The Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity programme is a transformative experience that emphasizes learning, connection, and reflection. For both our Residential Fellows and our Non-Residential Fellows, the fellowship journey begins with an immersive year at the London School of Economics and Political Science, centered around key learning Modules. It is an intense and demanding year that requires full commitment from Fellows as they join a community that helps to support, challenge, and deepen their learning and practice.
Our fellowship programme offers two tracks: Residential and Non-Residential. Participants in both tracks participate in rigorous academic coursework, leadership and skills development, and practical approaches to fostering social change.
RESIDENTIAL AND NON-RESIDENTIAL TRACKS
Residential Track
Residential Fellows undertake a full-time, one-year MSc in Inequalities and Social Science at LSE, in addition to participating in the bespoke AFSEE Modules. This is why the Residential track is only suitable for people who are able to dedicate themselves to full-time study for a full academic year.
Residential Fellows are required to relocate to London for the duration of the MSc programme. For the 2024-25 cohort, Residential Fellows will be expected to be resident in London from September 2024.
The MSc in Inequalities and Social Science is a comprehensive, interdisciplinary, and wide-ranging programme that draws on expertise from leading academics in LSE departments including Sociology, Social Policy, Media and Communications, Economics, Gender, Government, and Methodology. Its core course provides a strong grounding in the study, measurement, and structures of inequalities. Additional elective courses, suited to a broad range of interests, are offered.
Overall, the Residential track of the AFSEE programme provides an intensive learning experience centered on building rigorous, interdisciplinary knowledge of inequalities and research skills. Residential Fellows will focus on improving their understanding and knowledge base in order to go on to lead advances in solutions to inequalities. Residential Fellows are expected to arrive with a clear agenda and plan for applying the knowledge and research skills they will gain through their participation in an immersive academic experience.
AFSEE MODULES
Residential Fellows in the 2024-25 programme will participate in four AFSEE Modules, alongside Non-Residential Fellows.
- Module 1 will take place 10-20 September 2024 (London)
- Module 2 will take place 24-28 February 2025 (online)
- Module 3 will take place 23-27 June 2025 (London)
- Module 4 will take place 30 June – 4 July 2025 (London)
SUPPORT AND FUNDING
Residential Fellows receive support from a dedicated LSE academic mentor, from the AFSEE Academic Lead through monthly meetings and regular check-ins, with further opportunities for engagement offered throughout the year.
The Residential track of the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity programme is fully-funded. The AFSEE programme covers full tuition fees for the MSc Inequalities and Social Science course, travel to and from London at the beginning and end of the active fellowship year, and any visa and immigration-related costs. All Residential Fellows will also receive a £23,000 stipend to cover living costs while in London.
AFSEE also has various avenues of additional support and funding to ensure that once accepted, there are no barriers for Fellows to fully participate in the programme. Residential Fellows will have full access to LSE’s Disability and Wellbeing Service team, which works with students with disabilities to ensure appropriate support and adjustments are in place. AFSEE also has a Family Care Support Fund and Resilience Support Fund available for Residential Fellows under certain circumstances.
LIFELONG FELLOWSHIP
After completing the active fellowship year, Fellows from both tracks join a lifelong fellowship community made up of members of all seven Atlantic Fellows programmes worldwide and receive ongoing support to learn, connect, and collaborate.
Non-Residential Track
Non-Residential Fellows are offered a unique opportunity to investigate inequalities over a period of 12 months via a set of distinct, comprehensive AFSEE Modules, and practice-based project work. After successfully completing the active fellowship year, they are awarded a Postgraduate Certificate in Social and Economic Equity.
Non-Residential Fellows remain based in their home and professional environments, and travel to attend in-person Modules. Because of the reduced time and location commitment, this fellowship track is ideal for applicants who are unable to take a full year off from their work. However, they will be expected to commit time (around five hours per week) in addition to their Module commitments, for reading, coursework, and project work.
PROJECT WORK
Non-residential fellows undertake a project that aims to offer a new insight, challenge, or solution to inequalities that are central to Fellows’ future social-change agendas.
Carried out through independent study, the project is a substantial piece of written or practical work that allows Fellows to showcase their own approaches and methods for social change and detail how these can be successfully applied.
POSTGRADUATE CERTIFICATE IN SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC EQUITY
From the 2024/25 academic year onwards, Non-Residential Fellows will be awarded a Postgraduate Certificate in Social and Economic Equity upon successful completion of the active fellowship year. The Postgraduate is a pass/fail programme, which means that Fellows will have to pass various assessments (blog post, policy brief, and a power-mapping exercise) in addition to attending all the Modules and delivering the practice-focused project at the end of their active fellowship year.
The qualification is awarded by the London School of Economics and Political Science, and it is an internationally recognized certificate that is the credit equivalent of half of a master’s degree.
AFSEE MODULES
Non-Residential Fellows in the 2024-25 programme will participate in four AFSEE Modules, alongside Residential Fellows.
