In September 2021, Quad partners Australia, India, Japan, and the United States announced the Quad Fellowship: a first-of-its-kind scholarship program designed to build ties among the next generation of scientists and technologists. The fellowship will develop a network of science and technology experts committed to advancing innovation and collaboration in the private, public, and academic sectors, in their own nations and among Quad countries.
The program is operated and administered by Schmidt Futures, a philanthropic initiative that bets early on exceptional people making the world better, helping them solve hard problems in science and society. The fellowship will sponsor 100 exceptional American, Japanese, Australian, and Indian master’s and doctoral students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to study in the United States, beginning in August 2023.
“We’re committed to supporting exceptional talent interested in working on issues at the intersection of STEM and society,” said Quad Fellowship Executive Director Tony Woods. “While commercially driven endeavors can advance science and technology to the benefit of society, we think it’s important to inspire and support individuals who aim to benefit their communities, nations, and humanity broadly with positive social impact as the primary goal.”
The Quad Fellowship expands opportunities for graduate students in the PIT-UN network to advance scientific and technological innovation for collective good.
“The launch of the Quad Fellowship is further testament that public interest technology’s mission to build a career pipeline is now an urgent endeavor at an international level. The inaugural class of Quad Fellows will join the many cohorts of PIT-UN–supported fellowships who are using their hands-on interdisciplinary learning to define the PIT experience in the real world.”
Andreen Soley,
Director of New America’s PIT program
Q&A with Tony Woods, Executive Director of the Quad Fellowship
Why are cross-cultural exchange and building ties among the next generation of diverse scientists and technologists important to the STEM field?
Tony Woods: Our next generation of scientists and technologists are the ones who will solve many of the most intractable problems that we face today and will face tomorrow. We need innovative solutions to these challenges, which can only ever come through long-term, interdisciplinary, and collaborative efforts. And in our globalized world, where many of our hardest challenges are transnational in nature, we need innovative STEM thinkers who can collaborate across borders to develop solutions that work for all.
By creating ties among our emerging STEM leaders, exposing them to cutting-edge fields and research, and supporting interdisciplinary and multinational research agendas, the Quad Fellowship strives to build these ties that will bear immense fruit in the years and decades to come.
How can other PIT fellowships model their programs after the Quad Fellowship?
By leveraging interdisciplinary networks to solve problems. Brilliant people with brilliant ideas need networks to turn their ideas into actions. We build networks and connect them to one another because this increases the chances of success for the innovative ideas that will make our world a better place for all. And we make sure to work across fields and organizations, understanding that interdisciplinary learning makes for stronger ideas.
How can PIT-UN members support the program?
First and foremost, spread the word about the Quad Fellowship (quadfellowship.org) to exceptional STEM students who should be made aware of this opportunity. We are eager to support the talented young researchers who will become tomorrow’s leaders in STEM.
We are also actively seeking out mentors who can support Quad Fellows in their professional and personal development. If you are interested in and work on solving real problems through innovative scientific or technological solutions, we would be grateful for the advice and guidance you can offer to Quad Fellows as they embark on this transformative experience.
Director & Head of Talent at Schmidt Futures
PIT-UN Student Fellowships, Internships, and Career Fairs
- Stanford University, Pepperdine University, and University of Washington Spring 2022 Public Interest Technology Career Fair
- Carnegie Mellon University, the Policy Innovation Lab Fellowship
- Columbia University, Public Interest Technology Data Science Corps Intern Projects
- Georgia Tech, Serve-Learn-Sustain PIT Student Fellows
- Harvard University, Tech Study Plans, 2022 Summer Research Fellowships
- New York University, A BETTER TECH PIT Convention and Career Fair
- Ohio State University, Ohio Public Interest Fellows
- Olin College of Engineering, The PInT Summer 2021 Fellowship
- Princeton University, Public Interest Technology Summer Fellowship
- Rochester Institute of Technology, Cyber-Protection Apprenticeships
- Stanford University, Public Interest Technology Internship Panel + Fair
- Stanford University, Public Interest Technology Fellowship 2022
- University of Arizona, PIT Summer Internships
- University of California, Berkeley, Fiat Justice Scholars Program
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PIT-UN 2021
Year in Review
