Program overview
"This is the best learning experience I have ever engaged in and I recommend it with no hesitation. Being in a community of scholars who are interested in ethics...has been truly inspiring and has re-ignited my enthusiasm for law school."
—Maria Sevilla, Georgetown University
"This program pushed me and forced me to reconsider issues I had taken for granted before. It reminded me that ethics are not a list of rules you can memorize, but rather a matter for continual thought and evaluation."
—Megan Camm, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
FASPE covers all student expenses, including food, transatlantic and European travel, and lodging. Piloted initially with two programs in the summer of 2010, FASPE will host five application-based programs in the summer of 2017: business, journalism, law, medical, and seminary.
FASPE programs run for twelve days. While the workshops, seminars, and site visits vary with each trip, they generally follow this outline:
Fellows and faculty meet in Berlin for welcome and orientation.
Fellows stay in Berlin for 4-5 days to visit and study the city's historical and cultural sites. Educational workshops take place at such locations as the House of the Wannsee Conference, where in 1942, representatives of State and Nazi Party agencies convened to discuss and coordinate plans for the "Final Solution."
Fellows travel to Oświęcim, Poland, the town the Germans called Auschwitz, where they tour Auschwitz-Birkenau and work with the distinguished staff at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum.
Fellows also travel to Krakow where they explore the city's rich Jewish, Catholic, and Polish history. Sessions devoted to contemporary ethics take place in seminar rooms at Auschwitz and at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, one of Europe's oldest and most prestigious universities.
After the trip's completion, each participant submits a final written product focused on a contemporary ethical issue chosen by the Fellow. Some of these are included in an annual journal of essays published by FASPE.
Fellows have described FASPE as "inspiring," "insightful," and "life changing."
Eligibility Requirements for 2017 FASPE Programs
Business:
Business applicants must either be enrolled in an MBA or MSC program at the time of their application or have completed their MBA or MSC between January 2015 and January 2017. FASPE seeks applicants who are interested in corporate careers.
Journalism:
Journalism applicants must be interested in journalism as a career. They must fit into one of the following two categories: 1) enrolled in a graduate program of any kind and planning to work as a journalist; 2) working as a journalist with an undergraduate degree received between May 2012 and May 2016 or a graduate degree received between May 2015 and January 2017.
Law:
Law applicants must either be enrolled in a JD or LLM program at the time of their application or have received a JD or LLM between May 2016 and January 2017. FASPE seeks students who are interested in working as practicing attorneys, although applicants who have a JD or LLM degree and are planning an academic career are also eligible. FASPE is interested in applications from students with a wide range of legal interests including, among others: corporate law, constitutional law, criminal law, environmental law, international law, public interest law, real estate law, securities law, and tax law. FASPE has a particular interest in working with students who expect to work as litigators.
Medical:
Medical applicants must be enrolled in an MD or DO program at the time of their application or must have an MD or DO and be working towards a subsequent degree.
Seminary:
Applicants to FASPE Seminary must either be enrolled in graduate school preparing for work as a religious leader at the time of application or they must be working as clergy with an MDiv degree received between January 2015 and January 2017. Students may be studying in a seminary, divinity school, or other graduate program. FASPE generally seeks students who are preparing for pastoral careers, but is also interested in working with students on academic tracks.
FASPE programs are non-denominational. Candidates of all religious, ethnic, cultural, and national backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
The FASPE application includes these items:
- A completed online information form (see link below)
- The following supplemental materials:
- Short essays (250 – 400 words each) in response to four questions. (See links to the right or below.)
- Resume that includes information on employment and educational history.
- Transcripts from all institutions of higher education attended, including the current institution if applicable.
- Two letters of recommendation from academic faculty. (For applicants who have already graduated, letters from supervisors or employers are also acceptable.)
Additional details on each of the above items are provided below.
Please read through all of the instructions before beginning the application process and make sure to include your name at the top of your short essays document and resume and to follow the instructions below on how to format and name your documents. Please also note that applications materials cannot be returned.
All supplemental materials (short essays, resume, transcripts, and letters of recommendation) should be submitted in pdf format to applications@FASPE.info.
(Instructions for sending applications by regular mail are included below, but electronic submissions are highly preferred.)
Application Process in Detail
Online Form Description:
The online form takes approximately 10 minutes to complete and must be completed in one session. You will not be able to save the form part-way through the process and return to it later. In order to complete the online form, you will need the names and contact information for the two individuals writing your letters of recommendation, as well as the names of two additional individuals who can serve as personal/work references. (Those providing personal/work references do not need to submit a letter on your behalf, but we may contact them at some point during the application process.)