- Module 1 will take place 10-20 September 2024 (London)
- Module 2 will take place 24-28 February 2025 (online)
- Module 3 will take place 23-27 June 2025 (London)
- Module 4 will take place 30 June – 4 July 2025 (London)
SUPPORT AND FUNDING
Each Non-Residential Fellow receives support from a dedicated mentor who has been selected for expertise and experience in the Fellow’s area of focus.
The Non-Residential track of the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity programme is fully-funded. AFSEE programme covers the cost of the Postgraduate Certificate; all expenses related to travel to and from modules, accommodation and related costs during modules, and any visa fees. All Non-Residential Fellows will also receive up to a £10,000 grant to support the execution of their fellowship project.
AFSEE also has various avenues of additional support and funding to ensure that once accepted, there are no barriers for Fellows to fully participate in the programme. AFSEE has a Connectivity Fund, designed to support Non-Residential Fellows who may otherwise have issues participating in the fellowship, in particular, Fellows who have issues around internet connectivity and access. AFSEE will also provide support to Non-Residential Fellows with disabilities, working with individual Fellows to meet their needs. Additionally, AFSEE has a Family Care Support Fund and Resilience Support Fund available for Non-Residential Fellows under certain circumstances.
LIFELONG FELLOWSHIP
After completing the active fellowship year, Fellows from both tracks join a lifelong fellowship community made up of members of all seven Atlantic Fellows programmes worldwide and receive ongoing support to learn, connect and collaborate.
SELECTION AND ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
It is the Fellows themselves who make this fellowship experience so powerful. The knowledge and expertise lived experience, passion, commitment, and care that they bring to the global fellowship community are what make it so transformative.
We are working to build a cohort that reflects diverse perspectives and experiences, with a majority of our Fellows coming from the Global South. We look for a range of characteristics in our Fellows, in addition to their alignment with the fellowship offering and our values (fairness, commitment, curiosity, kindness, and courage).
We are especially keen to support applicants:
- Who live in the Global South (in particular Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Caribbean), although this factor will never be considered in isolation.
- Who do not otherwise have the resources to finance their participation in activities such as these, especially people from the Global South.
- Who has not already had significant access to fellowships or scholarships.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Applicants to the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity programme must be able to demonstrate their ability to meet the following eligibility criteria.
RESIDENTIAL FELLOWS
- Applicants must qualify for admission to the London School of Economics MSc in Inequalities and Social Science. These requirements include a 2:1 degree or equivalent in any discipline. A background in social science and/or work experience in the social policy field is advantageous but not essential. Please refer to the LSE website for full details.
- Applicants must meet LSE’s standard English Language Requirement.
- Applicants must have at least 7 years of experience demonstrating courage, care, leadership, and commitment in advancing equitable solutions to inequality.
Note: Applicants who have attained a PhD, who have completed an MSc within the past three years, or who are currently studying for a degree, will not normally be considered for the Residential track.
NON-RESIDENTIAL FELLOWS
- For the Non-Residential track, we aim to be inclusive and to encourage applications from non-traditional applicants. We therefore welcome applications from both those applicants who hold an undergraduate degree (2:2 and above) and those who do not hold an undergraduate degree.
- Applicants must meet LSE’s standard English Language Requirement.
- Applicants must have at least 7 years of experience demonstrating courage, care, leadership, and commitment in advancing equitable solutions to inequality.
SELECTION CRITERIA
Your application should give us a clear idea of you, your values, and your work, in relation to the following criteria:
EXPERIENCE
- Deep commitment to social change, backed by at least seven years of substantive real-world experience in challenging inequalities in policy-making, research, movement-building, activism, or related settings. The fellowship has no lower or upper age limits but rather focuses on experience.
CLARITY OF VISION AND FUTURE IMPACT
- Innovative ideas, a clear sense of purpose, the courage to pursue lasting and meaningful change, and a plan for using the learning offered by the programme to produce real future impact, through an idea for a dissertation or project.
- Readiness to evolve and develop as a leader in ways that embrace and advance the principles of social and economic equity, and their practice.
- Potential to be instrumental in shaping an inspiring vision, direction, and agenda for social change in specific geographies, fields, professions, and beyond.
COMMITMENT AND READINESS
- Interest in learning from and engaging with different perspectives and experiences from across a range of contexts, and a willingness to navigate the challenges and opportunities inherent in complexity and diversity.
- Openness to fully engage with the whole Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity learning journey, including the intellectual and personal transformation this process entails.
- Willingness to actively contribute to a sustained peer-led, values-driven community.
- Commitment to work with and support others in achieving individual and collective impact.
FOR RESIDENTIAL FELLOWS ONLY
- Ability to make a compelling case for how undertaking and successfully completing the MSc in Inequalities and Social Science will make a contribution to the applicant’s social change agenda.
- A focused agenda and plan to use the knowledge and skills gained from the MSc in Inequalities and Social Science.
FOR NON-RESIDENTIAL FELLOWS ONLY
- A plan for a clear and achievable project, to be undertaken during the course of the fellowship, that challenges structural inequality. The project will seek to advance understanding of challenges to inequalities.