Judicial Fellowship Program 2025-26 by International Court of Justice (ICJ)

Get latest opportunities in your email

About Judicial Fellowship Program

Judicial Fellows work full-time alongside a Member of the Court’s primary legal assistant under the supervision of a Member of the Court. Fellows should anticipate to undertake research and produce memorandums on problems of law or fact pertaining to cases pending before the Court, as well as attend hearings and sittings and perform any other duties that their respective judges may assign to them.

The fellowship lasts about 10 months, from early September to June of the following year. The Court usually chooses 15 participants from institutions all over the world.

The Court is currently welcoming applications from eligible universities worldwide for the 2025-2026 edition of the programme.

The deadline for the submission of applications is 5 February 2025. All applications must be completed by this deadline. The Court expects to make its final decision on the selection of candidates by April 2025. Selected candidates will be informed accordingly by their nominating university.

• Sponsor Organisation: International Court of Justice

Benefits of Judicial Fellowship Program

Trust Fund

The trust fund will award fellowships to chosen applicants who are legitimate citizens of developing countries and attend institutions in developing countries beginning with the intake and selection process in 2025, enhancing and ensuring the geographic and linguistic diversity of the Program’s participants.

Judicial Fellowship Program Requirements

In making its selection, the Court seeks candidates of diverse nationalities.

• To be eligible, candidates should be 31 years old or younger at the start of their fellowship. This requirement may be waived only in special circumstances.
• Candidates must demonstrate excellent results in their legal studies, and an interest in public international law through their studies, publications and/or work experience.
• Candidates must have an excellent command, both written and orally, of at least one of the two official languages of the Court (English and French); a working knowledge of the other language is considered an asset.

Only universities can nominate candidates. The Court does not accept applications from individuals. While it is possible to nominate a single candidate, the Court encourages universities to propose more than one nominee.

Application Date and Process

How to nominate candidates

An online pre-screening questionnaire must be completed by the nominating university, which must also designate an authorized focal point through whom all application materials will be submitted.

Following completion of the questionnaire, the focal point will receive a confirmation email containing further application instructions, the ICJ personal history form and the candidate profile summary table.

The following six documents must be submitted for each candidate via the email address of the university’s focal point, in the order below:

1. Official letter of nomination from the university
2. ICJ personal history form
3. Letters of reference
4. Official academic records
5. Writing sample
6. Candidate profile summary table

In case of questions about the documents to be submitted, please consult the FAQ page for the Judicial Fellowship Programme and Trust Fund. 

Application Deadline

05 February, 2025

Scholarship Application Portal

View details of Judicial Fellowship Program

Apply for Judicial Fellowship Program