As employment options continue to shrink for recent college graduates, two Tufts alums are among nine recent graduates this year taking advantage of the Compton Mentor Fellowship program.
The fellowship offers a yearlong, paid research opportunity that offers youths fresh out of college the chance to pursue a project that focuses on environmental sustainability, conflict resolution and other human security issues.
The Compton Foundation selected Nadia Eghbal and Mara Gittleman, both of whom graduated in May, as two of its nine fellows this year.
"It is a great opportunity for students to pursue their academic interests in the real world after college," said Tina Woolston, project coordinator for Tufts Office of Sustainability.
Selected applicants receive a $36,000 stipend, which covers the cost of their endeavor, starting and finishing in mid-June. Each fellow also receives a primary mentor, who often shares a common field of interest and functions as both a guide and soundboard for the fellow.
Gittleman is spending her fellowship in New York working closely with the Council on the Environment of New York City (CENYC), a non-profit that spearheads "green" projects in the city. Her focus is on launching a sustainable food system in an urban area. As part of her position at CENYC, Gittleman researches and maps out local community gardens and is helping to start a farmer's market in the city.
Gittleman was thankful for the opportunity that the fellowship provided. "This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to go do anything in the world. It is my ideal job," she said.
Gittleman said that the fellowship allowed her to pursue her interest in urban agriculture, something she likely would not have had the chance to do if she had to find a job after Tufts.
"Catering to interests is not commonly found in the job market," she said. "My fellowship has created a venue for these interests. They are flexible and supportive. The foundation understands that projects change frequently."
Eghbal has spent her year so far researching the role of clean technology in industries particularly affected by climate change. Eghbal works with several non-profit organizations as well as the Center for Social Philanthropy, an organization that analyzes the lasting impact of charitable work.
Eghbal said the fellowship allowed her to apply her interest in climate change to a practical field.
"I was very pleased to take this opportunity," Eghbal said. "Many important fellowship projects start from that basic interest in the issue. There is a wide variety of areas in climate investment."
The candidates for the Compton Mentor Fellowship are chosen from a pool of 10 colleges. In addition to Tufts, students are selected from Berea College, Clark University, Furman University, Lewis and Clark College, Middlebury College, Morehouse College, Oberlin College, Princeton University and Vassar College.
Fellows are required to be U.S. citizens, to be on track to graduate in the spring of their application year and to be what the foundation refers to as a "traditional age" graduating senior.
Woolston predicted that the foundation would likely select only one Tufts graduate for the program next year because of the current economic climate.
Woolston underscored the extent to which personal appeal affects the admissions process.
"It becomes more so about the person rather than their individual project," she said. "Typically, a very interesting and driven applicant will have a very interesting and driven project. The Compton Foundation aims to look for engaged students with leadership potential, community involvement and creativity."
Both fellows lauded the sense of community that they share with the other members of the program.
"Everyone is doing different projects all over the globe. We support each other morally and trade stories of similar problems," Gittleman said. Eghbal agreed that the camaraderie between fellows is strong. She explained that the fellows meet at a retreat in mid-July in San Francisco and share an e-mail thread throughout their experience.
"We continue to update each other on our projects," Eghbal said.
Both Eghbal and Gittleman were thankful for the Office of Sustainability's active role in helping them through the application process. Both fellows received interview training from Tufts to prepare them for their interviews in April in San Francisco.
