Graduate Archer Fellowship Program

The Archer Center

Established in 2001, the Archer Center serves as the Washington, D.C. campus of The University of Texas System. Its primary mission is to prepare the next generation of leaders for local, state, federal, and international service roles. It achieves this by offering diverse experiential learning programs for undergraduate, graduate, and medical students from the University of Texas System. Their vision is to nurture leaders, both in the public and private sectors, who understand the federal policy-making process, are skilled at solving pertinent policy issues, promote civic engagement, and elevate the discourse surrounding policy and politics.

The Archer Center's guiding principles emphasize the responsibility of Archer Fellows to represent not only themselves but also their home institutions, the Archer Center, the University of Texas System, and the State of Texas. They are expected to uphold the highest standards of conduct, demonstrating integrity, character, respect, and professionalism. Furthermore, the center is committed to fostering a diverse cohort and learning environment by selecting students from various backgrounds, interests, fields of study, and political perspectives. The Center views the entire Archer Fellowship experience, from the application process to internships and networking, as unique experiential opportunities for personal, professional, and academic learning and growth.

About the Graduate Archer Fellowship program

The Graduate Archer Fellowship Program was established in 2010 by The University of Texas System to bring graduate and medical students interested in policy and politics to our nation's capital to learn about the federal government and public service. Archer Fellows live, learn, and work in the heart of Washington, D.C., during the summer semester.

Our Graduate Archer Fellows remain enrolled at UTHealth Houston and earn nine (9) hours of in-residence credit for their experience in D.C. Graduate Fellows intern full-time with an organization of their choosing based on their professional and academic goals and interests. In addition to receiving three (3) academic credits for the full-time internship, students take six (6) credit hours of courses focused on the federal policy process and work independently with experienced policy experts to develop their policy recommendations. Fellows also have an opportunity to participate in non-credit learning activities at certain monuments and museums in the nation's capital.