2024 class California Science + Technology + Policy Fellowships
Offered by the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST), the CCST Science and Technology Policy Fellowship places professional scientists and engineers in the California State Legislature for one-year appointments. The program is designed to enable Fellows to work hands-on with policymakers in addressing complex scientific issues as well as assume all the other legislative responsibilities of full-time legislative staffers. The Legislature benefits from having the expertise of a trained Ph.D.-level scientist, who brings significant analytical, problem solving, research, and communication skills applied through the lens of the scientific method and the Fellows gain an invaluable, hands-on learning experience about the intersection of science, technology, and policy.
Building on the successful and highly acclaimed national model of the Science and Technology Policy Fellowships offered by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in the federal public policy arena, the CCST Science and Technology Policy Fellowship creates a similar interface in the California Legislature. The fellows learn the intricacies of the California legislative process and serve as fulltime legislative staff to provide recommendations, answers to technical questions, and clarification of policy options for a wide variety of issues, including those with science and technology related attributes.
Sending Scientists to Sacramento to Help Shape Smart Policies
Every year, California decision makers must make critical decisions on a number of complex and dynamic issues facing our state, such as the state’s water supply, energy grid, and public health. To help address this, the CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellows program annually recruits and trains a cohort of fifteen PhD scientists and engineers to spend one year working in Sacramento, directly serving decision makers within the California State Legislature and Executive Branch.
During their year of public service, these scientific minds get a front-row seat learning about the craft and process of policymaking in the state of California. CCST Science Fellows work alongside decision makers to evaluate complex scientific issues and interpret data, while tackling the responsibilities of full-time staffers.
The CCST Science Fellows program is a win-win for California. These talented individuals gain valuable experience and training in public policy and leadership. In turn, state decision makers are given access to science-savvy staff who can inform policy discussions with scientific perspectives and expertise.
Please explore our website to learn more about the CCST Science and Technology Fellowships and to complete the application and instructions.
For more information or to apply: https://ccst.us/ccst-science-fellows-program/
Deadline to apply: February 28, 2023