Call for Applications: Justice Initiative Fellows Program at Central

CEU

13 October 2006

The Open Society Justice Initiative, an operational program of the Open Society Institute (OSI), joins with Central European University (CEU) to announce the Justice Initiative Fellows Program for 2007-2009. The aim of the program is to support and expand a network of lawyers and activists working internationally on human rights-related issues. Established in 1996, the Justice Initiative Fellows Program has graduated 155 fellows from more than 20 countries.

The Justice Initiative Fellows Program is a two-year program of study and practical work experience. In 2007, a maximum of ten applicants will be selected to participate in the program. Applicants from the following regions are eligible: Central and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, Africa, East- and Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Central/South America.

Applicants must be nominated by a non-governmental organization concerned with human rights. The applicant must demonstrate a strong commitment to human rights, have a university degree and be able to certify a high degree of proficiency in English. Criteria for selection will include the applicant's experience, his/her potential to contribute to the protection and promotion of human rights, and the suitability of the applicant's proposed role with the nominating NGO. Upon selection, Fellows will be required to sign an agreement with the Justice Initiative committing themselves to the program for two years. The first year is spent at Central European University, the second in the applicant's home country, working with the nominating NGO.

The Justice Initiative Fellows will reside for one year in Hungary, at CEU Legal Studies Department. They will undertake a degree program (M.A. or LL.M. in Human Rights, dependent on their undergraduate degree), in which they will be required to fulfill the requirements of the Human Rights Program at CEU. One requirement for completion of the degree program at CEU is participation in a three-month internship placement with leading NGOs in Europe from January through March of 2008.

The Fellows' first year will be administered by the CEU Legal Studies Department in partnership with the Justice Initiative. Financial conditions will be identical to CEU policies for full scholarship students. After completion of the CEU degree program, the Justice Initiative Fellows will return to their nominating NGOs where they will spend at least one year working in human rights advocacy on a non-profit basis: providing legal services, undertaking human rights litigation, or providing training and education, as approved and described by the NGO in the nomination letter.

The Justice Initiative will pay a salary during this second year in line with other salaries paid by the nominating NGO. This amount will be provided to the nominating NGOs in the form of a grant.

Application Procedure
Please note that applicants must submit their applications to the CEU Admissions Office:

Nador Street 9
1051 Budapest
Hungary

They must meet the general CEU Admissions Requirements, which can be viewed
online (http://www.ceu.hu/admissions.html), as well as the CEU Legal Studies Department Requirements (http://www.ceu.hu/legal/admissions.html).

The Deadlines for receiving applications at CEU are:

- Wednesday, November 1, 2006: Early Application Deadline (CEU has introduced an early application deadline for candidates who wish to apply to participate in the CEU-administered admissions examinations). The list of test sites can be found on the CEU online application form.

- Friday, January 5, 2007: Application Deadline for: candidates who submit complete application including proof of English proficiency, if required, but are coming from countries where CEU does not administer admissions examinations. For these applicants the essay test will be administered by e-mail on Saturday, March 3, 2007.

For further application requirements, more information about the overall program and the second year commitment, please contact:

Anna Fischer
Fellows Program Coordinator at the Justice Initiative
Oktober 6. u.12
Budapest 1051
Tel: +361 327-3108
Fax: +361 327 3103
e-mail: afischer@osi.hu

Please note: For additional information, please go to
CEU Fellows site and/or OSI Justice Initiative.