application

IAPS AI Policy Fellowship

Fully-funded fellowship from the Institute for AI Policy and Strategy for professionals from varied backgrounds who want practical AI policy skills.

From the site: The IAPS AI Policy Fellowship is a fully-funded program for professionals from varied backgrounds seeking to strengthen practical policy skills for securing a positive future in a world with powerful AI.

Why I recommend it: Free to apply and funded if accepted, and it is explicitly open to career changers rather than only policy insiders. Check the current cohort dates before you plan around it.

SEO Career Program — Application FAQ

Sponsors for Educational Opportunity's answers on who qualifies, what the application asks for and how the interview process runs for its free career program for underrepresented students.

From the site: SEO USA CAREER | Apply & FAQ | An internship with SEO Career can change your life. Find out if you qualify and apply.

Why I recommend it: Read the FAQ before the application form — it tells you what the interview actually tests, which is not what the form implies.

Vals AI Fellowship

A fellowship with Vals AI, the team that benchmarks how AI models actually perform, for people who want to work on model evaluation.

Why I recommend it: Evaluation work is where a lot of AI hiring is heading — careful, skeptical people do well here even without a PhD.

Amplify Writing Fellowship

A fellowship from Amplify Partners for people who write well about technology, supporting a body of published work rather than a job.

Why I recommend it: Writing in public is still the cheapest career leverage there is — a fellowship that pays for it is rare, so take it seriously.

Perplexity Research Residency

A residency at Perplexity for people who want to do applied AI research on a working product rather than in a lab.

Why I recommend it: A residency is the friendliest door into research — you are paid to learn on a real team instead of needing the credential first.

a16z FDE Fellowship

A fellowship from a16z for aspiring forward-deployed engineers — people who sit with customers and build software directly against their problems.

Why I recommend it: The forward-deployed engineer role is one of the fastest-growing job titles in AI — this is a paid-attention way in before the market floods.

Listen Future Founder Program

A program from Listen Labs for people who want to start a company: you work on a real idea with support from the Listen team, with no cost to take part.

Why I recommend it: Apply if you already have a company idea you keep coming back to — programs like this reward a specific problem over a polished resume.

DoorDash AI Research Fellowship (Summer & Fall 2026)

A paid AI research fellowship at DoorDash for summer and fall 2026, working on machine learning problems inside a large operating business.

Why I recommend it: Applied AI inside a logistics company teaches you constraints a lab never will — and the posting names its terms up front, which is a good sign.

CITRIS Tech Policy Working Group — Fall 2026 application

Application to join UC Berkeley CITRIS's Tech Policy Working Group: research lab-style weekly meetings, lightning talks, skill-building workshops, and an end-of-semester showcase for students working on a technology policy problem. Applications close 11:59 PM Friday, September 18, 2026.

Why I recommend it: No policy coursework required, and the deadline is September 18. Built for Berkeley students, but they invite others to email — worth one message if you want real policy research on your resume.