Application Deadline: 30 March 2025.
Applications are now open for the 2025 Kroc IPJ Women PeaceMakers Fellowship Program. For twenty years, the Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice (Kroc IPJ) at the University of San Diego’s Kroc School of Peace Studies has hosted the Women PeaceMakers Fellowship program. The Fellowship offers a unique opportunity for peacebuilders who focus on gender, peace and conflict to engage in a cycle of learning, practice, research and participation that strengthens peacebuilding partnerships. The Women PeaceMakers Fellowship facilitates impactful collaborations between peacebuilders from conflict-affected communities and international partner organizations. The Fellows also co-create research intended to shape the peacebuilding field and highlight good practices for peacebuilding design and implementation.
Anyone who considers themselves a peacebuilder working to reduce cycles of violence through a focus on gender, peace, and conflict is welcome to apply. People of all genders, including transgender and non-binary or gender-fluid people, are welcome to apply and are eligible for a fellowship. The Women PeaceMakers Fellowship program does not consider sex, gender, or any other protected status as part of the application and selection process. Applicants must have at least five years of peacebuilding or violence reduction experience and must speak sufficient English to participate fully in Fellowship activities.
Fellowship Dates: September 2025 – July 2026.
Date of Residency at the University of San Diego in the United States: November 8-22, 2025.
Requirements
Strong candidates will have the following experience:
- Working or have worked as a researcher, with a substantial track record of academic and/or practitioner-based experience.
- Research experience that is based on engagement with violence-affected communities and/or with peacebuilding organizations or social movements.
- Experience of at least five years working in peacebuilding, policy advocacy, organizing or related work.
- Experience implementing gender-responsive approaches in peacebuilding, policy or social movement work or substantial academic experience related to gender, peace and conflict.
- Ability to participate in all activities during the year-long Fellowship and collaborate within a multicultural fellowship cohort.
- Sufficient English language proficiency to relate personal experiences and engage in discussions with a multi-country cohort.
Benefits
- Fellows will receive a stipend of USD $15,000, which will cover their time spent in the fellowship as well as any costs for conducting fellowship-related research. The Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice will cover costs for the residency period at the University of San Diego.
Application Procedure:
Please submit your CV, answers to the following essay questions, and research proposal in a single combined PDF document. Please ensure that these materials are all your original work; please do not use generative AI tools, such as Chat GPT, or plagiarize others’ work.
Essay Questions (no more than 300 words per essay question)
- Please describe the peacebuilding or violence reduction work you have led or currently lead related to border policy. How do you consider gender in this work?
- How is your work to reduce violence related to border policy connected to communities affected by those border policies? Please describe how you collaborate with those most impacted in your work.
- What do you consider your greatest achievement in building peace or reducing violence?
- Please describe your experience conducting research, including the methodologies you have used in the past and how you have collected data. Please provide links to two of your published research works.
- Please describe how this Fellowship would benefit your ongoing work and how your experience can contribute to the community at the University of San Diego and the Kroc School of Peace Studies. How do you plan to engage with faculty, staff, and students?
Research Proposal
As part of your Fellowship, you will work toward a ten-page case study focused on ending cycles of violence and/or peacebuilding work in your country of residence. Please ensure that the research proposal is your own original work. If it is determined that AI tools were used to create your research proposal, your application may be disqualified.
In 750 words or fewer, please provide a research proposal on the topic you would like to explore within the theme of building less violent border policy using a gendered lens. This research proposal should focus on policies and implementation of those policies, not only on service provision or humanitarian response. Please include the following elements in your research proposal:
- A brief abstract
- Your research question(s)
- A brief description of your methodology
- Types of data to be collected
- Study participants or community of focus
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the Kroc IPJ Women PeaceMakers Fellowship Program
