Theater Arts Fellows Program

 

The application period for the Hiatt Theater Arts Fellows Program is now closed. 

Selected students click here.

Receive financial support to explore your career interests, hone your skills, and learn from professionals in theater-related fields.

Through a generous gift from the Laurie Foundation, the Brandeis University Hiatt Career Center will administer a competitive application process to provide $3,000 individual awards to support 7-8 undergraduate students in unpaid theater-related training and internships during summer, 2009.  The program removes financial barriers so that Brandeis undergraduates can participate in career exploration through meaningful "real-world" experiences.

Program Parameters

  • Unpaid internships in any aspect of the field of theater will be considered.

  • Internships must be undertaken through: a theater-related training program, theater-related organization in the private or public sector, or Brandeis faculty-led theater-related experiential curriculum.

  • Awards are $3,000 each.

  • Hiatt will begin accepting applications on March 23, 2009; the deadline for completed applications is 12:00 noon on April 21, 2009.

  • Programs must take place during the summer, 2009.

Eligibility

  • Applicants must be current Brandeis University first-years, sophomores, and juniors in good academic and judicial standing.

Requirements

  • Internships must be unpaid and take place during summer, 2009.

  • Applicants must have secured the actual internship offer, invitation, or approved faculty-lead curriculum plan at the time of application.

  • Internships must be full time experiences: theater-based professional training programs (ordinarily 6-12 weeks long), theater-related organizational internships (minimum 8 weeks), Brandeis faculty-led curriculum plan (minimum 8 weeks).

  • Fellows will create a report or project describing their activities upon completion of the summer experience.

  • The Program will also fund an on-campus event to showcase the work of the Fellows upon return in fall, 2009

Application Materials - a complete application consists of:

  • On-line electronic application

  • One of the following:

    • For a professional theater training program - letter of acceptance into the program
    • For an internship at a theater-related organization - letter of invitation outlining the scope of your responsibilities and the dates of your work
    • For a Brandeis-faculty led experiential curriculum plan - a letter from the faculty member approving and outlining the plan for which he or she will supervise you

  • Two letters of recommendation (at least one from a Brandeis faculty member in a theater-related field)

  • Resume

  • Transcript

Students Studying Abroad

Students studying abroad during the spring semester can apply to the Hiatt Theater Arts Fellows Program, and are subject to the same deadlines.  Please note the following directions:

  • Fill out on-line application
  • Send as attachements in ONE e-mail:
  1. (one of the following:) letter of acceptance into a professional theater training program, letter of invitation to pursue an internship at a theater-related organization, or Brandeis-faculty led experiential curriculum plan
  2. transcript (download from SAGE)
  3. resume
  • Recommendations: ask your recommenders to e-mail your recommendations to the Hiatt contact person (name and address directly below)
  • Contact at the Hiatt Career Center: Jane Pavese, Assistant Director of Career Counseling, Hiatt Career Center (jpavese@brandeis.edu), e-mail subject line: Theater Arts Fellows Program

Calendar

  • Electronic Application goes live: March 23, 2009

  • Application (all materials) due at Hiatt Career Center: April 21, 2009, 12:00 noon

  • Notification: by April 30, 2009

Selection Criteria

The selection committee will evaluate your application on its overall strength, clarity, and effectiveness according to the following criteria.  You may want to keep these in mind when creating your application:

Application Essays demonstrate:
  • strong interest in the proposed theater-related field
  • how the experience will be useful in career exploration
  • clear, realistic, and measurable learning goals for the experience
Internship or Program “Invitation” (one of the following: letter of admission to a training program, letter of offer to work at a theater-related organization, or Brandeis faculty-led theater-related curriculum plan) demonstrates:
  • the proposed experience will be supervised and mentored
  • specific time period, location, and responsibilities and activities
  • the proposed experience will meet the student’s specific learning goals
Preparedness for the Experience is indicated by:
  • student’s ability to undertake the experience through, for example, past work or training, academic classes, research, and/or faculty mentoring
  • solid understanding of the field and responsibilities/activities involved in the experience
  • maturity and a strong sense of the responsibility and independence involved in accepting the offer and executing the project
Connecting Student Goals and Host Organization through:
  • the match between the student’s specific goals and the proposed experience site and/or plan
  • the experiential organization’s ability to take an active mentoring role in meeting the student’s learning goals