University Center for International Studies Global Studies Center
University Center for International Studies Global Studies Center

H.J. Heinz Fellowship

  1. Students
  2. Funding
  3. H.J. Heinz Fellowship

The University of Pittsburgh’s Global Studies Center awards H.J. Heinz fellowships to students from developing countries who wish to pursue a Master's degree and demonstrate potential as future leaders in the public, government, non-profit, or private sectors.

Candidates applying must meet the following criteria:

  • Applicants must have been accepted to a Master’s program (beginning the academic year for which they seek the Heinz Fellowship) in either the Graduate School of Public Health (GSPH), the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs (GSPIA), the School of Law, the School of Education, or the School of Nursing.
  • Applicants must have completed an undergraduate university degree.
  • Applicants must be proficient in speaking, reading and writing English.
  • Preference will be given to applicants at the early or mid-stages of their career.
  • The Fellowship is intended for individuals in the practitioner and policy domains. It is not awarded for basic academic research, academic sabbaticals or medical research.

Fellowship Guidelines

During the residency, the Fellow is expected to give at least one presentation on a subject related to his or her professional experience to members of the University. In addition, the Fellow is strongly encouraged to participate in community outreach activities in the region by lecturing about his or her home country to an audience of high school students or interested adults. 

Acceptance of the grant by the candidate constitutes an agreement between the grantee and the University. It is expected that, barring unforeseen emergencies, grantees will remain for the full tenure of the award. A grantee who leaves the U.S. or terminates the grant at a date earlier than that specified in the grant authorization, without consent of the University, will be required to reimburse the University for any expenditures made by the University on the grantee’s behalf. 

Upon completion of the Heinz Fellowship program, Fellows are required to submit a final report describing and evaluating the full range of their activities and experiences during the Fellowship, as well as their plans upon return to their home country. These reports are subsequently distributed to program officials at the University of Pittsburgh and to representatives at the H.J. Heinz Company Foundation. These reports will also be used as references for incoming Fellowship recipients. Upon acceptance of their final report, Fellows will receive a Heinz Program certificate from the UCIS. 

The Fellowship is a one-to-two year position. It covers support in the form of a living stipend of $19,200 (paid in monthly installments) and a $1,000 program and professional activities fund.

How to Apply

Candidates must indicate that they would like to be considered for the Heinz Fellows Program when submitting their Master’s program application. Candidates should please contact the professional school they applied to after receipt of their acceptance if they are interested in applying for the Fellowship. For more information contact Veronica Dristas.

Application Timeline

  • Master’s program application deadline: Candidates should check the deadline for the school and academic year they intend to apply to.
  • May: Winner notified
  • August 1: Fellowship year begins
  • June 30: Fellowship year ends.

See a list of our past Heinz Fellows.

Current Heinz Fellows

Born and raised in Kathmandu of Nepal, Aditi is a graduate of Development Studies from Kathmandu University and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in International Development at GSPIA, University of Pittsburgh. She worked in the media and communications sector as a correspondent and coordinator for a few years during her undergraduate degree and after graduation. She represented her country in the 9th Asia Pacific Youth Exchange in the Philippines in January 2020 and has participated and received awards in other national and international programs and competitions throughout her journey. Aditi has volunteering and internship experiences with various development organizations in Nepal and has also served as a mentor and leader in many fronts including fellowships, events, and leadership positions during her educational career. She has developed an interest in research and applied research; incorporating this with her passion for reading, writing, and traveling, she deeply aspires to make a difference in the world, especially among less privileged people and communities.

Mohammad Hassany is from Herat, Afghanistan. He started hisPh.D. program in Information Science in the Summer of 2022 at the School of Computing and Information. Mohammad got his MSc in Software Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology (Hoboken, NJ) through the Fulbright Program (2018-20). Since 2010, he has worked as a software engineer for private companies and the Afghanistan government. He also has a few years of experience teaching computer programming at private and public universities in Afghanistan.

Seyed Hamid Hashemi received his Bachelor's degree from Dunya University and an LLM in International Law from Wuhan University. After his studies at Wuhan, Hamid studied at the Paris International Academy for Arbitration Law and completed a course at The Hague Academy of International Law. He competed in Vis Moot competitions and served as a coach as well. Hamid worked as Head of Legal Affairs, Policy and Dispute Resolution at the International Chamber of Commerce in Afghanistan.

Abdelrahman ElGendy is a writer and former Egyptian political prisoner. Arrested from a protest in Cairo, he spent six years and three months behind bars between October 6, 2013, and January 13, 2020. Incarcerated at 17 and released at 24, he started and earned a mechanical engineering BSc from Ain Shams University in Egypt while in prison. His smuggled prison writings circulated online until picked up and published in 2018 by Mada Masr, an independent journalism platform in Egypt.   Since his release, he has turned to writing and advocacy work. His vision as a dissident writer has been to utilize counter-narratives of the marginalized and oppressed as a form of resistance to state propaganda, with a focus on advocating for the release of Egyptian political prisoners.   ElGendy currently pursues an MFA in Creative Writing, nonfiction track, at the University of Pittsburgh, working on a book project that explores the topic of political incarceration and the visceral experiences prisoners undergo in prison through his personal narratives about the world behind bars. He aims to stir a powerful enough conversation to impact the political situation in Egypt, and create a documentation that serves as a testimony and reference for this period in Egyptian history.   ElGendy’s writing is featured on Mada Masr, Raseef 22, Daraj Media, AlManassa, Newlines Magazine and the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy; and was a Logan Nonfiction 2021 fellow as a dissident writer. He is also the head writer and editor of the Leading Change Network NGO  

Yaroslav Petrenko is from Kyiv, Ukraine. He holds a Master's degree from the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv and is currently pursuing an LLM degree at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Law. He will focus his studies on international law and dispute resolution.     Yaroslav has 7 years of experience in litigation and arbitration, representing private companies, public organizations, NGO’s, and members of parliament in high-profile cases. Yaroslav worked as a senior associate at a private law firm and as a clerk at a Ukrainian court; therefore, he is familiar with the Ukrainian court system from both sides of the bench.