At GRI, we have a motto – Abandon the Middle. Abandon that safe place in which you’ve been living, get off the fence, do something about what you say you care about. If you find yourself wanting to abandon the middle, we invite you to join our Global Fellowship program. GRI offers 3- and 5-month fellowships in our overseas offices and projects.

GRI Global Fellowships are intended to expose motivated and mature participants to the hurting world in which we live, to give them training and experience in serving with a humanitarian aid organization, and to provide GRI with exceptional staff.  Fellows will obtain experience in both the day to day work of a relief organization and in field work. Prospective fellows will apply for a specific position, and they will serve in that role for the duration of their fellowship. Global fellowships are also the primary way GRI recruits full-time field staff.

Some Specifics
Fellows will work directly with GRI field leaders. In some cases fellows will work in an office setting. Each class of fellows will report to a domestic GRI office on the starting date of their term for a two-day orientation period. Fellows will then depart directly for their host field office. Additional field orientation will be provided by GRI field leaders in the country of service.

Mid-way through their term, fellows will meet with field leaders for a time of assessment and encouragement. Each fellow will have a few days of vacation at this time. At the end of their terms, fellows will have a day of field debriefing with field leaders.   Then all fellows will return to a domestic GRI office for two days of debriefing, follow-up, and discussion of next steps.

Three-month fellowships will be for those having significant experience in the international aid/NGO world or in cross-cultural ministry. Five-month fellowships are the preferred length, and will be required of anyone with little or no experience in this line of work or in cross-cultural service.

Qualifications and Requirements of Fellows
Medical: Medical fellows must be licensed medical professionals, including: doctors, nurses (LPN and RN), physician’s assistants, nurse practitioners, physical therapists or have obtained a graduate level degree in public health.  In many situations, medical fellows will be involved in training of indigenous medics.

Counseling:  Counseling fellows must be licensed counselors preferably with some experience in trauma counseling.

Operations: GRI requires all operations fellows to have a bachelor’s degree or equivalent of at least 2 years of operations experience, and must possess leadership skills.

All applicants must: be self-motivated and possess initiative; be able to work long hours; be willing to live in difficult living conditions; be teachable; be able to work well in groups and alone; speak and write in English; be proficient in Microsoft Office; possess excellent organizational, reporting, and research skills; be detail-oriented; be able to communicate and interact well with people of different cultural and socio-economic backgrounds; be a good steward of resources; possess a strong work ethic; and demonstrate ethical maturity.

Selection criteria:
While previous cross-cultural experience is not a must, it is considered in the selection process. Course of study in college/graduate school, relevant work experience, and volunteer experience is also considered.

Logistical and Administrative Details:
Travel and expenses: In-country housing and stipends will be provided depending upon country of service.

Fellows should anticipate not returning to the United States during the fellowship period. Visitors from home are allowed at the discretion of field leadership.

Pre-field Preparation:
Once accepted into the Global Fellowship program, GRI will provide fellows with reference materials, site-specific briefing packets, and other information, including travel document (passport and visa) requirements; immunization recommendations; and packing lists.

Application process:
Applicants are asked to fill out the GRI Global Fellowship Application, Legal Waiver, Medical Questionnaire and have three references completed and sent directly to GRI. Once the above documents are received by GRI, a formal interview will be scheduled. Applicants will be told whether or not they are accepted to the program within two weeks of completion of the formal interview. Applications are considered on a rolling basis. GRI works diligently to honor a candidate’s requested field assignment location, but reserves the right to place that candidate where needed most.

The application forms are available for download on this page. Applicants may fill out the application electronically or by hand. Applicants may email the reference forms to references or deliver by hard copy. All electronic submissions should be sent to Attn: Global Fellowships at fellowships@globalrefuge.org. Paper copies of documents should be mailed to:

Global Refuge International
Attn: Global Fellowships
P.O. Box 741208
Arvada, CO 80006.