures the support of JOIN as you continue the job application process).
  • People who are looking to find training, coaching, and support in their existing organizing jobs can have their organizations apply to be a Placement.

For people on both paths, it is necessary to go through both the initial application phase and the group interview. Candidates who are already in jobs, however, will not need to attend the Matching Event. Read about the entire interview process.

Application Instructions

Please be in touch with Jihelah Greenwald at applications@joinforjustice.org with any questions about next year’s Fellowship, we want to hear from you!

  • Early bird applications are due January 23rd
  • Regular applications are due February 27th

For details on the other phases of the application process, click here. 

The written application consists of an online form, a one-page resume, a personal statement (see below for prompt) and two references (see below to download the recommendation form). Only one reference is required for an application to be considered officially complete, but a second reference is encouraged.

To submit your written application, complete the following three steps:

1) Fill out this form to provide us with basic contact and demographic information.

2) Send an email to applications@joinforjustice.org  with your personal statement (see below for prompt) and the one-page resume attached as separate documents as Word documents. Your file names should use the following format: Firstname_Lastname_PS and Firstname_Lastname_Resume

3) Have your two references send the Jewish Organizing Fellowship Reference Form to applications@joinforjustice.org.

  • If sending by email (preferred), please instruct your references to send the email to applications@joinforjustice.org and use the following format for the file: Applicantfirstname_Applicantlastname_Recommendation.doc .
  • If sending by mail, please provide the following address: JOIN for Justice, 359 Boylston Street, Fourth Floor, Boston, MA 02116.

4) Save the dates for the following in-person interview events:

  • Interview Day: April 7, 2019
  • Matching Day: May 13, 2019

Personal Statement:

As part of your application, please submit a personal statement with your response to the questions below. We accept personal statements in multiple formats. All of these formats will be considered on an equal basis; we want to receive the information in whatever way is best for you to share it. (Please do not submit a statement in multiple formats.)

-Instructions for written personal statements:

  • Your statement should be about two pages double spaced.
  • Please send it as an attachment via email. We prefer Word documents, but other formats are also accepted.

-Instructions for video and audio personal statements:

  • Your statement should be about 2-5 minutes long.
  • Please only include yourself talking, using a communication device, or signing.
  • Do not include:
    • Other people’s comments
    • Footage of you organizing or doing other activities
    • Other supplemental elements.
    • We are not concerned about your video/audio production or editing abilities, just the content.
    • You can send us your file through Google Drive, YouTube, Vimeo, or another online file sharing service. If you need instructions for uploading and sharing a video or audio file, please let us know and we can help you make sure we receive your submission.

-Other formats: If you would prefer a different format from the above options to present yourself in the best way possible, please contact Jihelah Greenwald at applications@joinforjustice.org or 617-350-9994 ex 208.

Here is one definition of community organizing: Community organizing means developing leaders and bringing people together to form powerful organizations that allow people to act on their own behalf to make systemic changes in their lives. Community organizers are people who want to stir things up and motivate people to act for change, who embrace challenge, and who think strategically about power.

 

The personal statement should address the following questions:

  • Why do you want to learn or deepen your skills in community organizing as a method for social change?
  • Why do you want to learn about community organizing in a specifically Jewish context?

We strongly encourage you to include stories that demonstrate why you are drawn to community organizing as you compose your personal statement.

For questions about the Fellowship or the application process, please contact Jihelah Greenwald at applications@joinforjustice.org or 617-350-9994 ex 208.