The Watson Fellowship uses the tagline, “What if you were dropped into your dreams?” and there is good reason for that! The Watson is a one-of-a-kind, year-long, global, experiential fellowship that is open only to seniors (of all citizenships) at select colleges and universities (including Carleton). Watson fellows spend the year following their graduation traveling the world and exploring something (through a “Watson Project”) that is of passionate interest to them. In this post, I’ll describe a bit about the fellowship and point you to resources where you can learn more.
The fellowship was established in the late 1960s through the generosity of Thomas J. Watson, who founded IBM, and has remained true to its purpose of creating opportunities for young people of “unusual promise” to travel broadly and develop themselves further as humane and effective leaders. The markers of “unusual promise” include: leadership, imagination, independence, emotional maturity, courage, integrity, resourcefulness, and responsibility. Students who are selected as fellows show these qualities at different levels and through different aspects of their background and experiences.
The Watson Project, which describes what a fellow will spend the year exploring (including where, how, and with the support of what contacts in each place), is considered a vehicle for the development of a Watson Fellow – Watson famously “invests in people, not projects.” But the way the Watson fellow envisions a project (through reflection on their deepest interests and passions, expressed through the commitments and activities they’ve given their time to), and develops a bold but feasible plan for carrying it out (through the selection of countries, making the connection between those locations and facets of the thing they are focused on) illustrate the “unusual promise” the Watson Fellowship is designed to recognize and support.
An important thing to remember is that the Watson Fellowship is not for research in any ordinary sense of that word! Watson Fellows learn in a wide variety of ways that generally fall under the scope of ‘experiential learning’ – they talk to people, do volunteer or other work in order to explore their interests, engage independently, and more! There is no product for the Watson Fellowship but the fellow’s own development.
This might all sound very abstract! But you can take a look at the sample applications of Carleton Watson Fellows (Carleton login required) for a sense of the connections people have made between the personal statement and the project statement, the two main pieces of the application. You’ll notice that some people reflected back on a variety of experiences and connected the dots to help them identify the core of their passion (a good example of this is the proposal called “Food Insecurity and Health Across the Globe”). Others started from the thing they already knew was the core of their passion, and worked backwards to connect the dots to the different ways they have shown their commitment to it (a good example of this is the proposal called “Folk Music Traditions of Endangered Languages“). In all the successful application materials, you’ll notice that the Watson Fellow made a strong connection between what interests them and the places on their itinerary. If you decide you want to apply for the Watson Fellowship, I’ll share additional resources that can help you create a strong application!
The process begins each Spring Term, with an information session held by the Watson Foundation (an announcement will go out that includes the registration link, which will also be posted at the Carleton Watson Fellowship website). Interested rising seniors request access to the Watson Portal (from me) once it opens, and that’s the official place to see the application and fill it out. Applicants work on their materials over the summer, developing their plan and making contacts, as well as consulting with me and others for feedback on their personal and project statements. An on-campus deadline falls in September, with interviews to follow. Carleton selects up to four nominees who submit finalized applications to the Watson Portal by early November and are eventually interviewed by a representative from the Watson Foundation (who is also a former fellow). Selections are announced each year on March 15th and selected fellows must depart the US by August 1.
Although the Watson Fellowship is something you can apply for only as a senior, it can be helpful – as you might guess from what I’ve described above – to learn about the opportunity earlier. If you reflect on your deepest interests and passions as a senior, but you do not have a way to ‘connect the dots’ that shows you’ve given your time to pursuing them, it will be difficult to write a compelling Watson Fellowship application. If you have given your time to your interests and passions, but you’ve never made a connection with someone who can write about that in a recommendation, it may be difficult to secure the support you need as part of the application process. Successful Watson Fellowship applications are built on a track record of following your passionate interest – so reflecting on what that interest might be as early as possible is a good idea!