Boston Summer Fellowship: Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics (MONUM)

The Initiative on Cities (IOC) Fellowship awards one Boston University graduate student the opportunity to spend the summer working with the City of Boston within the Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics (MONUM). This fellow will have the opportunity to explore an interest in public service and civic innovation while positively impacting the surrounding community.

The BU MONUM fellow will work with a larger cohort of MONUM summer fellows to implement creative and thoughtful new prototypes and experiments to benefit the residents of Boston. The fellow will also participate in professional development opportunities to get a broad view of careers in City government.

The Office of New Urban Mechanics is Boston’s civic innovation team, responsible for promoting participatory urbanism, more intelligent city infrastructure, and innovative service delivery. They are the catalyst and clearing house for civic innovation projects involving the City of Boston and their partners, from residents and community groups to universities, companies, and other government agencies.

Read about the experiences of past summer fellows here. 

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Summer 2024 Fellowship Information

Please note, applications for summer 2024 have closed. Please check back in late fall 2024 for future updates. 

The IOC Boston Fellow will be awarded approximately $7,000 stipend for an eight-week summer fellowship (35 hours per week) beginning in early June. Please note that this fellowship is based in Boston. 

Qualifications & Eligibility

  • Applicants must be in good standing with Boston University and enrolled as a full or part-time graduate student at Boston University during the Spring 2024 semester. 
  • Graduate students from any academic discipline or background are eligible to apply. There is no specific skill set required.
  • Passion for public service and local government is a must.

How to Apply & Timeline

Please note, applications for summer 2024 have closed. Please check back in late fall 2024 for future updates. 

Responsibilities/Terms of Award

  • Fellow will work a minimum of 35 hours per week for the entire eight weeks.
  • Fellow must complete a reflection piece by August 30, 2024, highlighting the project(s) they worked on throughout the summer. This piece should emphasize the Fellow’s core focus for the summer, their project’s impact, their experience, and any lessons learned. They are encouraged to incorporate interactive elements, including video and photography. This reflection will be shared on the IOC website.

Questions

If you have any questions, please contact IOC MetroBridge Program Manager David Gross at davgross@bu.edu.