RCLS Student Scholars 2025-2026 Program Applications Now Open
The Reiss Center on Law and Security is currently accepting applications for its cohort of Student Scholars for the 2025-2026 academic year. Rising 2L and 3L students at NYU School of Law are eligible to apply.
Reiss Center Student Scholars serve as integral members of the Reiss Center and its community of renowned scholars and practitioners, contributing research to the Center’s publications and programming. Student Scholars will also work with the editors of the online forum Just Security as Student Staff Editors.
The Student Scholars program will appeal to students interested in careers in national security and foreign policy, whether in government, private sector, non-profit or other settings. Research opportunities and programmatic activities touch on areas such as constitutional law, U.S. foreign relations law, international humanitarian and human rights law, civil liberties, and related policy topics.
In past years, Reiss Center Student Scholars have:
- Contributed to an award-winning open-source platformon war powers, as well as other original research;
- Helped shape and prepare the topics and substance of the Reiss Center’s far-ranging and popular programming;
- Published pieces under their ownbylines in Just Security;
- Attended private Reiss Center roundtables, conferences, and events with high-level experts;
- Been sponsored for participation in trips, networking meetings, and external national security-related opportunities.
Founded in 2003, the Reiss Center is a non-partisan multidisciplinary research institute at NYU School of Law. The Center studies national security law and practice against the backdrop of an era defined by significant change—from geopolitical developments to rapid technological advances—as well as enduring challenges. The program of study is comprised of three central pillars: National Security at Home: Domestic Law, Policy, and Process; Use of Force and Emerging Security Threats; and National Security in a Shifting Geopolitical Context. The Reiss Center is also home to Just Security, an online forum for the rigorous analysis of security, democracy, foreign policy, and rights. Just Security aims to promote principled and pragmatic solutions to national security problems that decision-makers face. Its Board of Editors includes individuals with significant government experience, civil society attorneys, academics, and other leading voices.
Qualifications:
- Strong, demonstrated research and writing skills;
- Enthusiasm for contributing to the Reiss Center’s and Just Security’s mission and work;
- Professional experience in related fields—including national security, foreign policy, and/or journalism—is a plus;
- Related coursework is also a plus.
Position Description:
- Student Scholars will contribute to the Center’s mission through in-house research for the RCLS Executive Director and by working with the Just Security
- Fellows affiliated with the Center—including former senior legal and policy national security officials, among many others—are also invited to draw upon the pool of Student Scholars for research assistance, as are the Center’s Faculty Directors.
- Student Scholars will provide research and support for Just Securitystaff and contribute to articles on the forum, and may enjoy opportunities to publish original writing.
- Additionally, Student Scholars will be expected to attend the Center’s events and panel discussions, will be invited to participate in certain RCLS private events, and will be encouraged to participate in the national security law and policy community that the Center works to cultivate at NYU Law.
- RCLS Student Scholars will be paid at the NYU Law hourly rate for research assistants, currently $16.50/hour.
Requirements:
- The Student Scholar program will commence in August 2025 and conclude at the end of the school year, with potential for ongoing assignments during summer 2026 if mutually desirable.
- Student Scholars will be asked to commit to approximately 3-6 research hours per week, with the understanding that the hours may change or fluctuate week by week based on the needs of the Center and its affiliates.
- Flexibility, strong communication, and professionalism in completing assignments are a must.
Application process:
Interested students should submit applications consisting of:
- Cover letter detailing qualifications, including research assistance experience, and why you are interested in this role;
- Resume;
- Brief writing sample (original writing other than 1L lawyering brief is preferred if available), along with a brief identifying description of the sample; and
- Unofficial law school transcript.
Applications should be submitted by 11:59pm on March 23, 2025. Applications can be sent to the attention of RCLS Operations Manager Marianna Kozak, at rcls.law@nyu.edu. Finalists may be asked to participate in a subsequent interview process.