Jobs & Fellowships

The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

The Academy is committed to the diversity of its staff and membership.

We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply. 

All open job and fellowship positions are listed below. For a complete description and the link to apply, please click on the position title.

As a scholarly organization and research center, the Academy recognizes that diversity of thought, class, experience, sex, gender, race, physical or mental ability, age, religion, national origin, and sexual orientation is a value to uphold and is central to the mission and work of the organization. A more pluralistic staff embracing diversity of thought, approach and life experience fosters a more nuanced understanding of contemporary issues facing the nation and the world. Working together in a climate of respect and openness models the civil discourse that is fundamental to the work of the Academy. 

More information about our guiding values can be found here. 

If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please direct your inquiries to Susan Chudd, Director of HR & Organizational Development: 617-576-5092 or schudd@amacad.org.

Joan and Irwin Jacobs Program Officer for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good

The Joan and Irwin Jacobs Program Officer is responsible for launching and ensuring the success of the Local Knowledge Initiative (LKI), a new initiative focused on the role of local knowledge and experts in building thriving local communities. The LKI seeks to uplift a broader conception and expertise and support a ground up approach to reinvigorate American’s trust in public life and each other. For its initial two-year phase, the Local Knowledge Initiative will recognize and connect multiple forms of experts, foster new collaborations, and share stories that reflect America as it is defined and experienced at the local level with a strong emphasis on partnerships and collaboration. Working with the Academy President, American Institutions program area, and other internal and external stakeholders, the Program Officer will develop work plans and processes for the project, develop relationships with key partners, and oversee successful implementation of the Local Knowledge Initiative inaugural year of programming.

Cambridge, MA

Research Assistant for Humanities, Arts, & Culture

The American Academy of Arts and Sciences seek a detail-oriented undergraduate history student to support award-winning historian Jacqueline Jones with research for a 250th anniversary history of the Academy. The research assistant will support the historian with literature reviews, archival research, and other research tasks as needed.

Archival materials are in the Boston area, and the research assistant will have access to space in the Academy’s Cambridge headquarters as needed. To ensure data security and system compatibility, the assistant will use an Academy-provided laptop (PC) and MS Office suite to perform duties.

Cambridge, MA

Program Officer for American Institutions, Society, and the Public Good

The Program Officer is responsible for research and writing, project management, policy development and analysis, and other administrative tasks related to the Academy’s work in the program area of American Institutions, Society and the Public Good. Building on the work of the Our Common Purpose project and the Commission on Reimagining the Economy, the Program Officer will play a key role in developing new, non-partisan, cross-ideological project(s) focused on the American economy and democracy, and in supporting new work exploring local solutions to national problems. 

Cambridge, MA or Washington D.C