Fellowships
The Mercatus Center offers fellowships providing training and support for students studying political economy at Mason and universities around the world.
Applications are open! Browse our fellowships below.
For Students at George Mason University
PhD Fellowship
The PhD Fellowship is a competitive, full-time fellowship program for students pursuing a doctoral degree in economics at George Mason University. Our PhD Fellows take courses in market process economics, public choice, and institutional analysis and work on projects that use these lenses to understand global prosperity and social change.
- Working toward a PhD in economics
- Attending George Mason University
Dissertation Fellowship
The Dissertation Fellowship is a one-year, renewable, competitive fellowship program for students who have advanced to candidacy in their PhD program at George Mason University and are working on dissertations that aim at understanding how social change occurs and how to create a freer society.
- Working toward a PhD
- Attending George Mason University
MA Fellowship
The MA Fellowship is a competitive fellowship program for students in George Mason University’s MA economics program who are interested in pursuing an advanced degree in applied economics in preparation for a career in public policy. Our MA fellows take specialized courses which provide analytic training in applying economic ideas to solve problems in the world.
- Working toward an MA in economics
- Attending George Mason University
Undergraduate Fellowship
The Undergraduate Fellowship is a one-year, competitive fellowship program for undergraduate students at George Mason University. Fellowships are open to full- and part-time Mason students from any discipline who are interested in studying key ideas in political economy and learning how to utilize these ideas in academic and policy research.
- Working towards an undergraduate degree
- Attending George Mason University
For Students at Any University and in Any Discipline
Adam Smith Fellowship
The Adam Smith Fellowship is a co-sponsored program of the Mercatus Center and Liberty Fund, Inc. Adam Smith Fellowships are awarded to graduate students attending PhD programs from any university in a variety of fields including economics, philosophy, political science, and sociology.
- Working toward an PhD in any discipline
- Attending any accredited university
Frédéric Bastiat Fellowship
The Frédéric Bastiat Fellowship is a one-year, competitive fellowship program awarded to graduate students attending master’s, juris doctoral, and doctoral programs in a variety of fields including economics, law, political science, and public policy.
- Working toward a graduate degree in any discipline
- Attending any accredited university
Oskar Morgenstern Fellowship
The Oskar Morgenstern Fellowship is a one-year, competitive fellowship program awarded to graduate students with training in quantitative methods who are attending PhD programs from any university in a variety of fields including economics, political science and sociology.
- Working toward a PhD with training in quantitative methods
- Attending any accredited university
Elinor Ostrom Fellowship
The Elinor Ostrom Fellowship is a one-year, competitive, renewable fellowship program awarded to PhD students who are from any university and any discipline–including but not limited to economics, philosophy, political science, and sociology–and interested in the themes of markets, culture, morality, and sociality in political economy.
- Working toward a PhD in any discipline
- Attending any accredited university
For Those Considering or in the Early Stages of Graduate School
Don Lavoie Fellowship
The Don Lavoie Fellowship is a competitive, renewable, and online fellowship program for advanced undergraduates, recent graduates considering graduate school, and early-stage graduate students. Fellowships are open to students from any discipline who are interested in studying key ideas in political economy and learning how to utilize these ideas in academic and policy research.
- Advanced undergraduates considering graduate school, or
- Taking a gap year and considering graduate school, or
- Currently in the early stages of attending graduate school
For Students in Any High School
Exploring Complex Solutions for a Complex World Fellowship
The Exploring Complex Solutions for a Complex World Fellowship is a competitive, renewable, and online fellowship program for high school students. Fellowships are open to students from any high school program (whether public, private, or home school) who are interested in understanding political, economics, and social life. This program is part of the Don Lavoie Fellowship.
- Enrolled in high school
- At least 16-years-old by the start of the fellowship
For Early Career Scholars
James Buchanan Fellowship
The James Buchanan Fellowship is a one-year, competitive fellowship awarded to scholars in any discipline who have recently graduated from their doctoral programs.
- Graduated with a PhD within the last five years
- Working at an academic or research-based organization