The Echidna Global Scholars Program’s Visiting Fellowship is hosted by the Center for Universal Education (CUE), within the Global Economy and Development program, at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC.
The Echidna Global Scholars Program (the Program) aims to strengthen the capacity of local leaders to advance gender equality in and through education across the Global South. During a six-month Fellowship at Brookings, Scholars conduct individual research focused on improving learning opportunities and life outcomes for girls, young women, and gender non-conforming people, develop their leadership and evidence-based policy skills, build substantive knowledge on gender and global education issues, and expand their pathways for impact. Upon completion of the fellowship, scholars transition to the Echidna Global Scholars Alumni Network, a growing community of practice aimed at promoting their significant, sustained, and collective influence on gender-transformative education globally, regionally and locally.
Since its inception in 2012, the Echidna Global Scholars Program has hosted thirteen cohorts of fellows and supports an alumni network of 44 scholars working in more than 23 different countries.
The Fellowship consists of two phases:
- Pre-residency: sets the basis for the research training, leadership, and strategic impact components of the program. With the support of CUE fellows, scholars begin an intensive period of in-country data collection and analysis, accompanied by a series of virtual workshops, group working meetings, and individual advisory sessions. Scholars are introduced to the concepts and tools that will be the focus of the leadership development program throughout the Fellowship and begin developing an impact strategy, identifying and engaging with local actors. Time commitment is roughly 15-20 hours a week during this phase.
- Residency: the residency period in Washington, DC focuses primarily on expanding Scholars’ reach and impact through publication and dissemination of scholars’ research on Brookings’s multimedia platforms, strategic impact capacity strengthening and sharing, leadership development, and networking. The residency phase is designed to help scholars amplify their impact by strengthening skills and practices for analyzing, communicating, and leveraging research for policy contexts and key audiences. The residency also seeks to expand scholars’ networks and promote visibility through Brookings convenings and strategic collaborations, culminating in the Gender Equality in and through Education Research and Policy Symposium.
In addition, during the two-year period following residency, the CUE team provides intentional support to alumni as they implement action plans in their home countries. Through impact planning, strategic advisement and leadership development work, CUE aims to support scholars as they leverage the knowledge, skills, and connections built throughout the Fellowship to catalyze change in their contexts.
Eligibility Criteria
Education/Experience Requirements:
The Program selects professionals with substantial experience in and ties to the Global South, a clear intent to return to the Global South after completing the period of residency at Brookings, and a passion and demonstrated commitment to improving learning opportunities and life outcomes for girls, young women, and gender non-conforming people in and through education.
Applicants should have a background in education, gender and/or women’s studies, international development, public policy, economics, or a related social sciences or humanities area, with a minimum of 10 years of professional experience in research/academia, non-governmental, community or civil society organizations, or government. Candidates with experience in both academic or government settings and community organizations are especially encouraged to apply.
A Master’s degree is required.
Knowledge/Skills Requirements:
Successful applicants will have an in-depth understanding of education, development, and gender issues, strong analytical and writing skills, the ability to care for and collaborate with others, openness to give and receive feedback, and the capacity and desire to learn with speed and flexibility.
All Echidna Global Scholars must demonstrate proficiency in English.
Priority areas for 2025:
The Echidna Global Scholars Program welcomes applications from leaders in gender equality in and through education from across the geographic Global South. In line with recent research on the status of gender and education globally (for example, EGER, 2023), applicants working in the following areas will be given special consideration for the Program in 2025:
Geographic priorities: West Africa, Southeast Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Middle East and North Africa.
Context priorities: Countries and regions marked by conflict and crisis, as well as those with high levels of gender-based violence, child marriage, early childbearing, and low levels of sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Targeted actors and communities of interest: Socio-economically and politically marginalized girls, young women, and gender non-conforming people; children or young people experiencing homelessness; indigenous, migrant, displaced, or nomadic populations; out-of-school children and youth; and LGBTQ+ youth.
Research priorities: Echidna Global Scholars’ research topics must be focused on education priorities for girls, young women, and/or gender non-conforming people, as they are relevant in their specific contexts, and build off a gender transformative framework, seeking to actively challenge discriminatory social norms and/or strengthen the agency of girls, young women, and/or gender non-conforming people. Special priority will be given to projects that focus on ensuring learning and skill development (as opposed to a primary or sole focus on access/enrollment/attainment); improving life outcomes, for example by supporting transitions to higher education and employment; research that employs intersectional feminist and/or decolonial methodologies and moves beyond disciplinary or practitioner silos, and research that focuses on the following key questions for education systems transformation:
- What are the most important barriers to receiving a high-quality education and how do those barriers differ for girls, women and gender non-conforming people?
- How do these barriers interact with the combined or intersectional effects of inequality in education?
- What are the most effective policies or programs to address those barriers both locally and globally?
- How do compounding and systemic issues (for e.g., conflict, climate change, political and/or religious contexts) change what we know about the barriers for these populations and the solutions for addressing them?
Applicants who have not worked explicitly on gender equality and education previously are welcome to apply but should include an explanation of how this focus on improving learning opportunities and outcomes for girls, young women and gender non-conforming people can be integrated successfully into their current and future work.
Application Process
Go to Brookings Institution on careers-brookings.icims.com to apply
All applications must be submitted through the iCIMS application system. Initial application materials must include:
- A CV or resume which should include your education and professional experience, as well as a list of your publications, and any fellowships, honors, awards, funded research, or foundation support that you have received.
- The completed Echidna Global Scholars Program Application which includes both a written questionnaire and a research proposal. Click on hyperlink to access document and upload in the “Writing sample” section. Documents must be saved with a format of Last Name_First Name_document name (for example: Doe_Jane_CV).
