Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs
Information About
International Fellows

Fellowships

Hennepin County Mentorship Program

Host Family Program

Buddy Program

Salzburg Seminar

Meet the Staff

Humphrey Institute
Question mark icon
Phone icon
Blogs & Podcasts icon
Gift icon
Lock icon
Home icon

 

 

 
FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS

Hubert H. Humphrey International Fellowship Programs

The Hubert H. Humphrey International Fellowship Program was initiated in 1978 to honor the late Senator and Vice-President Hubert H. Humphrey and his life-long commitment to international cooperation and public service. The program brings accomplished mid-career professionals from designated developing nations and emerging democracies to the United States for a year of academic study, related professional experience and cultural exchange. The people-to-people approach to international understanding provides a basis for lasting ties between U.S. citizens and their professional counterparts in other countries and strengthens the global exchange of knowledge and experience essential to a sustainable world.

In 2003 the program began hosting Fellows collaboratively with the University of Minnesota Law School/Human Rights Center.  This collaboration allows the University of Minnesota to expand its offereings to a broader range of Fellows.

Fellowships are granted competitively to professional candidates with a commitment to public service. The program is sponsored by the United States Department of State and is administered nationally by the Institute of International Education (IIE), which assigns Fellows to a host university based upon each Fellow's interests and needs.

Each year about a dozen Humphrey Fellows come to the University of Minnesota's Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, which serves as their base for their Fellowship Year. The goals of the Humphrey International Fellowship Programs at the University of Minnesota are:

  • to enable each Fellow to develop a program that fosters personal and professional growth and that prepares the Fellow for leadership roles in his or her country;
  • to provide opportunities for a rich exchange of information among Fellows, and also between Fellows and host families, community members, professional colleagues and students/faculty at the University;
  • to help Fellows understand as broadly and deeply as possible the U.S. cultural, political, and economic systems; and
  • to help Fellows develop a fuller sense of the global context in which they and their countries operate.

All of the Fellows in the U.S. this year-179 Fellows from 71 countries-attend a one-week seminar in Washington, D.C. The Washington Seminar gives Fellows a chance to meet their counterparts from across the country, and an opportunity to begin discussions and relationships that continue throughout their Fellowship Year and after their return to their home country. Fellows also spend a minimum of six weeks in a professional affiliation with a U.S.-based organization, working in their particular area of interest.

This year the University of Minnesota celebrates its 25th year of hosting Humphrey Fellows. The U of M has hosted over 274 Humphrey Fellows who have specialized in wide array of professional fields including business and management, human rights, medicine, public health, government, law, mass communication, engineering, education, foreign affairs, social work, and agricultural science. The Humphrey Institute, the Law School, and the University of Minnesota remain deeply committed to fulfilling the program goals for Fellows in public administration and policy. Our collaboration with university faculty, Humphrey Institute and Law School alumni, an extensive network of affiliated professionals and host families, and the Fellows themselves, creates an extraordinary community.

Edmund S. Muskie Fellowship Program

The Edmund S. Muskie and Freedom Support Act Graduate Fellowship was established in 1992 by the United States government to promote international understanding and cooperation. The objective of the program is to provide leadership training to mid-career professionals from the former Soviet Union. The program focus is on former Soviet Union because of major economic and political transformations that are taking place in the region. During their two-year Fellowship period, Fellows take academic courses and participate in professional internships.

U.K. Fulbright for Public Affairs Fellowship

The bi-national United States-United Kingdom Fulbright Commission offers this Fellowship each year to an outstanding U.K. civil servant for study and research at the Humphrey Institute.  The purpose of the fellowship is to promote collaboration between the U.K. and the U.S.

Government of India Fellows

The Indian government initiated the Indian Government Fellowship Program to offer leadership development opportunities to top officers in public service positions. During their fellowship year, Indian Government Fellows complete the master’s of public affairs degree program and take part in professional internships.