Mercatus Center at George Mason UniversityFellowship

Emerging Scholars Program

Rolling

Opportunity type

Fellowship

Funding

Fully Funded

Location

United States

Deadline

Rolling

About this opportunity

Emerging Scholars is an initiative of the Mercatus Center aimed at supporting innovative classical liberal thinkers in becoming this generation’s public intellectuals and policy innovators. We are seeking to hire Research Fellows for two-year, full-time roles at our offices in Arlington, VA, to start in September 2026.

Who can apply

Qualifications:
Demonstrated commitment to classical-liberal ideas with a strong interest in and alignment with classical-liberal principles, such as individual liberty, free markets, and limited government.
Early-career or emerging professional who might be a recent graduate, mid-career professional seeking a shift, or someone re-entering public life. No strict age or career timeline.
Strong intellectual and analytical skills with the ability to think deeply and rigorously about social, economic, or political issues.
Clear and effective communicator who is able to share ideas compellingly across various formats and platforms (writing, speaking, media).
Original research or project focus with a well-defined individual research project or initiative that aligns with classical-liberal values and is ready to be started or continued.
Self-motivator who demonstrates the ability to proactively start conversations, lead reading groups, host events, and help shape a new program.
Adaptability and eagerness to learn, and is receptive to mentorship, training, and professional development opportunities.

AI Verification

✓ AI Verified

Our AI read the official sources and cross-checked the key facts. Here is what held up, and what it could not confirm.

We could not fully verify this organization or all of its details. Check it independently on the official website before you apply, and never share sensitive personal or financial information until you are sure a request is genuine.

LOT Verification ScoreFair

Cross-checked 2 of 4 key facts

Confirmed Our best read Not stated

Good to know

+Confirmed live and open: the Mercatus Center's own programme page states 'Applications are open' and its button resolves to exactly the job posting on file
+Pay is published up front: 80,000 to 100,000 US dollars annually for a two-year, full-time fellowship
+Benefits are itemised: full health and dental coverage, unlimited paid time off, disability and life insurance, a retirement plan, and twelve free credits a year at George Mason University
+The posting explicitly widens who may apply: no strict age or career timeline, covering recent graduates, mid-career changers and people re-entering public life
+International applicants are addressed directly: visas may be sponsored, evaluated case by case

Worth checking yourself

!The closing date could not be confirmed on the organisation's own pages. This listing shows no deadline, which does not mean applications are open indefinitely. Check the official page before you plan around it.
!No closing date is published on either the posting or the programme page, and neither says applications are rolling. An applicant genuinely cannot tell how long they have
!This is filed on LOT as a Scholarship. It is not one. It is a salaried, full-time, two-year job, and applying means applying for employment
!It requires relocation: the fellowship is on-site in Arlington, Virginia, with no remote or hybrid option
!There is a hard ideological requirement, not merely a preference: a demonstrated commitment to classical-liberal ideas. Applicants who do not share that position should not spend time on it
!Applicants are expected to arrive with a defined research project ready to be started, so this is not entry-level despite the 'emerging' framing

What we could not confirm

?Deadline

Sources checked

MEmercatus.orgApplyMEmercatus.orgApply

LOT finds and checks opportunities from public sources. Always confirm details on the organiser’s own page before applying.

About this opportunity

Who can apply

Qualifications:
Demonstrated commitment to classical-liberal ideas with a strong interest in and alignment with classical-liberal principles, such as individual liberty, free markets, and limited government.
Early-career or emerging professional who might be a recent graduate, mid-career professional seeking a shift, or someone re-entering public life. No strict age or career timeline.
Strong intellectual and analytical skills with the ability to think deeply and rigorously about social, economic, or political issues.
Clear and effective communicator who is able to share ideas compellingly across various formats and platforms (writing, speaking, media).
Original research or project focus with a well-defined individual research project or initiative that aligns with classical-liberal values and is ready to be started or continued.
Self-motivator who demonstrates the ability to proactively start conversations, lead reading groups, host events, and help shape a new program.
Adaptability and eagerness to learn, and is receptive to mentorship, training, and professional development opportunities.