This requirement mainly exists because our host organizations tend to value traditional credentials. However, as we note on the application page, “The eligibility guidelines below are loose and somewhat flexible. If you’re not sure whether you are eligible, we still encourage you to apply.” To the extent possible, we will work to accommodate applicants that we are excited about even if they don’t have traditional credentials. 

We expect most think tanks to fall somewhere between a startup and a hospital IT department, in terms of flexibility. Different think tanks will also have different cultures and policies with respect to credentials. If we receive promising applications from people without a college degree, we may reach out to some potential host organizations on that candidate’s behalf to assess whether host organizations would consider the lack of a traditional credential to be a dealbreaker. Our (and potentially the candidate’s) decision about advancement would depend in large part on the responses we receive to those inquiries.      

The specific prompts were included in the application form. Apologies that this was not clear. We’ve now added a note along those lines to the fellowship page. 

The prompts are: 

• Personal statement: “What do you want to get out of this fellowship? Why do you think you are a good fit? Please describe your interest in (and any experience with) policy as well as your area of focus (e.g. AI or biosecurity).”
• Short essay: “What is one specific policy idea related to AI, biosecurity, or related emerging technology areas that you think the US government should pursue today? Why do you think this idea would be beneficial?”
• Statement of motivation: “How do your interests and plans align with Open Philanthropy's goals related to societal impacts of technology?”

Non-citizens are eligible to apply for the program if they do not require visa sponsorship in order to receive a placement. For example, someone with a green card should be eligible to work at any think tank. As long as applicants are eligible to work in the roles that they are applying for, non-citizens who aspire to US policy careers will not be disadvantaged.

It’s our understanding that it is difficult for non-citizens to get a security clearance, which is required for many federal government roles, and executive branch offices are generally hesitant about bringing on non-citizens. Congressional offices are legally allowed to take on permanent residents (and even some temporary visa holders), but individual offices may adopt policies favoring US citizens. Out of the three categories, we therefore expect non-citizens to have the easiest time matching with a think tank. However, a lot depends on individual circumstances, so it is difficult to generalize. We encourage non-citizens with work authorization to apply, and would work through these sorts of questions with them individually if they reach the later stages of the application process.

In terms of the experience of a participant, we expect our program to closely resemble existing programs like TechCongress and AAAS. Like those programs, we will provide individualized training and matching assistance to help fellows find placements. We will also provide social and professional programming to the fellow cohort in order to build community. Our target placement offices in Congress and the executive branch are also very similar (we also have a think tank category, whereas TechCongress and AAAS focus exclusively on government placements).

In terms of participant selection, one difference is that we are particularly excited to support fellows who share OP’s focus on the long-term implications of a relatively small set of emerging technologies, especially AI and biosecurity (here). However, like TechCongress and AAAS, we will also be paying close attention to “policy fit.” You can read more about what we mean by that in our earlier EA Forum post (here).