Step-by-Step Application Instructions:
1. Choose the program that fits your current course of study or profession and complete the appropriate online application:
- FASPE Business
Sunday, May 21, 2017 – Friday, June 2, 2017
(Fellows are expected to arrive in Europe by Saturday, May 20, 2017)
- FASPE Journalism
Sunday, May 21, 2017 – Friday, June 2, 2017
(Fellows are expected to arrive in Europe by Saturday, May 20, 2017)
- FASPE Law
Sunday, May 21, 2017 – Friday, June 2, 2017
(Fellows are expected to arrive in Europe by Saturday, May 20, 2017)
- FASPE Medical
Monday, June 19, 2017 – Friday, June 30, 2017
(Fellows are expected to arrive in Europe by Sunday, June 18, 2017)
- FASPE Seminary
Monday, June 19, 2017 – Friday, June 30, 2017
(Fellows are expected to arrive in Europe by Sunday, June 18, 2017)
2. Once you have filled out the online form, please submit the supplemental materials listed below to applications@FASPE.info. All supplemental materials must be submitted in pdf format.
Resume: Your resume should include your educational and employment history, along with any honors, awards, and publications.
Transcripts: We require transcripts from all institutions of higher education where you spent significant time. (There is no need to send transcripts from a semester abroad or for a single summer course.) You may send official transcripts, or your own scanned copies (preferred) of the official transcripts. Printouts and screen shots of online transcripts are notacceptable. If you are in your first year of a program and are unable to submit a transcript because you do not have any grades yet reported, please submit a letter from your dean confirming your enrollment in your degree program and, ideally, including a list of classes currently being taken. Note that school admission letters as well as letters from your registrar that do not include your degree program are not acceptable as proof of enrollment.
Short Essay Questions: For this portion of the application, you will be asked to answer 4 questions specific to your chosen profession and the FASPE program to which you are applying. Questions center on what you hope to gain from the fellowship, how your experiences and academic work will enable you to enrich program discussions, what your career interests and aspirations are, what professional ethical dilemmas you have faced or expect to face in the future, and what shaped your response or would shape your response to such dilemmas. Your answer to each question should be approximately 250 – 400 words long. Submit ONE single PDF document that includes all the questions along with each answer, as well as your name on every page.
Letters of Recommendation
Two letters of recommendation from academic faculty are required. We prefer letters from academic faculty that have taught you in your current or most recent graduate program, although we will also accept letters from previous graduate education or from your undergraduate career. For early-career professionals applying to the Business, Journalism, Law, or Seminary programs, these letters may also come from a supervisor or other employer. If submitted by email, these letters must be submitted by your recommender and should be submitted in pdf format. (The two personal/work references listed on your online form should not submit a letter.)
FASPE applicants should contact their own recommenders to solicit letters. If your recommenders seek guidance on what to include in their letters, please convey that we are looking for the following:
- A discussion of any of your academic work and/or work or other experiences that would enrich this program with its focus on contemporary professional ethics;
- Information about how actively you participate in class discussions and/or an assessment of your verbal and written expression;
- Details about how you have reacted in emotionally and intellectually intense classroom exchanges or work experiences.
Please do NOT submit any additional application materials. Unsolicited materials will not be reviewed.
For FASPE Medical and Seminary applications: ALL MATERIALS MUST BE RECEIVED BY TUESDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2016 TO BE CONSIDERED.
For FASPE Journalism applications: ALL MATERIALS MUST BE RECEIVED BY THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017 TO BE CONSIDERED.
For FASPE Business and Law applications: ALL MATERIALS MUST BE RECEIVED BY THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2017 TO BE CONSIDERED.
You can submit supplemental materials either electronically (highly preferred) or via regular mail.
Instructions for electronic submissions
- Email your resume, transcripts, and essay questions as separate attachments (in PDF format) via email. (If the files are very large, you may submit these materials in separate, consecutive emails, but ONE email is highly preferred.)
- The subject line of your email should be formatted as follows: Last Name - First Name - Program (example: Smith - John - Seminary)
- Attached documents should be labeled as follows: Last Name - First Name - Submission (example: Smith - John - Essay OR Smith - John - Transcript BA)
- Please submit your application materials to applications@FASPE.info.
- For your letters of recommendation: Please have your recommenders email their letters to applications@FASPE.info. All letters of recommendation must also arrive by the deadline for the program to which you are applying (December 20, 2016 for Seminary and Medical applicants; January 5, 2017 for Journalism applicants; and January 12, 2017 for Business and Law applicants).
Instructions for submissions by regular mail:
Mail hard copies of your resume, transcripts, and essay to:
Thorin Tritter, Ph.D.
Executive Director, FASPE
Edmond J. Safra Plaza
36 Battery Place
New York, NY 10280
Recommenders sending letters of recommendation by regular mail should also mail their letters to this address.
Application materials sent by regular mail must be received by the following deadlines to be considered:
- For FASPE Seminary and Medical applications: TUESDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2016
- For FASPE Journalism applications: THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017
- For FASPE Business and Law applications: THURSDAY, January 12, 2017
Thank you for your interest in FASPE. We look forward to receiving your application. If you have any questions regarding the application process, please email Thorin Tritter at ttritter@FASPE.info.
Please note: Due to the high volume of applications submitted, we regret that we cannot respond personally to each application submitted. If there are any problems with your application, we will get in touch with you.
For more information click "Further official information" below.