Application & Selection

Application Information

In order to be considered for the NYU PILC Fellowship, all applicants must meet with a PILC counselor to discuss their post-graduate job search and their fellowship proposal at least three weeks before the application deadline. Students who have already met with a PILC counselor in the context of preparing their proposed project for other fellowship applications are not required to do so again. Students who have not yet met with a PILC counselor, as well as anyone who has questions or would like to discuss the program further, should make an appointment with Katie Neilson.

  • Submit your application package to pilc.info@nyu.edu as a single PDF file.
  • File name: [Last Name] [First Name] - [PILC/RJWRF] Fellowship Application.
  • Email subject line: NYU [PILC/RJWR] Fellowship.

NOTE: If your proposed project relates to reproductive justice and/or women’s rights, please use the application form and format for the Reproductive Justice and Women’s Rights (RJWR) Fellowship. Your application will automatically be considered for both fellowships; you should not submit separate applications.

Your application pdf should include the following:

  1. Completed Application Cover Sheet
  2. Resume (up to two pages)
  3. Project Proposal (300-500 words) describing:
    • The need that the project would address.
    • The goals of the project.
    • The work that the fellow will undertake.
  4. Personal Statement (300-500 words) discussing
    • Applicant’s career goals and how this fellowship would contribute to those goals.
    • Applicant’s skills and knowledge, including relevant clinics, internships, student group involvement and coursework.
  5. Host Organization Commitment Letter (300-500 words) describing:
    • The mission, current programs and staff of the organization.
    • The training and supervision that the fellow would receive, including the name and experience of the lawyer who would supervise the fellow.
    • How the applicant’s project would support the organization’s mission.
  6. Job Search Engagement Form
    • List all applications  you have submitted for post-graduate fellowship funding and employment. Include only those fellowships and jobs to which you have actually applied and the status of those applications. 
    • Please describe any restrictions in your search (i.e., geographic, type of work, etc.). 
    • Please specify and explain any offers that you have received or have turned down, including any private law firm offers.
    • You may send in an updated form at the time of your interview.
  7. Two Letters of Recommendation
    • One recommendation from a law school professor
    • One recommendation from a former legal supervisor
    • The letters should be addressed to “NYU PILC Fellowship Selection Committee” and can either be submitted as part of the application packet, or directly by the recommender to pilc.info@nyu.edu.

Selection Process and Criteria

NYU PILC Fellows are selected by a selection committee consisting of one law school faculty member and one or two former PILC fellows.

Selection criteria include:

  • Applicant’s qualifications, including commitment to public interest work.
  • Quality and potential impact of the proposed work.
  • Relevance of the proposed work to the applicant’s career goals.
  • Applicant’s job search and engagement with PILC.

Finalists will be invited to interview with the committee, generally in late March, at the law school or over Zoom. Fellowship offers are expected to be made by early April.

Please reach out to Katie Neilson with any questions.